{"id":33771,"date":"2019-10-28T14:47:02","date_gmt":"2019-10-28T18:47:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bhgrealestateblog.com\/?p=33771"},"modified":"2019-10-28T14:47:02","modified_gmt":"2019-10-28T18:47:02","slug":"a-sit-down-with-blair-myers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bhgrecareer.com\/bebetterblog\/a-sit-down-with-blair-myers\/","title":{"rendered":"A sit down with Blair Myers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Blair Myers remains one of the most successful real estate\nagents in the industry, but his path to success has been much different than\nmost. And it is all because of his look.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI am a gay man and just got married, but when people look\nat me they often don\u2019t know if I am a woman or if I\u2019m trans,\u201d he said. \u201cI\nreally don\u2019t care much and take pride in how I look.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The broker\/owner of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Success<\/a> in Warner Robbins, GA, placed first for the second year in a row at the top of the National Association of Gay and Lesbian Real Estate Professionals\u2019 (NALGREP) Top LGBT+ Agent List<\/a> with 305.8 sides in 2018. He was up 12% over last year\u2019s 272 transaction sides. Blair also ranked 16th in the nation, and tops in Georgia, according to the REAL Trends + Tom Ferry <\/a>The Thousand<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

BHGRE\u00ae and\nRealogy are founding partners of NAGLREP which now has 2,500 members and 37\nchapters and is one of the nation\u2019s largest LGBT+ trade organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All of this\nsuccess wasn\u2019t even supposed to have happened had Myers followed his original\npath at Transylvania University (Lexington, KY) where he hoped to become a\nsocial worker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn\na college internship I learned how challenging social work can be,\u201d he\nremembered. \u201cBless social workers because I couldn\u2019t see myself doing that work\ndaily while maintaining a bright overall outlook on life. After that internship\nI knew I wanted to help people, but wasn\u2019t sure how. My dad recalled that when\nI was 9, I would pretend to show houses. So he strongly suggested I look into\nreal estate. At first I was dead set against it because I wanted a steady\npaycheck, benefits and a more typical life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Blair\u2019s dad urged him to rejoin the family in Macon, GA\nwhere they had moved from Lexington and offered to pay his son\u2019s tuition at\nreal estate school. Blair was hooked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now in his 15th year in real estate, Blair was one of the\nfirst in the industry to truly establish his own personal brand which was\naugmented with a starring role on Nick Cannon\u2019s Like a Boss<\/em> on Oxygen TV. Inman named him one of the Most Interesting People in Real\nEstate in 2016 and one of the Most Influential People in Real Estate in 2017.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAlthough\nI live and work in central Georgia, I was not afraid to be who I am,\u201d he said.\n\u201cI was definitely being my \u2018authentic self\u2019 as we say today in the LGBT\ncommunity. Going all out, I launched my World of Blair website<\/a>, had wrapped cars before\nanyone else, gave away Blair dolls and Blair lip balm along with the\ntraditional tote bags, mouse pads and pens. Those that used to make fun of me\nwill often be the ones mimicking me in their own businesses today.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While he has had continued success as an agent and home builder, Myers purchased Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Success in 2017 and gained a new perspective on the industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are some\nviews he wanted to share:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Life Comes First:<\/strong> Blair\u2019s thoughts changed when he\nstarted dating, and eventually married Steven. While he still works extremely\nhard, in his earlier years Blair rarely put himself first and constantly put\nwork, his teammates and clients far ahead of his own personal happiness. \u201cI now\nunderstand what the true value of life is and how work fits in and, ultimately,\nprovides the rewards,\u201d he said. \u201cI like to travel. I like to cook. I really am\nlearning to enjoy things more.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Simplify:<\/strong>\nJuggling 300 deals a year obviously requires being on the real estate treadmill,\nbut Myers is learning a new way. \u201cI was one who wanted more, more and more and\nalways wanted to go faster,\u201d he said. \u201cTechnology and competition never stops.\nBut we need to recognize our own skills and get off the treadmill. On the\nbrokerage side, I realized having the right agents and teammates is more\nimportant than growing an office filled with so many who may not be the right\nfit. Our industry is always pushing for more numbers, but sometimes numbers get\nin the way of the right culture for you. My focus is on smaller in an industry seemingly obsessed with\nthe idea that bigger is better.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Create your niche:<\/strong> While Blair still has the car wraps, his reputation, worth ethic and success has allowed him to pull back on his promotional efforts. Even in a town that is home to the University of Georgia star quarterback Jake Fromm, Blair still remains one of the community\u2019s most recognized people. \u201cReal estate is a really hard and competitive business,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd with so many fighting for listings and buyers, those who showcase their skills will usually win. I truly believe that all of us in real estate must have a public-facing persona. We have to be well-known. And those who can find a niche and augment it with the right mix of community efforts, advertising, content and social media skills will have a unique advantage. You definitely don\u2019t have to go to the extreme that I did although I\u2019m not going to give up my hair appointments.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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