What makes a great real estate agent?

Last week I was teaching a New Member Orientation class for GCAAR, my local Real Estate Association. Meeting all these new members often means meeting a room full of brand new agents. It's exciting to meet the amazing people who are just starting out in the real estate industry. Some are anxious with no idea what to do next, while others have a clear plan of action and are up and running. 

When preparing for this class, I try to highlight all of the resources that are at their disposal. I also try to give these new members a sense of the group of people they were joining. When they join GCAAR, they also join NAR and officially become REALTORS.

The National Association of REALTORS (NAR) is America's Largest Trade Association with over 1 million members. Wow! If you think about it, wherever there is land, there is a real estate agent. We are everywhere. As I wrote about in a recent blog post, titled, The Diverse World of Real Estate, we are a very diverse group of individuals. These new members are joining this powerful group of people and I hope they grow to appreciate it. 

What are we doing to set a good example?

In my New Member Orientation, I try to get them excited about joining our group. I also try to give them a few words of advice and answer their questions. One of the prevailing questions that I hear is "What makes a good agent?" How would you answer that question?

You can discuss the importance of doing a great job for your client or focus on building relationships with a list of vendors who help you do a great job for your clients. Why not highlight the importance of staying in touch with past clients or learning the balance between fighting for your client and working with another agent to get a deal to settlement. There are some many facets of a great real estate agent. Can you sum it up in one sentence?

This made me think about a post I read by Barbara Todaro titled, No Family Fights as Well as an ActiveRain Family!!! and I thought about how many ActiveRainers were supportive when I first joined Active Rain years ago. She talks about us being civil to each other on ActiveRain. It made me think...

Are we setting a good example on Active Rain?

And of course I thought about those who welcomed me as a newbie to Active Rain. And the Ambassadors who are always setting a good example to us through their posts and insightful comments. But even after being active on ActiveRain for several years, I am always learning what makes a great ActiveRainer? 

So, What makes a great ActiveRainer? Is it always commenting on those who comment on your posts? IS it pointing out typos so others' posts can be even better? Is it reading the First Timer posts and encouraging our newest members to keep writing? I'd love to hear your thoughts. Can you sum it up in one sentence?