We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Chalimar Chieza a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Chalimar thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Looking back on your career, have you ever worked with a great leader or boss? We’d love to hear about the experience and what you think made them such a great leader.

The best boss I’ve ever had, Khotso Khabele, was the founder and executive director of The Khabele School- a progressive learning community that I taught at for 12 years. Khotso was an inspiring leader, entrepreneur and trailblazer who effortlessly combined visionary mindset with radical empathy. He had a unique ability to motivate and guide our entire school community from the students to the staff as well as the parents. He always made sure that we felt supported in both our professional growth and personal well-being and encouraged direct communication and honest feedback so that we operated continuously with a growth mindset. Khotso’s leadership style was empowering and inspiring. He exemplified purpose driven living based on personal mission statements and goals that aimed to establish flow throughout our lives. Khotso changed my life and I am forever grateful. He was the kind of leader and mentor that leaned toward the truth and embraced our individuality in its fullest expression. He was a shining light whose energy radiated wide and far. I attribute much of who I am today to his deep wisdom and guidance.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

My name is Chalimar Chieza- native Austinite, wife, mama to three, avid gardener, home chef, photographic enthusiast and a Global Real Estate Advisor at Kuper Sotheby’s International Realty with a goal of helping support individuals with their buying, selling and investing goals globally and throughout my hometown of Austin, Texas. I transitioned into real estate after teaching middle and high school Humanities for over 16 years. I focus on providing individualized concierge style service to each of my clients whether it is curating their search to optimize their experience or providing world-class marketing services to get their home sold as quickly as possible for the best price. My client’s goals are my goals and I strive to achieve them with excellence. One of my biggest goals getting into this business was to educate and support families on establishing generational wealth through real estate. My work with local non-profit organizations that advocate for equitable housing opportunities for Austin’s families amidst the rising cost of living is core to my vision.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

I’ve been on a journey throughout my time in business (and to be honest, in life) to unlearn my propensity to be a people pleaser. When I first became a realtor, it was not uncommon for me to work 18+ hour days regularly. I remember the worry in my mom’s eyes and voice when she would ask me how work was going, the energy being palpable. In my effort to learn and grow in the business I was constantly in work mode and confused my goals to seek new opportunities and provide excellent customer service with always being available. Boundary setting and focusing on the needs of myself and my family played secondary and I really lost myself in my business. I’ve always been a focused and driven high achiever. I’ve always been a believer that I can have it all- my goals to be an amazing mother and wife AND be a successful entrepreneur. Unfortunately, my tendency towards perfectionism only made my people pleasing ways and inability to say no lead to a lot of stress, anxiety and burn out. Almost 90% of agents leave the business in their first five years. The turnover ratio is real but I’ve never been a quitter. I knew that I needed to find a solution that would restore balance in my life- personally and professionally. My first boss at Sotheby’s, Tarek Morshed, was also a longtime friend and he mentored me through this conundrum that he often called my “double edged sword”. Of course our clients loved that I was so responsive and always available to solve problems, but they did not get to see the other side- lack of sleep, overwhelm and frustration that came when I wasn’t able to execute. He urged me to get back in flow. (Sounds familiar right? Khotso and Tarek were best friends and have mentored me through many life and business transitions.) After a transformative coaching series that was suggested by Tarek and one of my other teammates, I began to feel a shift and that is exactly when my business took off.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

With over 18,000 realtors in our city, I am definitely still building my reputation as a top agent in Austin but I would say that what has helped me start to make a name for myself in the luxury market in these early years is my high level of integrity and genuineness. My colleagues know that there is a standard that I have for the way I do business and they can depend on me to follow through time and time again. My love language in the business is collaboration and I love supporting my colleagues and friends in their endeavors personally and professionally. Relationships matter and I love to support my people and spread the love! My clients know that they can also count on me. They know that I am going to provide in-depth expertise and knowledge that aims to improve their lives when we work together. My service goes well beyond the real estate transaction and I am committed to providing a unique experience that will successfully support my client’s goals even if they are not buying or selling at that time. To me, it is not about transacting. It is truly about building trust and being a partner and friend that they can depend on. I aim to be top of mind when life is life-ing and if that means that we get to do business together- that is a huge bonus.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.chalimarchieza.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chaliiib/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chalimar.brown/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chalimar-chieza-0751812