I started in 1988 with no idea what real estate really meant. Just five years before that, I came to this country from Poland and therefore, I did not even know anybody who owned a home or understood the process of buying or selling houses.

In 1993, when I started my career as a broker/owner, I became one to have my private office to meet my clients. However, my business soon changed unintentionally – I was helping people find their dream house or find the right buyer for their existing house, but once I was a managing broker, I started to help my agents achieve their dreams. I did this by helping them to sell more properties, creating an environment to be more productive, providing the best tools in the industry, keeping pace with changing technology and helping agents with promotion and marketing.

Establishing brand recognition for this office in Chicago has been a great accomplishment. It wasn’t easy for a person with an accent, who for that reason, was very often challenged by cooperating brokers and attorneys, and who had to doubly prove his professionalism. Proving to my agents that I was better than my competitors was a big deal. In the early 2000s, I had managed four locations with over 350 agents. At that time, no offices had bilingual secretaries. It was standard for our locations. It reflected the composition of our city’s population and addressed our clients’ needs.

Setting high standards for conducting a business and leading by example helped me with recruiting. The foundation of my business is based on referrals from clients and good relationships with cooperating agents/brokers and the community. I am determined to keep developing my office for agents who have a passion to help people with their dreams.

HENRY SAKOWSKI, MANAGING BROKER, RE/MAX CITY, Chicago