Meet Valerie Alexander

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Valerie Alexander. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Valerie, so glad you were able to set aside some time for us today. We’ve always admired not just your journey and success, but also the seemingly high levels of self-discipline that you seem to have mastered and so maybe we can start by chatting about how you developed it or where it comes from?

I think from an early age, I had to always manage multiple things at once. When that becomes routine, it gets ingrained in you as normal, and it’s weird to not always be balancing things.
When I was a kid, I did sports and school like so many kids do- always having to balance getting homework and chores done between practices. After a stint in soccer, softball, and basketball, I decided to focus on figure skating and make that my sport. I joined the local club, hired a private coach, took off-ice conditioning classes, and practiced 3 times a week in order to prepare for competitions.
In middle school, I added in part-time jobs. Working at the college football games in concessions as early as twelve years old, and babysitting. Once I was in high school, I started working at a movie theater, which also brought with it a bigger social circle and more fun things to do outside of school, skating and work. Never wanting to miss out, I simply added it on.
When I got to college, I kept that same mentality. As I was working to pay my way through college, there were times when I worked as many as three jobs at a time along with a full course load. So, in order to not fall behind in school or miss out on still having fun as a college kid, I learned to be self-disciplined. The math looked like this: if I needed to go to class Monday through Friday, work on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, had extracurriculars or social events on Wednesday and the weekend, and an essay due by the following Monday, then I should probably do it on my free night on Tuesday, even though that was almost a week before it was due. While most people would procrastinate until the day before and pull an all-nighter, I knew I needed to knock it out as soon as possible and set myself up ahead of time. In this way, I managed to become incredibly efficient and still carry that with me to this day.
After college, I moved to LA and started my career. How refreshing to only have one job to focus on! It almost seemed unnatural to me to have all of this free time. So, what did I do? I added more of course! Getting involved in my local alumni chapter and later becoming president of it, organizing events, and making new friends.
Now, in my career in real estate, this self-discipline serves me well. In a job where you are self-employed and only have yourself to answer to, it’s easy to be lazy or slack off every day. But in order to be successful at this vocation, you need to put in the work. At the end of the day, it’s sales and commission-only, and you reap what you sow. It’s incredibly important to stay focused, log the hours, and be accountable. Many realtors need a coach or accountability partner to keep them on track. My advice is to recognize when and how you work best and try your best to time block your day accordingly. If you’re sharpest or most productive in the morning, knock out your hardest or most-dreaded tasks then. Or, if you’re more creative-minded at night, set aside an hour to do some brainstorming. Everyone is different but reflecting on this and how it applies to you will help you to be more intentional. It isn’t rocket science, but it’s so easy to get caught up and let the day run you, instead of you running the day.
Now don’t get me wrong – I still need to recharge and take time for myself. Traveling, cooking, being outdoors, running, reading, watching my favorite shows, and being social are the things that keep me refreshed and ready for action. If you have balance in your life, you avoid burnout. Self-care needs to be self-disciplined as well. I think it’s so easy to lose sight or undervalue that or even feel guilty taking time for yourself. It’s easy to think about self-discipline as it relates to work, but where many of us really need it is in our work-life balance. So, you have my permission – go have some fun!

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

My specialty is residential real estate in the Los Angeles area, with a niche in the South Bay community. While my clients take me all over the city, a large majority of my business is helping buyers and sellers in Redondo Beach and Torrance. I love helping my clients find their home at the beach and slice of the amazing South Bay lifestyle. We are fortunate to have an incredible agent community here as well that I’m genuinely proud to be a part of.

Recently, I’ve started to rehab homes in the area with a business partner. This has allowed me to stretch my creative muscles in the design aspect and use my planning skills in the logistical portion. One of my favorite parts of my job has always been taking a property from looking not so great and giving it the extra attention it needs to make it look amazing. Rehabbing homes allows me to do this even more outside of just doing it for my seller’s listings. We just closed on our first project and are excited for what’s to come!

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

I think I have always been hard-working, tenacious, and focused. However, if I didn’t know something or needed to learn something, I wasn’t too shy to ask. When I was first getting into real estate, I realized that there is so much more that goes into this job than most people realize. It’s a lot more complicated and nuanced than what you learn in the classes or while reading the textbooks (or what you see on TV!). The way you become a great agent is to have a lot of transactional experience under your belt. So, if you don’t have that, talk to people that do. Get a mentor, network with other people already doing what you wish to do, read books, listen to podcasts, join a team. I offered to take agents out for a coffee so I could pick their brain, and I ultimately joined a team when I wanted to get serious. This all helped accelerate my business and get to where I am today. People can be incredibly helpful – but you have to have the determination to ask.

What do you do when you feel overwhelmed? Any advice or strategies?

When I feel overwhelmed, I typically give myself a few easy tasks to accomplish. They may not be the hardest things I need to do that day, but it allows me to take action on something I can finish to feel a sense of productivity. Once you have that, there usually is a sort of momentum that takes over, and you feel more empowered to accomplish the next set of tasks. Then, whatever was overwhelming you seems less significant and you’re better able to handle it. Taking a quick break and doing something else like exercising or relaxing can help as well to reset your mindset.

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Image Credits

Kimberly Jarrett Studios

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