I was honored to be a speaker at this year’s Apartmentalize conference (what used to be known as the National Apartment Association Education Conference) in San Diego. Although I wasn’t speaking until Friday afternoon I decided to head down on Wednesday so that I could meet up with industry friends, attend a huge party (you know, it’s what we do) and also attend classes by my speaker friends who I know and love, but rarely get to see speak. I’d decided to head over to the San Diego Convention Center early on Thursday morning so that I could pop into some of the education sessions. Then, a funny thing happened on my way to the sessions-I never made it.
It seemed that every corner I turned I’d run into someone I knew and we’d immediately start a conversation to get caught up on our lives. When that conversation wound down someone else would be walking past, which meant a new conversation, maybe a selfie or two, and then more conversations. By the time I got to lunch on Thursday I was sitting on a bench with a fellow speaker having lunch-and I had still not attended any education sessions yet because I just kept taking to people.
What am I saying?
If you want to attend education sessions, you need to ignore everyone you see and just focus on getting to those sessions. Okay, maybe that’s not the real point! Actually, the main points I took away from this conference were rooted in people. Why did I want to go to those education sessions on Thursday? Because many people I like, admire and respect were speaking! Why did I miss the Thursday sessions? Because I kept running into people I like, admire and respect were speaking.
Lesson #1: Multifamily is a Small Large Industry!
What do I mean by this? For as large as multifamily is, it’s a pretty small industry in the sense that everyone seems to know everyone else. I am still amazed when I start to connect the dots of the people I know that know each other! What does this mean for you? Your relationships can work for you or against you. Of course this is true in all parts of our life, but it’s especially true in multifamily!
I recommend to everyone that I coach and train to make developing positive connections a priority in your career. This may not be more true than when you’re working for a company or boss that you don’t like. Don’t leave under pot conditions and don’t burn your bridges when you leave. Doing things the right way, is always the right thing to do.
On the positive side-if someone was particularly helpful to you in your career, send them a email, text or (gasp!) a handwritten note today and let them know!
Lesson #2: Take advantage of opportunities to network
This is related to lesson one, of course, but this is a reminder on the importance of expanding your network of people constantly. A manager I once worked for got hired by a different company as a regional manager because of a contact she made at a networking event. I’ve earned a lot of money from the contacts I’ve made through networking (and then cultivating those relationships.)
The obvious way to do this is to attend dedicated networking events in your area. The other way is to just make it a point to meet someone new at whatever event you attend; make good conversation, listen well, be positive and engaging, oh, and know when to end the conversation!
Lesson #3: Multifamily is a great industry!
I owe a lot to my affiliation with the multifamily housing industry and I owe my career today as a speaker to the fact that many years ago I started at my first company as a leasing consultant. I know this industry can powerfully impact you too!
