George Bonvillain:

First Year of Commercial Real Estate

It can simply feel like you have no idea what you’re doing. The same questions might be running through your head:

Why did I choose this? This isn’t for me. Clearly, I made a mistake. Nothing I’m doing is working. And I don’t even know if I’m doing the right things.

I was asking someone in the New Orleans office, “What were the things that were going through your head during your first year?”

I’ve never done this before. How far away is the light at the end of the tunnel?

Once you’re past that point, it can seem a little trivial. When it’s you, it can feel so much more real, serious, and important. But you are absolutely learning as you go—every single day. Every phone call, every email, every meeting—you’re going to be picking up new things: new words, new terms, definitions, and new negotiation tactics, all day, every day.