Richard George Career Background
What is your biggest career achievement?
- To date, my biggest career achievement has been the position I have obtained currently at The Breeden Company. I was hired in our organization to assist with photography, videography and enhancing our various social platforms. Quickly, I, along with our company's executives, equally realized there was more opportunity for me. I ask "why" when we discuss projects, acquisitions, etc.; I always want to learn more and I have found that my talents have been only one facet of a greater career path. The Breeden Company has allowed me to find a passion in marketing, while also being placed in a position to become a next generation executive. I know my hard work/get-it-done attitude plays a role, but I also believe in "the right place at the right time." I understand that not many 20-somethings are in the position I am in, and I am grateful. Maybe it's luck. Maybe it's a prechosen life path. Either way, I understand every day that I have been placed in a magnificent position to continue to expand the brand of our organization, to find new and creative marketing mediums, and the decisions I make are impactful to my organization for generations to come.
Given your past experiences, what event/ project or moment would you revisit and how would you go about it differently based on your current frame of mind?
- Looking back on life, if there was an opportunity to revisit a time/moment, and do things differently based on my current frame of mind, I would care more about people and less about money. When I started my career building my former marketing business, I cared more about the money I was making than the people I was helping/the people helping me. I eventually grew out of that mindset, thank goodness, as I sometimes see some people do not learn that lesson early enough in life. Now, it’s all about people over profits. The money does ultimately come because we are in a business of people and real estate, but it’s truly the relationships that I help create that make the business. People are not robots or products; people have emotions.
To care about people as “people” allows a relationship and trust to be established. It makes you credible in your integrity to do good business, and this is what I’ve seen to be true with building business, increasing revenue, creating longevity within our team’s tenure, building good products and providing good services. It’s about serving our team members, not them serving me. It’s about serving the needs of our clients, not trying to take them for their every dollar.
I don’t know where, along my life path, that my mindset changed, but I am more than glad my mindset evolved. I count myself lucky that I’ve globalized my view instead of monetizing it. I don't think, reflecting upon my life so far, that I would be able to do anything differently. My mind and my heart needed to evolve. Maybe it's natural to look so egocentrically, but I'm glad that's not the view of life and people that I hold today.
From your perspective, what is the industry lacking to support the modern renter and how do you plan to help supply that need?
- It's a hot topic that will, hopefully, not go away any time soon...affordable housing! The industry is lacking affordable housing, and that doesn't necessarily mean a supply of income restricted housing, but homes that police, teachers and middle Americans can afford. Yes, rents are increasing, but incomes aren't increasing to meet the demand. People are forced to choose a roof over the head or food....it's not both. However, what we aren't talking about are the details. Yes, developers, including the organization I work with, are building, but building materials are a set cost. Any business model shows that you develop your product and you must sell it. If it's not at a profit, the business cannot continue or grow. If you sell your product for less than what it took to create it, you go out of business. Developers need municipalities to step in and step up with credits to allow developers to build homes that will be more affordable. None of this is about corporate greed. It's "if this, then that." I read the industry magazines, and stay abreast of the news in our realm, and I do not see, in general, municipalities speaking up and helping to achieve the solution to this ever-growing concern. All I can do is continue to do is be a vessel for this issue, and proposed true solution. I continue to speak to whomever I can regarding this hotly regarded debate.