We recently connected with Emily Hall and have shared our conversation below.

Emily, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

My entire life was planned. I was a good student – honor roll, clubs, goals. I knew I would go to a four year university (go noles!) and major in education, start my teaching career, get married, and start a family. Check, check, check, and check.

I was always a planner – it made me feel organized and in control. In 2015, I had my son and all sense of control went out the window. Being a first time parent is life changing – no longer did I care about the dishes in the sink, or what was next on my life to do list; I just wanted to focus on my family. After maternity leave I went back to work as a high school teacher and my husband quit his 9-5 and started a real estate photography business. Every day I came home sad. I loved teaching, but I missed my baby. I woke up and left before my son was awake and was too exhausted by the end of the day to truly enjoy being a mom. I needed a change, which went against everything I was used to.

I signed up for an online real estate course, stayed up studying late in the night, and passed my test on the first try, which I considered a sign. I connected with another realtor in my neighborhood and we became fast friends. I joined her team, finished the school year, and began my real estate journey in April of 2016.

After just a few months in real estate, my team lead asked if I would join her in starting our own brokerage. Without hesitation I immediately said yes. If you’re going to take a risk you might as well go all in. We worked long hours, hosted events, marketed ourselves, and did everything we could to get our small but mighty brokerage, Root Realty, immersed in our community. I had no idea what I was doing, but I did it anyway.

We went from two salaried jobs, to one, to none with minimal savings and sporatic paychecks in sight. In those moments, when we struggled to pay our mortgage and survived on ramen I wasn’t sure if the risk was worth it. Maybe I had been right all those years and should have stuck to my life plan. It was hard to see into the future when the present was so tough. Then we got pregnant with our daughter. There was no other option; I knew I had to make this work. I didn’t want to spend the first year missing her; I wanted to be there. So I worked hard, really hard and I sold 16 homes in my first year. Our daughter was born, I took off three weeks, and was back at it with a baby and a toddler by my side. The brokerage grew and all the what ifs and hard work made sense. We created a space for our agents to bring their kids to work, give back to the community, and help our customers achieve their goals.

Was the risk worth it? YES. Was it hard? ABSOLUTELY. But, without taking that leap I wouldn’t be where I am today- surrounded by a team of incredible women, being able to attend every school function, working from anywhere, and most importantly, showing my kids that it’s important to take risks and try something new and scary. It’s ok to end up where you didn’t plan to.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Hi! Emily Hall here – broker associate and director of sales at Root Realty in Jacksonville, FL. I’m a mom to two, married to a photographer, Swiftie, and you’ll probably find me at a local craft brewery. I love being surrounded by family + friends, hosting events, and taking last minute trips. Root Realty is a boutique brokerage that prioritizes educating our customers and advocating for them to achieve their real estate goals. It’s important to me that each of our agents has ample support + training and our customers have dedicated agents to empower them on their home buying or selling journey. We’ve worked hard to build a culture that celebrates, encourages, and challenges our agents while also ensuring each of our customers feels like our only customer. I am so proud of our broker/owner, MaryAnne Rodriguez, for her vision and dedication, our agents for their constant hard work and the way they cheer each other on, and our customers, friends, and family for their continued loyalty. I can truly say I love what I do and can’t see myself being anywhere else!

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

Being genuine. I am NOT a sales person. I am not the realtor who will show up and ask you to sign a listing agreement on the spot or tell you right now is the time to buy. I’m here to earn the opportunity to guide you on your home sale or talk to you about your situation and decide if now, later, or maybe never is the right time to buy for you. I care deeply about my who I work with. I want what is best for them and I believe that shows in the interactions I have with my customers. I don’t push; I ask questions, I listen, and I provide resources to help the customer make informed decisions. This leads to natural relationships that transpire into business, referrals, and more often than not, friendships.

Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?

Listen and respond. It’s essential to provide various ways to listen to feedback from your team: one on one meetings, large group discussion, anonymous surveys, suggestion box. Take what you hear and do something. I find the team does better and morale is higher when you truly listen and act. If there’s something you can adjust or change, do it and tell them. If it’s something you can’t change or don’t have a solution for yet, share that and explain why. Remember, you have to do both — listen AND respond.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://emilyhallrealtor.constantcontactsites.com
• Instagram: Emily.realtor
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/emilyjaxrealtor
• Other: http://bit.ly/2k5bE0c

Image Credits
Kelly Martucci