Internship acquired at Large Brokerage Firm and looking for Advice to stand out
Hey guys, as the title says, I am a rising senior in college and have secured a virtual internship with a large CRE firm (think CBRE, JLL, Cushman and Wakefield, etc. level). I have no experience in the industry but have set myself up through networking, case competitions, and becoming Vice President of my university's real estate club. 

Essentially, for people in the industry or have gone through this process, I would be grateful if you could provide any advice that I could follow to prepare before the program starts and shine when I am in it. I have a deep desire to be the best broker/CRE employee that I can be and want to take this Summer to make myself the best candidate possible when it comes to recruiting in the Fall.

I have heard things like becoming familiar with Argus, being proficient at excel (for proformas/etc.), and continually recruiting and making connections. If there are any books, websites, programs, or things that helped you to be successful I am eager to hear!

Thank you and I hope you all are doing well in this unprecedented time.
[{"id": "ftme11g", "text": "Do not be afraid of the phone. Do not wait for introductions. Call all the brokers but especially the big dogs and newbies to start chatting them up seeing what sort of side projects that have that need doing. Do the project and then ask to see if they can take you on a tour or something basic to learn more about what they look at in the market. Do not just focus solely on your desired market sector. Talk to all the people at shop. This might not be the shop that you start at so you want to have a network of people who would potentially say you are decent enough person to get you in the door at your next stop. Good luck.", "replies": [{"id": "ftmfyb5", "text": "Great advice. CRE is one of the most relationship driven industries out there, and building great relationships are key to moving beyond entry level.", "replies": [], "depth": 2}, {"id": "ftnfz0v", "text": "Gotta give additional props to that first sentence.  I made more phone calls in the first six weeks of my CRE career than I did in the rest of my previous life combined.", "replies": [], "depth": 2}, {"id": "ftoc84g", "text": " By phone - You mean just make random calls? I feel a bit awkward cold calling as the other person maybe in middle of something and may get pissed? Just wondering :) Is there a way to make it look not so intrusive?", "replies": [{"id": "ftpv8h6", "text": "Meant to say to other brokers in your shop to start.  If you are doing a virtual internship, it will be tough to form relationships with the brokers that are going to decide whether to pay you going forward. \n\nBut yes call and call and call and no one will give two hoots if you smell.", "replies": [], "depth": 3}], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "ftme5m4", "text": "I\u2019m in the exact situation as you. I\u2019m looking forward to more responses!", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "ftmef7f", "text": "punctuality. responsiveness. way you speak/answer  the phone. walking the fine line between aggressive &amp; too pushy. asking the right questions. putting your head down &amp; working hard. the math is basic,  essential excel knowledge is minimal, don\u2019t worry about pro formas.. real buyers hate that. best of luck!", "replies": [{"id": "ftni4a8", "text": "Could you expand on not worrying about pro-formas?  That's not an opinion I often hear expressed.", "replies": [{"id": "ftntndn", "text": "banks lend on actuals. in the majority of cases, current numbers make the deal work. i think its all about accurate underwriting &amp; what the buyer is walking into day 1. i\u2019m sure there are cases when a pro forma is realistic &amp; provides value but in most cases it is \u201cclick bait\u201d to raise the cap rate, check out some of the stale listings on crexi. spend more time mastering your niche &amp; learning how to properly underwrite, rather than worrying about how to speculate \u201cfuture earnings\u201d.", "replies": [], "depth": 3}], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "ftmejmy", "text": "&amp; i didnt even know what argus was until looking it up", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "ftmgf0f", "text": "Make friends.  It really is mostly that simple.  Find a reason to get in the office.  Look at peoples pics on their desk.  Find out their hobbies .  talk to them about their families.", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "ftmijok", "text": "Technical skills are great but as a rising college student there shouldn\u2019t be a huge expectation of proficiency. you will learn these skills quickly on the job. \n\nOne of the most important traits you are going to be able to exhibit in your world would a aggressiveness and fearlessness. Answer the question/raise your hand in the big team meeting. Don\u2019t be afraid to speak up - people will notice the new kid who stuck his neck out and spoke his opinion.", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "ftmiuwv", "text": "You'll see that this business is dominated by professionals that are 45-60 yrs old. This is obviously going to change at some point (think of it as you are the next generation that is going to take over in 5-10 yrs). Given the broker(s) age, a lot of them haven't adapted to/implemented technology into their day-to-day activities. Find a successful senior broker, and ask them what they hate doing, and find a more simple way to streamline that task they hate. A lot of the times it will be prospecting/cold-calling/business development. If your internship allows it, offer to do some prospecting/cold-calling for them. If not, offer to build a prospecting database they can use once you leave. You'll look like a genius by creating something so simple (using Excel, SalesForce, etc.)\n\nI also agree with the other folks that commented on this. It's simple - show others that you're interested. Ask to grab coffee, set up a quick zoom call, grab lunch. Ask them what they would do if they were in your shoes. Be likable, dress sharp, be on time. Good luck, you're going to kill it!", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "ftmka4a", "text": "Take an online communications-skills course that teaches establishing rapport, listening carefully, and when and how to then offer your ideas.", "replies": [{"id": "ftohyq6", "text": "great! Do you anyone in mind please..? tks.", "replies": [], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "ftmpkj0", "text": "Acquisitions here at a PERE shop....I started out in the brokerage world. Lots of good advice here already, let me give you my list:\n\n1. Ask a fuck ton of questions, but make sure you write that shit down. I don't care if its in a handbook or your laptop. Build yourself a knowledge base.\n2. Work on your modeling, ARGUS, and real estate fundamentals. Use resources like adventuresincre or getrefm or BIWS.\n3. Learn all the excel/windows shortcuts. Be able to use your computer without a mouse. When I started out in my career, my senior folks ripped the mouse out so I was forced to learn fast how to use my keyboard and excel properly.\n4. Find a mentor/stakeholder, even if it isn't your team leader. Look to learn from folks with diverse real estate backgrounds. People come to brokerage shops from all sorts of firms ie. lenders, equity folks, developers, etc\n5. Find ways to be helpful when you don't have something to do.\n6. Pay close attention to the detail oriented part the business. For all the schmoozing and client dinners, there are a lot of hour reading leases, going over docs, and leaning on legal. Don't spend all day in excel and then not be able to read a fucking lease or loan agreement. You need to be well rounded.\n7. When all this corona shit is over, network and meet with as many different people in the CRE community as possible. I've been in the business for 7 years now and I still make the effort to in-person network at least once a week for coffee or lunch. \n8. Be present, be on time, be on every call.\n9. AGAIN, ASK LOTS OF QUESTIONS AND WRITE SHIT DOWN.\n10. Lastly, don't be a douche. I don't care how rich your parents are, so don't show up to the office wearing a rolex or a hermes tie or gucci sleds. Dress well and neat. If you need help dressing yourself, go on wallstreetoasis. Invest in good slacks, shirts, socks, shoes, and a couple coat/vest/jackets. Be friendly, be respectful, and have fun. For as much analysis and excel bullshit you will do, this is still a people business. I give business to brokers that I like personally who work hard. Be likeable as well as good at your job, and you will go a long way in this business.\n11. PS. have fun", "replies": [{"id": "ftmzqlt", "text": "2. In addition to acre, biws, refm, I recommend [Top Shelf Academy](http://tsmfinancialacademy.com).  Attend their live class or ondemand class for the property type you are focused on.", "replies": [], "depth": 2}, {"id": "ftpvgp2", "text": "This is solid gold. Put it in the info bar on the side.", "replies": [], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "ftn0xit", "text": "When they tell you to hit the phones. Hit the phones.", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "ftno91i", "text": "I post a bunch of CRE hacks almost daily on my LinkedIn. Also I post them on our company\u2019s YouTube Channel. Links below \n\nLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewbermudez\n\nYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC35yaCB70N9D9K0zB1yGzmw", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "ftnrklx", "text": "Be ready to hit the ground running. A lot of these internship programs have been reduced because of COVID. Be flexible, ready to adapt, and be sure to ask questions. In the short time you\u2019re in the internship, you want to be able to leave a positive mark for future employment since these programs at the large firms is to convert to employment. \n\nBest of luck to you!", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "fval0hi", "text": "I just commented on another post about my background working as a commercial appraiser a couple of decades ago. To the many great suggestions above, I'd add learning to use all of your local county and city's online public record research tools, how to look up recorded deeds and mortgages with the clerk of court, using the property appraisers office records - you can do amazing searches there to find properties meaning a variety of criteria, and of course find out who owns the properties.\n\nBuilding department records can tell you a lot, you can look up the past work done on a property, find out who built it and sometimes access the plans online.\n\nThe local government planning departments usually provide online zoning and comp plan maps, online zoning codes and other records.  you can also find out what developments are up for approval or are in the approval process.\n\nThere are also national databases with maps of flood zones, wetlands and even soil types.  I've never done brokerage, but my husband does small development projects.  He can give me the location of a property and in 10 minutes I can find out almost anything you'd need to know about that property.", "replies": [], "depth": 1}]