Recognizing Our Real Business


It is important to really recognize our true business function. MBA College classes teach that it is important for any venture to have a mission statement identifying that primary function. There is a true story that occurred some years ago during a formal dinner in Paris, where there were present many industry dignitaries, and, among those, was the president of Rolex. He was approached by a prominent lady who greeted him in a casual manner and inquired, “How was your watch business?” The Rolex gentleman looked at her intently, and replied, “Madam, I’m not in the watch business. I’m in the fine jewelry business.”
The president of Rolex knew clearly his company’s primary function, that of being in a business activity separate and apart from merely keeping time. So, too, we must recognize that our business is not just brick, mortar, and land. Dick Reno, the founder of our approach to the real estate business, taught from the beginning that we are in the PEOPLE BUSINESS. That is our primary function. He also taught that, if we start from this premise, we cannot go wrong because, as he taught, “there is no bad real estate. There is just bad ownership.” Counseling and really understanding client needs should be our objective.
The time is fast approaching when our nation’s economic climate will drastically change, and, with it, we are going to have to get back to the basic fundamentals of problem-solving that really made us who we are today.