We recently connected with Jillian Gralewski and have shared our conversation below.
Jillian, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. How do you think about vacations as a business owner? Do you take them and if so, how? If you don’t, why not?
I take too many vacations! My partner and I are constantly on the road or in the air. We are opposite of home bodies. I feel extremely lucky to have the flexibility to work remotely. When I am home, I reach out to all of my connections- clients, friends, colleagues and schedule a time to meet. The majority of my network shares my passion and excitement about traveling. It is something we can connect on, share experiences and stories, and ideas for the next trip.
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
Hi! My name is Jillian Gralewski and I have been a full-time real estate agent for almost 7 years. If I am not busy showing houses or meeting with clients, you can find me running trails or planning my next adventure. I first got into real estate because I was tired of working my 9-5. I craved flexibility, loved the idea of working for myself and was confident I had the discipline and skills to become successful. In 2016 I moved to Golden from Chicago in need of more sunshine and a balanced lifestyle. My company at the time, opened an office in downtown Denver and I jumped on the opportunity to transfer to Denver. I immediately became hooked on Colorado. I couldn’t bare to sit at my desk, unhappy and unfulfilled with the blue skies and mountains calling to me to make a major change. Feeling trapped, desperate and lost, I knew I had some soul-searching to do to quickly figure out my next career move.
My family and friends always told me I would be a great real estate agent. With years of experience in sales, my hard working mentality, ability to truly connect with others along with the hours spent on Zillow and binge-watching HGTV, it felt like the perfect fit! What attracted me most about becoming a real estate agent is that I would be truly helping people with one of their biggest decisions and purchases in their lives. A few months later I was licensed, closed on my first sale and quit my 9-5!
I started bartending at a local Golden brewery as an avenue to meet potential clients and get to know the local community. It was the best decision I have ever made for my real estate career. My network and client base grew exponentially. It allowed me to meet people face to face and make a connection with them before passing them a business card. Working for a smaller agency, I had to organically build my business, cultivate relationships and find my own leads.
What sets me a part as an agent? I am honestly interested in getting to know my clients, building a friendship and establishing their trust in me as their agent. I am honest, trustworthy, reliable and strive make the buying/selling process an enjoyable experience. I hustle and work hard, am quick to respond and confident in my knowledge and abilities. I play hard too! My clients appreciate that I spend time in the mountains, running trails and traveling because they do too. We can connect on the Colorado life style and even spend time doing some of these activities together. They understand that no matter where I am in the world, what trail I am running- they can count on me.
Where do you think you get most of your clients from?
Bartending at a local Golden brewery. I was able to meet tons of new people, pass out business cards and get to know the locals within my community.
We’d love to hear about how you keep in touch with clients.
I stay in touch with majority of my clients via text. I am very good about being the first to reach out and stay in touch with a large network of clients and connections. I also visit a local brewery where new, current and past clients hang out at. It has been a great environment for me to mingle, talk real estate and meet new connections and clients. Whenever I show an interesting house, close on a deal or have a listing I post it on my social media accounts. This reaches a large scale of clients I may. not stay as in touch with, as well as new clients. I love sending thoughtful personal handwritten cards as well.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @jagralewski
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jillian.gralewski.16/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jillian-gralewski-70740bb2/