Ladies and gentlemen, welcome back to another SSU meetup, your host, Alvaro, to bring you another successful and interesting guest. This time we're flying all the way to Beverly Hills, California, to meet with our friend, Kiri Gillan. She's actually one of the most successful real estate brokers in the country. She's part of the Aron Kirman Group, which is killing it when it comes to luxury real estate in California.
She's been named by the Wall Street Jordan at Real Trends, thousands, which is one of the top 1% of agents in the nation. And also, she's been listed one of the most expensive properties in Pasadena. So she's going to tell us all about the different techniques and things that she's done to get to that point. From the mindset, the work and all the different things.
So excited about today and I hope you enjoy it. Hi! What's happening Kiri? How are you?
Good. Let me just turn on my volume so I can hear you. Happy Monday. Happy Monday to you as well.
I thank you so much for joining us. That's a pleasure. Thank you for having me. Of course, always looking fabulous.
Also on a Monday. I'm excited about today because you're definitely one of those individuals that when you look at what you're doing, it's like, wow, how does she do it all? Because you've become this successful professional in real estate, telling some of the most amazing properties, but also you've developed this mindset that is inspirational for so many others. So you're originally from Scotland and moved all the way to Los Angeles to become very successful.
It's such a competitive industry. Tell us a little bit about how did this work. How did you know I was from Scotland? Did you read about that?
Of course. So in real estate, I really believe that every day you have to start over. If you focus too much on the deals that you have, you end up with nothing. So every day I'm constantly striving to be a better person and constantly learning.
So at the beginning of my career, moving to Los Angeles, I have no family here, no friends, don't come for money, don't have an education unless when I was 15. I'm dyslexic. So for me, I basically had to learn from passion, meaning like I had to learn. Okay, I find it to pass a real estate exam.
I actually didn't have to study. So I failed to test like three times, but I just knew that real estate was like, I just knew this is my destiny. So I could pass in the real estate exam. I already knew who were all the top dogs and Beverly Hills.
I knew exactly how much deals were closing, who they were, even though I didn't have a clue about business, really say, but there was something that, you know, that grabbed a ball. I don't know. It's really hard to explain when it comes to destiny, when you're pulled towards something and you just know what you're like your path after getting into, I guess, when I pass my test, I went straight into Beverly Hills. I told myself since I have no contacts, no friends, no family, why would I start selling smaller condos, let me go straight to the luxury course.
I fell on my face because it was very competitive and it took me about two years to even make a check. I don't even know how I survived. What else? I guess I just, every day, I think the reason why I am so successful today and getting more successful every day is because my mistakes have made me one of the best listing agents, because I know how to go into a room, redeploy and how to analyze and execute.
And I think that's one of the best things that I did. I learned two things psychology and how to read people and cold calling. I mastered these two things, and this is what made my business flourish because I don't have friends or family. So I don't have friends or family.
So another option but to learn how to survive. Wow. So listen, let's not wait a second because I love it. Everything you say is so powerful and so right on.
Now, let's break it down because for those that I listen in or that we'll watch this later on, you come as you said from nothing coming from Scotland, all the way to Beverly Hills, one of the most competitive areas in the whole nation, if not in the world when it comes to luxury real estate, and you mentioned that initially was difficult to get into that. But now you're this confident human being that it's thriving. You're listening some of the most expressing homes. How does somebody go through those two years without selling nothing and keep on going?
That's true. So for me, it was all about vision and being uncomfortable. So I, like when I'm telling people how to push through is I literally had a point in my life when this is how my career changed. So there's a point in my life where I've been in a car and I'm a real estate license and it's like, how many of you really say I don't have a car?
How much money? How much to prospect? How much to get leads? So I got out one day and I literally walked out my house and I walked all the way down to the really posh, fancy neighborhoods and I started stealing these sticky notes because I watched a YouTube on YouTube, whatever.
And then eventually I got a phone call and I said, this is a swear, swear to God, truth, like I got a phone call and then I got a listing and then I got another listing and then I got another listing and I guess one thing came to the next. But at the end of the day, I always had a vision and my vision was to be number one and it still is to this day and I work my ass off like I want no other, even when I'm getting stuff, even when I'm winning. I feel like I'm losing, which is kind of sad. So every appointment that I get, analyze it and I get better.
I've always had it. So in real estate, I don't know if you guys have, you guys are really safe, but it barely knows. You have to sit down in front of the client and give them a presentation and they're meeting with 10 other agents. So you have like two seconds to make an impression and why they should pick you.
So once you've asked through that, it's good. Tell us the secret sauce. What is the human sauce when you go to a little presentation? I think just learning how to read people, analyze people and something I've always had as a child.
I love people. I'm always asking them the right questions. And I guess I've always had that in me and I guess moving into real estate actually helped me because now it's totally changing my business. Right.
I mean, we're in the people's business at the end of the day. So how important it is to read people and ask the right questions because sometimes we just want to sell ourselves so much and we forget that sometimes we just need to listen first. You listen based on the questions that you asked. Well, you know what they say, I don't know if you read the good guy, I would say Robert Green or whatever the power.
The person who's doing all the talking is the weakest in the room. Sounds good. I'll be too much in a meeting. You're probably not listening.
You're probably not analyzing and you're probably not handling the right objections. 100%. Now, let me ask you because you were talking about how you initially were doing the speaking notes everywhere and you're also very good at cold calling. Are those things that you continuously do because they help you in the past or you're evolving and now with the power of social media?
Where do you put most of your attention in order to get listed? I don't do the sticking notes anymore because I don't believe in lying together because now I do my prospecting every single day. I still feel like prospecting is my time to get as many deals as I can and I love the prospect. I actually just believe in every agency prospect even if you hate it.
I think for me, I used to hate cold calling and I used to hate it. I was so scared. I used to hate it. But I ended up training my mind that I loved it and then I became really good at it.
So it wasn't just something that happened to me. I told my team, I'm like, I have made a fortune from strangers. You don't even understand. I'm just getting up the phone and the amount of people they say, no, no.
And then you just learn how to master each object and day by day by day. Of course, not every day is perfect. No, every note is getting closer to a yes. So 100% is about building that consistency and remain resilient because it's not an easy thing to hear.
I know after no, but definitely it pays off. Now, I want to ask you about social media, right? Because you're also active on it. You've been able to create across all social media channels a strong presence.
How important it is to build your personal brand versus your business brand. So to be honest with you, that is something I'm still working on every day. I just started just in the TikTok era and it's not really based off of really safe. I love really safe.
It's showing homes is kind of boring on TikTok. I've seen it. So I did my TikTok and I based it off of like, you know, positive speaking. And so I do get ready to miss me and I talk about my life stories.
And because there's a lot of stories that we can talk about and how I created miracles. Like I got this listing on me. I don't know if you know what, Mapleton is one of the biggest street. And I told myself for a whole year, I want to sell a house on Mapleton.
And I told myself when I was a car, I mean, we're going to sell a house on Mapleton. And there's this house. It was on the market for like six years, right? And it expired.
And I got up that night and it was, I swear this is the truth. It was 4 a.m. I looked on my phone and I was like, oh my God. And I waited for like 10 minutes.
And then I realized the owner was from Florida. So I picked up people and colds or before anybody else. We end up getting a listing, selling it in 30 days and we represented the buyer. So I became like, like, because I listened to my intuition, I knew what was happening in my competition.
I knew who she was. I knew I wanted it. Because I waited a few more hours. She had what I got, you know, in dating with calls and other agents and then we got it.
So they've done. Wow. I love that the power of manifestation, the love attraction. Everything happens to my person in your mind and then in reality.
So you need to put it out there and then follow my action. So 100% on congratulations. That's a hell of a story. Yeah.
So I'm sorry what you were saying about like my TikTok. So that's where my TikTok is about me talking about my experiences in life, how to get better in life, how to become better business women, how to be a better person. And I managed to, you know, this is like my new, my new path. And then also, of course, social media is massive.
Even if I'm not picking clients from social media, my clients are watching me. So instead of calling them every day, they see it was all these big properties and they know what's happening. Even on Facebook, I get it all the time. This old, my older generation of clients run Facebook.
Each, each social media has a different entity of clients. So you got it. I can't post it up on Instagram. Right.
It's amazing. When you say that it's so true, right? You need to be fully aware of which demographics are in each platform based on the type of client that you work on. I'm doing for that.
And I think you're doing a great job. Now, let me ask you, if you had to tell us to your younger self, what would you be? Hmm. I don't know if I can tell my, you know, I love how my life is.
I love the ups and downs. And I just love the story. And I, like I said, the other data run on my takes off. I said, if a God had given me too much, I would never be the strong.
I would never be a good closer. I would never be able to go in against all these competitive, you know, real estate agents because what I say definitely knows market. It's like the Olympics. Only one gets paid.
So I feel so much for me to win. And I think that's what brought me so good because every experience I pulled back and we write it out. We said, okay, how can we get better? Okay.
We should ask these type of questions. Okay. How can we get better? And every mistake came into something positive.
And I think my experience of all the years that I've done real estate is making me into that special person I am today. So now I would never back. Love it. Love it.
No, that's great. I love that. It's such a strong statement and so true, right? Because thanks to those struggles we become who we are today.
We can just look forward from here. No, you can't. You have to fail. That's just the part.
It's part of the journey. Let me ask you because we always have the same question to all of our guests. I'm very curious to know what is really the definition of luxury to you. So this is a tough question for me because I have clients that are, we have condos from 500,000 and listening up to 87 million.
And I, my grand and my team is luxury. It's about our service is about how we represent and how we present. So when you hire us as luxury real estate agents, it's everything. So if you're a $500,000 condo, you get the same service as the $87 million house.
So the whole brand in itself. Does that make sense? 100% luxury equals high-end service. I mean, this is something that is so profound because it goes beyond anything else.
So it's very cool. Now, I really appreciate it. I just want to make a comment on that because luxury is a brand, but it's also written as business of service. So I'm not going to give my lower-end clients less service because of higher-end service.
So everybody to me, it's all about building relationships. I focus on the relationship and not so much the coins. It will come back ten times. I love it.
Great statement. No, very good. Listen, Curie, I really appreciate everything that you've been sharing with us today because it's very inspirational, very empowering and kind of a story. I mean, can we wait to hear more about it, definitely for those that are watching or listening.
Follow Curie. She's amazing. What's the best way for anybody to get to know you better, to reach out? Will you be Instagram?
Instagram, TikTok, you guys can follow me anywhere. Thank you so much. Curie, best of luck and we'll see you very soon. And thanks again for everybody tuning in today.
We hope you enjoyed it. And remember, embrace it's beautiful success in life. My name is Alvaro and I'll see you next time.