Neckties and Ice Cream

Once upon a time there was a rookie salesman who, like many others, was preoccupied with the brand of car he drove. How crisp his shirt was. How straight the cut of his suit. How spotless his shoes. And how perfect the knot on his necktie.

One day he was running late for a client meeting. So he stopped to buy ice creams for the client’s children.

100,000 hours later, he met the same client again.

“You bought us ice creams” the now teenage children recalled, as their parents looked on, smiling.

There was no mention of the necktie he’d worn.

100,000 hours of more sales experience, didn’t create that client connection. Nor did all the neat shirts, shiny shoes and tailored suits.

That impulse of grabbing ice creams for a pair of children he hardly knew, did.

More Mileage Please

Your career gets more mileage from your genuine acts of kindness, than from all the Teslas you can buy.


overwrite.ai is an AI-assisted content creator that helps real estate agents instantly curate unique and search-optimised property marketing descriptions. 


For informative and light-hearted news and views on the world of real estate, follow overwrite.ai on Instagram and LinkedIn, and keep up-to-date with our weekly NewsBites blog.

2022: A Year Estate Agents Will Either Love, or Fear

Last year was a watershed for estate agents the world over. Records tumbled month after month, as many of you banked commission cheques most had only dreamed of.

A decade of quantitative easing, low interest rates, and pandemic-era government stimuli have made real estate, typically an illiquid asset class, more liquid than ever before.

With homes on the market for days rather than months, bidding wars became front-page news. It’s been in-sane!

There are no guarantees that these good times will continue. With inflation already exceeding central banks’ expectations in many developed economies, there is a very real risk of markets turning around.

Even if you’re not concerned with worst case scenarios, have a look at what some real estate thought leaders predict will be crucial for success in 2022:

Continue reading “2022: A Year Estate Agents Will Either Love, or Fear”

The Mad Reality of Metaverse Realty

I’ve been busy buying real estate. One day back in mid-December, I acquired four prime residential downtown Manhattan plots of land. Since then I’ve made two unsuccessful bids to acquire an adjoining fifth plot. Together they would complete a super-prime land parcel.

Continue reading “The Mad Reality of Metaverse Realty”

How could the Omicron variant affect real estate investment?

The discovery of a new strain of Covid-19 in southern Africa has sent markets into a tail spin. The new Omicron variant was quickly declared by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a “variant of concern”, given a high number of mutations that suggest it could be both more transmissible and more harmful than previous variants, while also potentially rendering existing vaccines less effective.

Continue reading “How could the Omicron variant affect real estate investment?”

Tech Gift Ideas for the Festive Season

We wear it. Live with it. And work with it. So why not gift it as well?”

This silly season, we’ve got a seriously hot list of tech gift ideas that even the most hardened techies will adore.

Continue reading “Tech Gift Ideas for the Festive Season”

Selling Sunset: Secrets to a Luxury Listing

At long last, Selling Sunset has returned in all its gorgeous glory to Netflix—and the drama and luxurious Los Angeles homes in Season 4 are a sight to behold.

This season features new cast members along with old favourites at the Oppenheim Group, including Heather Rae Young, Chrishell Stause, Christine Quinn and Mary Fitzgerald as they struggle to make a killing in LA’s real estate market.

Continue reading “Selling Sunset: Secrets to a Luxury Listing”

Family Offices take to direct Start-up investing, bypassing VC funds

Investors that may have previously confined themselves to public markets are now clomping all over the venture capital landscape.

“The creative spirits. The underdogs. The resolute.” This ethos describes precisely the people who read this column, I have no doubt, putting us in alignment with Sequoia, the US venture capital firm that began a much talked-about blog post recently by addressing just such groups. Also “the independent thinkers”, “the fighters” and the “true believers”. Sequoia has a relentless drive to help them succeed, too, and naturally so does this column.

Continue reading “Family Offices take to direct Start-up investing, bypassing VC funds”

10 Real Estate Movies Every Agent Must Watch

A-B-C…Always be closing

Can you guess which all time great film featured that immortal quote?

This week, we’ve put together our list of the 10 real estate movies that every property agent must watch. Starting with the ultimate classic…

Continue reading “10 Real Estate Movies Every Agent Must Watch”