2nd week as a CRE agent. Any must-have points of advice?
I have seen a few of these similar posts but I am still eager to ask and see what y'all have to say.

I work at a boutique firm (11 employees total, 5 producers) and I am specializing in Office/industrial tenant rep in Dallas.
[{"id": "cvq6zr5", "text": "Patience and perseverance. It's a long haul that pays off more and more the longer you commit. ", "replies": [{"id": "cvq7cr1", "text": "Thank you very much. It is definitely the career path that suits me well I believe. So I am just eager to get rolling.", "replies": [], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "cvq9hk1", "text": "try to plan 3-6 months out.  Meaning you have to take care of the stuff closing in 1-3 months obviously, and there is where it is easiest to focus, but making sure the stuff right behind that is getting setup right is probably more important.\n\nIt can be brutal when you go from awesome quarters to shitty ones and vice versa", "replies": [{"id": "cvqn9cb", "text": "Thank you!", "replies": [], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "cvqn45l", "text": "Congratulations, now the hard work begins. You'll have setbacks, but try not to get discouraged and just keep your efforts focused on the next potential deal.", "replies": [{"id": "cvqn8w1", "text": "Thank you very much for the encouraging and kind words\n", "replies": [{"id": "cvqneut", "text": "No problem. And find a good mentor. Deal experience should be as valuable to you as money at this stage. That is what your clients will ultimately be willing to pay a lot of money for, expertise in your field.", "replies": [], "depth": 3}], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "cvqpqb9", "text": "Find a mentor and keep in mind that you wont know anything for 4-5 years.  ", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "cvr7je4", "text": "Hey just curious - I am an analyst at a large firm - I aspire to be a broker but just do not see how I can survive a year without an income stream. I am an extremely hard worker, but with rent and student loans, how do people do it?\n\nJust curious how you have adjusted to things financially.", "replies": [{"id": "cvr8mvy", "text": "Well I am very blessed to be living back at home. So I pretty much have no real expenditures (besides gas and food, and most of the time my mom cooks plenty of food). Other than that, the guys that I talked to who made the leap from salary to straight commission always tell me it wasn't easy and that their budgets were tight, but that it was very much worth it. \n\nHope that helps. I don't wanna live with my parents longer than 6 months (hoping to get married in the next year) but i am not complaining.", "replies": [], "depth": 2}, {"id": "cvr9vmn", "text": "It really is hard.  I'm not sure there is a magic answer.  \n\nJust speaking for myself, I worked part time on weekends for a little bit of extra income (stable), I was married so I could count on that, and budgeted hard.  Forget eating out all the time.  The suckiest part is when you are running low it makes it hard to do the right things too.  Those lunch meetings are great, but they hit your wallet.  Joining trade groups etc gets expensive.  Is it worth it to spend $500 to join a group if it will get you in front of potential clients?  That gets harder to answer when you have $600 in the bank or $60k.  I made $10k my first year doing this.  It sucked.  \n\nDon't get discouraged, just make sure you plan ahead and are doing the right things.  \n\nAlso you will run into tons and tons of people who this will be much easier for than you.  They will come in independently wealthy, or with huge savings and books of business already.  Some young guys come in more or less to rep their families investment companies etc.  Its possible to get going with almost nothing, just harder.", "replies": [{"id": "cvr9z73", "text": "Thanks for sharing. It certainly is overwhelming, but does seem worth it in the end.", "replies": [], "depth": 3}], "depth": 2}, {"id": "cvrqmpz", "text": "any particular reason for leaving the analyst gig? Is it pay or do u want to be a broker because its more interesting? And, I want to be an analyst and do not want to be a broker, can u tell me the pay range, atleast an estimate for a large firm? ", "replies": [{"id": "cvsel7a", "text": "Analysts make around 50k. If dedicated to a team you can make a little more by sharing fees, but that all depends on your company and team. The big bucks are being involved in a more direct production role, like brokerage.", "replies": [{"id": "cvt7s69", "text": "oh wow 50k is a bit lower than I thought. Yeah I can see why brokers take a bigger portion of the pie as they are the ones bringing the money in right. Have u ever thought about the lending/credit side of the biz? Like a underwriter or an analyst for like Freddie Mac looks like a sweet gig with very good pay and cant beat that gov benefits. I plan to do my masters in RE finance soon, and I always thought I would enjoy being an analyst for a brokerage or work in acquititons for a development firm, but I think I need to keep an open mind of also being in the lending/credit side. ", "replies": [{"id": "cvtm12u", "text": "Funny you mentioned that - My goal is to move into the capital markets side of the business, more specifically debt and structured finance (mortgage brokers). I have been jaded to the leasing side of the business. Analysts on that side make a similar salary, maybe more (55-60k). My problem is that I have no finance experience but that is where networking and relationships can come into play.\n\nI would not be interested in working for a government organization like freddie, simply because you are capping your earning potential. If you are a go-getter and confident in yourself, I would move towards a production role to make the $$$.", "replies": [{"id": "cvtvp8i", "text": "&gt;  My problem is that I have no finance experience but that is where networking and relationships can come into play.\n\nI have no finance experience too, I am right now in the residential side of real estate (brokerage), so I am pondering whether a masters in RE finance would be the right move for me to help me get my foot in the door. From the research I have done, a masters is absolutely not neccessary, but as you mentioned the connections and networking (especially for someone like me with no RE finance background) could be crucial. ", "replies": [{"id": "cvtw17n", "text": "from speaking to mortgage brokers, analysts, etc around the country, they all admit that the math involved is 8th grade level. Understanding some of the financial concepts that come into play is important, but a masters is certainly not necessary to learn them. One of our top mortgage brokers in our office has a bachelor of arts in biology from a small state school. He's in his mid 30s and developed his career around the recession time, so its definitely possible.\n\nI can see the masters worth the money in regards to networking and helping out with applications, but not so much the knowledge required to get your foot in the door.", "replies": [], "depth": 7}], "depth": 6}], "depth": 5}], "depth": 4}], "depth": 3}], "depth": 2}, {"id": "cwdu4rq", "text": "I'm very new still, but something that has helped a number of agents in my office and myself is acquiring a couple property management accounts. The income is consistent and by keeping up on comparable spaces to those that come available in the buildings you manage, leads come along for other buildings as well. And if you have an modest accounting background, since the economy has improved in my area I'm getting offered a lot of side book keeping jobs. The problem for me has been balancing the time spent book keeping and still trying to work in leasing and sales, ultimately that is what I want to do. Every transaction has taught me something, and the NNN reconciliations and estimates associated with the management have helped me stay up to date on local market rates. ", "replies": [{"id": "cweiohg", "text": "Thanks for sharing, how do you land those accounts? are they typically smaller, low profile properties?", "replies": [], "depth": 3}], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "cvx5029", "text": "I'm starting commercial Real estate in 2 weeks myself, but I guess I'm in an extremely lucky situation. I'm starting a with base salary for $65K, but I'm also going to do actual property development for the company and lease out the space they already have. I'm expected to kick ass for them, and they said I wont see any commissions my 1st year, but will be entitled to a large bonus by xmas 2016.", "replies": [{"id": "cvx73gi", "text": "Congrats!! May I inquire as to what firm you are working for?", "replies": [{"id": "cvy5851", "text": "It's a small boutique local firm in OH.", "replies": [{"id": "cvy5qam", "text": "Ya I wish I had some money I could start saving up, but that just isn't how they run things here.", "replies": [{"id": "cvye884", "text": "Well it helped i had 8 years of Mechanical Engineering experience, so I'm taking a decent pay cut actually to get started in the business. I also own 3 rentals myself to offset any income loss.", "replies": [{"id": "cvyfdxo", "text": "Ohhh ya I just got into. I am 25.", "replies": [], "depth": 6}], "depth": 5}], "depth": 4}], "depth": 3}], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "cvys8i9", "text": "Are you being fed leads? Or are you getting more of the 'here is a phone book' type setup?\n", "replies": [{"id": "cvyuyn4", "text": "I would say about 50/50 right now. I hope it will turn towards more leads than just straight phone book type work.", "replies": [], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "cvzbs3b", "text": "Some good posts for you to read: \n\n1. [The 5 Things that Determine Your Success as a Commercial Real Estate Broker](http://www.wallstreetoasis.com/blog/the-5-things-that-determine-your-success-as-a-commercial-real-estate-broker)\n\n2. [Day in the Life: Commercial Real Estate Broker](http://www.wallstreetoasis.com/blog/day-in-the-life-commercial-real-estate-broker)\n\n3. [Commercial Real Estate Broker Compensation](http://www.wallstreetoasis.com/blog/commercial-real-estate-broker-compensation)\n\n4. [Pretending To Be A Secret Agent: Life of a CRE Broker](http://www.wallstreetoasis.com/blog/pretending-to-be-a-secret-agent-life-of-a-cre-broker) ", "replies": [{"id": "cvzdrfu", "text": "Wow. Awesome man, and thank you so much. I really appreciate it!", "replies": [], "depth": 2}, {"id": "cw83nc8", "text": "love this guys site\n", "replies": [], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "cw7vp2k", "text": "Im new to the business as well, focusing on office tenant rep in the Bay Area. I too would like to hear what people have to say about this. I posted some questions about being new to the business that if you check my profile will probably come up. Good Luck!", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "cy3n2sb", "text": "Hello! What Dallas market do you work in? I am also a new agent in a small (4 employees), but well established firm. I have been with the company for 4 years mostly working on administrative work on our property management front. I would love to connect.\n\nEdit: I forgot I'm not in the Dallas sub...", "replies": [], "depth": 1}]