We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Katie Gardner. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Katie below.
Katie, we’re thrilled to have you sharing your thoughts and lessons with our community. So, for folks who are at a stage in their life or career where they are trying to be more resilient, can you share where you get your resilience from?
Growing up in a family of 7, (being number 4 of 5 kids) I learned a lot about resilience. As a child, we learn subconsciously, by observing. I never went hungry and I was never homeless. I saw parents that worked hard to give us the best life they could. I never felt like we weren’t rich, because all our needs were met. As I grew older, I learned that what I saw was, resilient parents. With 5 little kids, they started their own business, built a new home on their own, and were committed to building a successful life for our family. They ran across many obstacles but would never quit.
As I grew older, I adopted this same mindset. No matter what, never quit. Learning to be resourceful with what you have and building on that, is the way to success. Complaining is the main ingredient for depression and a dead end road. One habit I created early on in my career was gratitude journaling. What we focus on expands. It’s easy to be resilient when you are grateful. It’s easy to be resilient when you fortify yourself with positivity. These are two key ingredients to building a successful life.
Two of my favorite words of encouragement are, Keep Going!
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
This year celebrates 10 years in Real Estate for me. It has been an adventurous journey. I have ridden the highs and the lows. I have learned a lot. At the end of the day, the people are my favorite part of the business. I love being invited into homes and families as they choose me to walk with them, through one of the greatest investments of their life. My job is so much more than a job. It’s a purpose. I love being able to create opportunities for people in every area of their life.
I have had incredible opportunities come to me and I love to pay that forward. I have had the privilege of building a business with some remarkable people. No one succeeds alone. We recently started dreaming of what the next ten years would look like for our business. We dreamed of continuing to create opportunities for our clients, family, friends and community. We dreamed of what that looks like. Creating wealth opportunities, creating legacy, creating home and creating community. As we dreamed, The Occasio Collective was birthed. As we close a 10 year chapter as the Rocco Team, we open the door to the future, as The Occasio Collective. We could not be more excited!
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
Being in Real Estate, you must know the product, community and area to be the best possible advisor. One thing I committed to from the beginning was to be a life long student. I wanted to learn every step. Inspection, materials ,appraisal, marketing, building, mortgage, insurance etc. This has served me well as I have guided many families “home” over the past decade. I am still committed to learning every single day.
Negotiation is another important skill to learn in order to make sure your client is making a good investment. This is a skill. No one should just guess at this. There is too much on the line.
To close, maybe we can chat about your parents and what they did that was particularly impactful for you?
The most impactful thing my parents taught me was work ethic. Get up every day and give your best. Plant seeds and eventually you will receive a crop.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.theoccasiocollective.com
- Instagram: occasiocollective
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCA9cyJ0ex1FxUM7KJiFoVKg
