Pay It Forward: "Become Indispensable" Advice From NAI Koella's Owner/Principal Maribel Koella

What has been your biggest challenge or obstacle as a woman in your particular role? The reception I encountered as an introverted, 5’4” woman arriving in the business world was often not very receptive let alone welcoming and encouraging. For instance, when I entered the banking field as a newly minted business graduate, I was only offered jobs as a secretary. Or, when, entering real estate, I was assigned roles designed to assure failure, like performing foreclosure appraisals on moonshiners in backwoods Appalachia for the VA. Or, when indicating my intention to specialize in the CRE Industrial Sector, I was met with responses like, “Now, honey, wouldn’t you rather work in nice, clean office buildings?” Or, when, despite having fulfilled requirements for a professional certification, I was initially discouraged from applying.

In short, I suppose my biggest challenge was finding fair-minded, equitable access to the opportunity to do good work. And, I must admit, there were times when, in the service of promoting an unorthodox creative solution or an opportunity to pursue justice, I didn’t politely conform to the proprieties of convention.

How have you overcome those obstacles? I applied a rule of thumb I developed while training horses: Gentle Pressure, Relentlessly Applied. Such non-confrontational resoluteness works with people, too. At least, sometimes.

As implemented in this context: I dressed in navy-blue 3-piece suits and single-mindedly pursued ways to stand on the shoulders of those with greater experience. That is, I identified the person most proficient in the area I wanted to master. Then, I would offer to do menial support tasks in exchange for the opportunity to shadow them while absorbing The Knowledge. I did this to learn appraising and later to learn commercial real estate sales and even later to develop a specialization in the field of Industrial Real Estate. I would use every opportunity I could find to gain expertise and explore their thinking processes. Seeking expert mentors was how I learned to fly airplanes at 15. It’s also how I learned to fly-fish in my thirties and how I learned to train horses.

Where would you say commercial real estate needs to improve for women? I am the first and – still! – the only Industrial-designated SIOR in the state of Tennessee. Perhaps it’s time to double down on recruiting more diversity in our professional organizations. And I’m talking about women AND men AND all the other social components including and beyond gender that create a diverse team of people. All with the potential for approaching problem-solving from a broader range of perspectives and sensitivities. The greater the diversity in a group, the richer and more novel the solutions the group generates. And, right now our world could benefit from some richer, more novel approaches to problems!

How can women better position themselves for success? Acquire knowledge. Promote collaboration. Success both fosters and attracts success. And, as the adage runs, given how, analogously, we’ve had to do everything Fred Astaire does but backwards and in heels, we need to insistently offer the adroit problem-solving skills we’ve honed contending with challenges in our lives. All presented, of course, with a dash of sensitivity and more than a smidgeon of emotional intelligence. What’s your best piece of advice for the next generation? Find mentors. Find someone you want to grow up to be like and then figure out how to work with them, with the goal of learning everything you can about what they do and how they think about what they do. Then, go create your personal version of what you’ve learned.

And become indispensable, while always being ethical, fair, and kind in your business dealings. That is, do the best you can to assure everyone benefits in all your business activities. Your reputation and integrity are worth far more than any single transaction. One more piece of advice, I’ve found pivotal in creating my life path: In our society, we are often shamed for asking ourselves the question, “What do I want?” By contrast, I suggest that question, asked frequently and with fervor, is key to personal development. In that vein, I continuously invoke a prompt I learned from Dan Sullivan for pursing such self-exploration: “If we’re having this conversation a year from now, what needs to have happened, personally and professionally, for you to feel satisfied with your progress?” I find it a remarkably helpful exercise to repeat often, especially when you are feeling stuck.

What, in particular, can women bring to the table as the industry continues to grapple with the COVID-19 crisis?  Two women come to mind: Angela Merkle, the German Chancellor with a doctorate in quantum chemistry, illustrates the usefulness of applying scientific training to problem-solving; namely, the benefits of thoughtful analysis based on factual information coupled with a collaborative, network-based style of leadership. And Jacinda Ardern, Prime Minister of New Zealand, and the youngest female head of state in the world noted for her relentless positivity, who takes the rather unusual social position of caring about the well-being of the vulnerable, and who has successfully led her country in quelling the epidemic. These two inspiring leaders illustrate the capacity of women to work toward a New Kind of Business, one that is based on cooperation, collaboration, and novel creative problem-solving.

What is changing in the industry that concerns you? I’m concerned about the extent, especially over the last decade, the CRE field has drifted from a relationship-based career to an activity mediated by technology. That trend fosters a perceptual misapprehension, namely, the illusion that people can solve complex CRE issues with an app or through some automated web site technology rather than by addressing them in interaction with an experienced, knowledgeable professional CRE problem solver who can counsel them through the complexities of their business situation.

How would you advise someone on how to get a foothold in the industry?  CRE is a very difficult job that is not becoming easier. You must be passionate about entering the field if you choose to do so. And you have to make sure you are self-sufficient, being prepared to sustain yourself, financially, for 2 years. It will take that long to gain traction. And you definitely need to team up with someone very experienced in the field to get started successfully.

Ultimately, to succeed in the CRE profession, you have to really want to do it. And, being that it’s sales, you have to be willing to endure the constant drip-drip-drip of rejection and minimization of your contribution, irrespective of your conscientious work, good efforts, competence, and everything else you bring to your projects.