when I honed in on land.” She recalls interviewing nine or 10 land brokers and meeting only one woman. Nancy recalls that at the time she thought being a woman in a male-dominated field would be a differentiator for her and believing, “People are going to talk to me because I don’t look like all my competitors. I got into some rooms because of that, but it didn’t always help me.” At this point in her career, Nancy is confident she has “figured out how to leverage that right.” She describes herself as a mama bear and she assures her clients, “I’m going to protect you.” Nancy acknowledges she has a “bit of a tough reputation” which she has earned by demanding that those who work with landholders she represents perform and do right by her clients. A big advocate of doing your homework and planning, Nancy advises using a SWOT analysis (a strategic planning tool used to evaluate the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats related to a business or personal endeavor). “Do that SWOT analysis and study well,” she says. You should know “who the leaders are and where the opportunity is in the market. In your business plan, ask yourself: What would my business look like when I start, what’s it going to look like in nine months, in 18 months, three years in, five years in—ask yourself what your goals are and if they are realistically achievable.” Nancy sums up her primary advice by saying, “Build your business case regardless of what you’re specializing in, understand who the competitors are, and what the market opportunity is. Key advice from Nancy is to: “differentiate yourself, work hard, and do right by people: Represent them well and that will always come back to serve you well!”
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