Take who you are, flip it upside down, enhance it a bit and boom! You’ve got your brand. Some people pay me a lot of money for that advice, so use it wisely.

My fair readers know me pretty well by now, and I’m not afraid to share (yet again) that I have no interest in learning about technology.

“I’ve been waxing poetic about luxury in these pages for a number of years now, and it never gets old. From opulent imported marble kitchens to practical basement bowling alleys and solid gold bathtubs, there’s no such thing as over the top.” — Agent X

As far as this issue goes, I’m not as interested in who works where, but I do like to know who makes the most dough and what makes people want to jump ship.

“The only thing hot out there these days is the housing market, now that interest rates are lower than the low end of a scale.” — Agent X

“Inside the cover story you’ll get a chance to dive into all of that boring data and hear from top producers in Chicagoland. Truly a content match made in heaven, so on behalf of all of us at CA I’d like to say: you’re welcome.” — Agent X

“We did it, everyone! We made it to 2021. Things may look a little different, so let me break down what’s new.” — Agent X

There’s a really good chance we’ll all need to be wearing real pants again at some point, so that’s something to look forward to (or not, if you’re really digging the loungewear).

“As we drift into the end of the year, let’s focus on happy stuff — like managing brokers!” — Agent X

Word on the street is that you agents are super busy out there selling homes and stuff, which is great news since so many businesses aren’t as businessy as they would like to be right now.

So, while some people debate whether or not it makes sense to hand out Oscars this year, rest assured that when it comes to real estate, a pandemic won’t slow us down.

“There are industry vets currently tanking, so if you’re new to the gig and you’re getting deals done, then oops, maybe we should’ve asked you to be a part of the cover story.”

“As much as I like to dive into the cocktails at real estate events and swim my way out the next morning, I do still believe in being the most professional agent that I can be.”

“When you’re a fancy important broker who has been in the business somewhere between 20 and 100 years, you pay other people to deal with things like technology or how to get techno music to come out of your new speakers that you can’t figure out. But for people who can’t farm out the techno, this issue is for you.”

“Another thing that helps me pretend the world is not topsy-turvy is the fact that real estate peeps keep getting new jobs and brokerages keep opening up new offices.”

“The cover story will tell you all about how to handle our “new normal,” and I’m not talking about the show with NeNe Leakes.”