Bravo, Ruth. You said the quiet part out loud—and then gave it a microphone.
Service is a privilege. And yet somehow, in our profession, it’s become the equivalent of admitting you work the drive-thru. The moment an agent hears the word service, many imagine an apron, a tray, and a tip jar. But let me offer this: if you’re bristling at being called a service provider, maybe it’s because deep down… you’re not doing it very well.
Here’s the part that gets uncomfortable fast: Real estate has spent the last few decades playing dress-up. Fancy branding, “top producer” awards, and Instagram reels have replaced what should be at the core of this work—professionalism, responsibility, and yes, service.
Let’s be blunt. We’re not brain surgeons. We’re not appellate court judges. And yet we routinely advise people on decisions involving hundreds of thousands—sometimes millions—of dollars. With less mandated training than a barber.
I’ve met agents who couldn’t explain dual agency if you handed them a flowchart and a flashlight. I’ve watched offers get butchered by folks who didn’t understand contingencies, who then walked away from the mess without so much as an apology. I’ve sat at tables where “fiduciary” meant “whatever helps me close this fast.”
So, yes, real estate is a service industry. But done right, it’s more than that: it’s a form of stewardship. You are trusted with someone’s largest asset, their hopes, their future. You don’t need a stethoscope to understand that this kind of responsibility requires clarity, care, and competence.
We need a reckoning—not with consumers, but with ourselves.
Because when agents reject the word service, what they’re really rejecting is accountability. It’s easier to call yourself a lifestyle entrepreneur than it is to admit you owe your client the truth, especially when the truth doesn’t favor your paycheck.
Ruth, thank you for reminding the grownups in the room why we got into this business in the first place. May the rest catch up—or step out.
Thank you, Vanessa. Your comment is, in many ways, part two of my post—and I’m grateful for how directly and eloquently you said what many of us tiptoe around.
You nailed it: the focus in our industry has shifted. Instead of stewardship and skill, it’s become about metrics, money, and “crushing it.” Somewhere along the line, we traded depth for dopamine—and replaced the call to serve with the drive to sell.
As you point out, maybe it’s not that agents dislike being seen as service providers—maybe it’s that they’ve never been trained to understand what true service means. The current systems don’t lead us there. The emphasis is on scripts and sales funnels, not on decision-making, process management, or fiduciary responsibility. We teach agents how to convert leads, not how to think critically or solve complex problems.
It begs the question: what if there were another way?
A model focused less on sales and more on capability—on being a guide, an educator, a steward?
Of course, that would require a restructuring of the industry. It would require more robust education, a serious commitment to standards, and a mindset shift away from personal branding and toward client outcomes.
And yes—technology might be the lever. If used wisely, it can streamline the transactional noise and give professionals more space to do what really matters: serve clients with clarity, care, and competence.
The irony? The public already wants this. They're tired of the sales competition disguised as real estate. They want guidance, not gimmicks. They want trust, not TikTok.
And when that shift truly happens… well, we might need a whole new genre of real estate shows to stream.
Thank you again for holding the line and calling for something better. Here’s to raising the bar—and making service the standard, not the exception.
Bravo, Ruth. You said the quiet part out loud—and then gave it a microphone.
Service is a privilege. And yet somehow, in our profession, it’s become the equivalent of admitting you work the drive-thru. The moment an agent hears the word service, many imagine an apron, a tray, and a tip jar. But let me offer this: if you’re bristling at being called a service provider, maybe it’s because deep down… you’re not doing it very well.
Here’s the part that gets uncomfortable fast: Real estate has spent the last few decades playing dress-up. Fancy branding, “top producer” awards, and Instagram reels have replaced what should be at the core of this work—professionalism, responsibility, and yes, service.
Let’s be blunt. We’re not brain surgeons. We’re not appellate court judges. And yet we routinely advise people on decisions involving hundreds of thousands—sometimes millions—of dollars. With less mandated training than a barber.
I’ve met agents who couldn’t explain dual agency if you handed them a flowchart and a flashlight. I’ve watched offers get butchered by folks who didn’t understand contingencies, who then walked away from the mess without so much as an apology. I’ve sat at tables where “fiduciary” meant “whatever helps me close this fast.”
So, yes, real estate is a service industry. But done right, it’s more than that: it’s a form of stewardship. You are trusted with someone’s largest asset, their hopes, their future. You don’t need a stethoscope to understand that this kind of responsibility requires clarity, care, and competence.
We need a reckoning—not with consumers, but with ourselves.
Because when agents reject the word service, what they’re really rejecting is accountability. It’s easier to call yourself a lifestyle entrepreneur than it is to admit you owe your client the truth, especially when the truth doesn’t favor your paycheck.
Ruth, thank you for reminding the grownups in the room why we got into this business in the first place. May the rest catch up—or step out.
Thank you, Vanessa. Your comment is, in many ways, part two of my post—and I’m grateful for how directly and eloquently you said what many of us tiptoe around.
You nailed it: the focus in our industry has shifted. Instead of stewardship and skill, it’s become about metrics, money, and “crushing it.” Somewhere along the line, we traded depth for dopamine—and replaced the call to serve with the drive to sell.
As you point out, maybe it’s not that agents dislike being seen as service providers—maybe it’s that they’ve never been trained to understand what true service means. The current systems don’t lead us there. The emphasis is on scripts and sales funnels, not on decision-making, process management, or fiduciary responsibility. We teach agents how to convert leads, not how to think critically or solve complex problems.
It begs the question: what if there were another way?
A model focused less on sales and more on capability—on being a guide, an educator, a steward?
Of course, that would require a restructuring of the industry. It would require more robust education, a serious commitment to standards, and a mindset shift away from personal branding and toward client outcomes.
And yes—technology might be the lever. If used wisely, it can streamline the transactional noise and give professionals more space to do what really matters: serve clients with clarity, care, and competence.
The irony? The public already wants this. They're tired of the sales competition disguised as real estate. They want guidance, not gimmicks. They want trust, not TikTok.
And when that shift truly happens… well, we might need a whole new genre of real estate shows to stream.
Thank you again for holding the line and calling for something better. Here’s to raising the bar—and making service the standard, not the exception.