Melissa Rubin | Mastering Real Estate and Philanthropy - Mick Unplugged [EP 11]
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Are you ready to change your habits, sculpt your destiny, and light up your path to greatness? Welcome to the epicenter of transformation. This is Mic Unplugged.

We'll help you identify your because, so you can create a routine that's not just productive, but powerful. You'll embrace the art of evolution, adapt strategies to stay ahead of the game, and take a step toward the extraordinary. So let's unleash your potential. Now, here's Mick.

Welcome to another exciting episode of Mic Unplugged. And today we are diving into the world of high stakes real estate, philanthropy, and navigating life's transitions with the visionary who's redefining the industry. From handling sensitive estate sales to founding a national network of trusted real estate advisors. She's a leader whose concierge approach to business and life is as innovative as

as it is inspiring. With a career that spans over two decades, marked by her unique blend of style, negotiation prowess,

and a deep commitment to her community, it is my distinct pleasure to welcome the incomparable Melissa Rubin. Melissa, welcome to McUnplugged. Thank you so much for letting me be here. I'm so excited. I am excited as well. I'm excited for the world to hear about your journey, to hear about you and all the amazing cool things you're doing down in South Florida and also New York. And as we talk about that journey, Melissa,

You know, your journey from the fashion industry to becoming a real estate mogul is fascinating, right? Can you share what inspired this transition and how your past experience have helped shaped who you are today? So certainly. So I was in the fashion. I grew up in Montreal, which fashion was like my life since I was a little girl. And

Through my career, I had the opportunity to live in multiple cities and really create brands for large retail stores. And I came to Miami to do a startup for Sunglass Hut called Watch Station. So before that, I was at the limited stores. And at that time in the 90s, to be part of a limited

division, it meant that you were like really on top of your game in fashion. And they said something to me, which I will never forget. And I was sitting in the interview and they said, here we do the tango. Now you might want to do the rumba. The rumba is a great dance, but we do the tango here. So if you can get on board with the tango, we're good. But if you want to do the rumba, then that's fine, but you're not going to do it here. And it was like a

defining moment in terms of really understanding, like really embracing what is and not trying to do something at that point that they would not accept. And I just have always remembered it throughout because in any corporate environment, people are doing a tango and you might want to do the rumba, but to be successful, you will have to embrace the tango. That is awesome. I'm ready to start dancing right now.

I know me too, but I have the food gene, not the dance gene. It's really an issue. I hear you. I hear you. I came here with actually one of the limited executives and we created Sunglass Heads Division called Watch Station. And so we created a thousand stores around the globe. And I had the opportunity to really create something that didn't exist in the watch business. And what I learned in general and in the fashion business, like,

There are key items. So if you as a man go into a department store, you will see a sock wall. And that is a key item for that particular product. And they expect to do gazillions of dollars from that key item. So I've always remembered that. And then I've translated that to real estate products.

making sure that every person I meet and work with is a mini key item that we focus on maximizing whatever it is they want to maximize. And it's different for every person at every age, at every time in their life, wherever they are in the country. But nobody there's not like what is the saying a square peg in a round hole?

Square peg, round hole, right. Right. So there's just everybody is their own individual and to really recognize that and create it for them. So anyway, I'm digressing. But when Sunglass had sold their division, I decided to just take a package and not move back into fashion.

I didn't want to move back to the Midwest. I was living in Columbus, Ohio. I knew it was an amazing time, but it was never going to be the city that I would fall in love with passionately. I went to real estate school for fun, never thinking I would ever, ever practice real estate. And then I started interviewing for fairly large GM jobs across the country in very rural areas because that's where some of the larger companies were. And I decided I just didn't want to do it anymore. I needed a change.

And because of my involvement in the community, I feel very blessed because I've always been involved in the community. I was able to then reach out to those people on boards that I have been raising money for and doing things for and say, I have a new career and they gave me an opportunity. But, you know, it's very humbling, I think,

when in any career, we sometimes think what we do is who we are and what we do is what we do and who we are is who we are. And when you can take out the ego and recognize that, you know, starting over again is very humbling from being one of the largest in that particular business to starting over and not having a clue is very humbling. Correct.

That's awesome. And you're actually going a place that we talk about a lot here at Make Unplugged because, you know, I love Simon Sinek start with why, right? Like everyone has a why.

But to me, there's a deeper thing and I call it your because. Like there's a because, there's a reason that makes us do the things that we do. And, you know, knowing your story a little bit, like you have a deeper because as well, right? There is a reason that made Melissa navigate the waters that you navigated. What would you say your because is? I love to make a difference in people's lives, whatever that difference may be, and in the world.

I feel that I've been very blessed in my life. I've had opportunities that have been created for me and I've created my own. If I can give that back, whether it's mentoring people in our business, which I think we must do as people who are seasoned,

I think we have to do that. And it's so much fun to see people grow to raising money philanthropically in a community because people can't afford medical, but everybody needs to have the best medical to making a difference, right? And my old boss said, retail is detail. And you don't have to spend a lot of money to make something that can impact somebody's life. Right, absolutely. I want to take something that you started referencing and go a little bit deeper.

You've been a guiding light for your clients who are going through a lot of transitions, especially divorces, right? How do you navigate these difficult situations and what impact does that have on you both personally and professionally? Because your clients love you, right? Like your clients love you because you're there for them. And I think that's something that folks don't understand or they miss in a relationship with their real estate agent or their realtor. I've been certified in...

collaborative divorce in real estate, I went through a contested divorce. And I wish I knew then what I know now. And so it's very personal to me to make a difference in mediating two parties that have come to the point where they don't want to speak to each other anymore and to try to

come together for the cause of both of their futures. Sometimes that means speaking separately to each other. Sometimes that means getting on the phone together so that we can communicate effectively, but mostly we plan in advance so that everybody is on the same page as we go through the process.

I divorce. I mean, it's, I never understood how people can love each other, be so close to each other, you know, sleep side by side with each other and then dislike each other so much. And it's like, it's unfair.

I still, I mean, I live through it, so I certainly can relate to it. I just don't know how I got to that point, you know, but that's just really important. Again, another thing you can do to make what is a very stressful situation sort of less stressful for somebody.

Yeah. And so your playbook, the essential playbook, winning real estate tips during divorce, right? That's a notable achievement. What was your motivation behind that? And I take a little bit. It was your personal story and your personal journey. But what do you hope that the readers of that book or the people that are going to go read this book now listening to this podcast, what do you want them to take away from that playbook?

We don't know what we don't know. Whether you're going through a divorce or not a divorce, it's just being fiscally responsible. Real estate is going to be your largest asset for the most part. We work our whole lives, but for the most part, we make much of our foundation in real estate. And so to be able to just step back and read like what the little things you could do to maximize your profit, because that will help your future, is what the intention was to get out of it. And I didn't know what I didn't know.

- Wow. How long did it take you to write that book and what was your thought process going into it? - It took a few months. I did it in the pandemic when I had a little bit more time at the very beginning when we weren't allowed to be in properties. And the thought was really just how can I make a difference to another human being's life who's going to go through what the next year will be a very difficult time for the most part.

How do we minimize them spending their money on divorce attorneys because they can communicate to settle? If they have everything up front for the most part, and we hope, then it makes it easier. I love that. One of the things I love about you too is your passion for philanthropy. And I know that that plays a crucial role in your life and in your business. Can you discuss how giving back helps?

has influenced your career? And then I'd love a follow-up. What are some of the communities that you serve? We did eight or nine years ago is I always gave back for every transaction because again, I feel like how many more bowls can somebody have? So I thought a donation and I always gave to a charity of my choice, but then-

It wasn't about me, it was about them. So now we donate to a charity of the client's choice. And so for every transaction, regardless of the size, where it is in the country, and we have a beautiful card that we send to them that basically says, we're so grateful to have you in our lives. Please fill it out and send it back. So

We've made donations to elephants in Africa, the pelicans here, St. Jude, Make-A-Wish, most of the animal related charities, which I'm passionate about because I have my dog, Remy, and just on and on and on. But really, I have all the cards and I keep them. And it's just it's so nice to see how so many people have so many passions that are important for them and that we can just help just a little bit.

That's awesome. Being this real estate mogul that you are, you have your pulse on real estate, right? The world's constantly changing. Even the worlds that I live in and that I represent, what was yesterday is not the same as today, and it definitely is not going to be tomorrow. What do you see as some of the future trends in the real estate market and environment?

Oh, it's so interesting because as you said, it does change every second. And Miami is an interesting, I feel we're an anomaly to many of the places in the world because we're an influx of so many cultures coming here. So we're a second and third home market and

And for that, we don't feel, I don't think the trends as some of the other places may. So when the interest rates went up and things paused, many of our transactions are cash transactions and people want to get their money out of their countries. So we're not impacted as much. We still are impacted.

There are trends towards different things in the home to make like luxury has changed. There are trends right now people are putting dog baths in their home as something new in their laundry rooms to make it easier because maybe they want to have that experience of bathing their dogs.

I know it sounds funny, but it's like, I mean, I was in a condo the other day on Fisher Island and she has this beautiful shower in the middle of her gigantic laundry room. And that was a priority for her designer. You know, there's going to be five people that listen to this podcast and they're going to have dog baths.

It's the cutest thing though. And I think about it because I stick Remy in the sink. I wish that I could have like a shower for my dog, like separate shower. It would be unbelievable. And we're seeing like different trends in condominiums. So each new condominium is trying to be

more luxurious than the next, but everything is about lifestyle and having an experience. And it's less about speaking about four bathrooms and three bedrooms and et cetera. It's really about what is the experience that I'm going to have when I'm living in this particular environment, whether it's a single family home or a condominium.

And that's really the languaging that's becoming more and more and more. And we see developers offering pickleball and just, and sunset and cold plunges and things that really are creating more of a lifestyle and community environment.

Wow, that's awesome. Has AI impacted the real estate industry at all? It has in terms of just helping us write. It's made a difference because although I still use a copywriter, I'm able to at least give her something better than like my English that I would say is, you know, fair in terms of writing, not my skill set. So I'm able to use that. And it's just things that you just like work

would never even, you wanna create a story and you just use AI and it comes out with this amazing paragraph. - It's insane, right? It's really insane to see from a copywriting standpoint, the advent of AI. And I see the good, the bad and the ugly with it. Like I like it to help train

thoughts, right? But I still want it to be me. So like, give me an outline, but then let me take the outline and make it me. And I see a lot of folks, I'm going to say misusing AI, because I tell my friends, I saw how you used to write yesterday, right? Oh, you didn't become a genius overnight. Your writing structure didn't become that good. Right. And it doesn't know your voice.

Right. Like my copywriter and my social people know my voice. I don't necessarily have to write it, but they know me, but AI doesn't know my voice yet. Tricky part, I think for all of us is that we have to be so on top of the changes because if we don't, we're left behind. Whatever that looks like for you or whatever age and whatever part of your career and your life, right?

I find for us being one-on-one, having discussions, being in person, looking in your eyes makes a huge difference to growing a relationship. But as people are just getting out of college and they're used to texting and not seeing each other as much, it's a different, but ultimately I think no matter what, we're a people society. We're not meant to be alone behind a computer.

I feel like people will have to embrace whatever change that is for them in their lives. We can't be left behind. Absolutely. A couple of more questions, Melissa, and I'm going to get you out of here. One, what is something that you want people to know about the real estate industry or business that maybe is a big misconception? Give us a truth about the real estate business. Oh, my goodness. The actual business itself is a lot of hard work.

the television shows make it look super easy. You know, they just, hi, I like to buy this property. Everything's great. They're done. They're celebrating. And that's not reality. The reality is that there are many things that are involved in a transaction, both emotional and, you know, a physical transaction and going through that. I think unless you know it, you don't know it. And being able to guide people through all of those processes is

is one of the most important thing because it's their biggest asset for the most part. You know, that is the truth. I mean, it is just a lot of hard work. There it is. There it is. Absolutely. You've built an amazing team, right? Like I would say, knowing you, you're probably really proud of the team that you've built more than you are the successes that you've had, right?

What are the top three qualities that you look for in hiring a team member to be a part of your company? The most important is that they're hungry to work. When I interview people that say, I just want to come for the leads, that doesn't work well with me because I feel that leads are resultant of work well done. So that's not my model. I want people that really want to work. I

really are open to learn because not only do I coach them, but I have a professional coach that coaches them. So they have to be coachable and want to learn. And we're a we, we're not an I. And to be able to participate in whatever it is that we need done for the team, because that's what we do to support. So I look for that a lot. And that's like the most important for me because we can be taught everything. Absolutely. What are two other things you look for out of your team? They have to like dogs. Uh-oh.

I can't be a part of the team. Oh, no. Oh, my goodness. I'm sorry. I like dogs. Are you thinking of a career change? No, not at all. I could supplement what I'm doing sometimes. You never know. I know people, Melissa. I used to live in South Florida, so I know people. You know, of course. And I always say to everybody, you just never know. And having your real estate license earns you a referral fee. So why not? And then you learn something else. I'm

really interested in how people like will go to will go to lunch or go to dinner with them. And I'm interested in how they communicate with the wait staff because how they communicate with the wait staff is how they're going to communicate with our clients. And so that's really important.

I have like a whole value and values that are really important to me. And it's important that we share those same values. Integrity, communication, trust, honesty, all of those things are really important. And the other thing that I look at, which might seem, I don't know, silly, but I'm always concerned, especially if somebody is just starting out, that they have six months to a year of savings.

Because if you don't, you may make decisions that would be in your best interest and not the client's best interest. And so for me, that's really important when somebody is just starting out. I do the same thing when I talk to salespeople in other industries, right? Like you don't want your integrity to come down to a right now decision in your checking account, right? Like that's not the integrity that I'm looking for. So I totally agree with you on that one.

It comes back, I think, to haunt you. And all we have is our reputation. And so to do that. So those are some of the key things. And just having a discussion. What's the most important to those people and making sure that I can help them achieve what's most important to them. There you go. All right, Melissa, last question. What's one thing you want the world to know about Melissa Rubin?

Oh my goodness. Well, I would say six or seven years ago, I propelled down the Marriott Marquis rooftop, the Marriott Marquis starting at the rooftop for a children's charity. And it

It's I'm not like a daredevil, like some of my friends. And so for me, it was like, oh, my God, I am on the rooftop of the Marriott Marquis on a rope going down. And I feel like we have to constantly challenge ourselves to become the new normal. And for me, that was like a new normal to be able to try something new out of the box.

And the more we do, the more interesting we are, the more value we can offer to people personally and professionally. I love it. Ladies and gentlemen, Melissa J. Rubin. Melissa, again, thank you so much for being on the show. I'm truly honored that you took some time out of your busy, busy, busy, busy schedule to spend just a few moments with me and the listeners of the Make Unplugged podcast. This was the most fun. Thank you so much. It was so much fun.

I appreciate that. And to the listeners out there, remember your because is your superpower. Go unleash it. Until next time. Thank you, Melissa. Thanks for listening to Mick Unplugged. We hope this episode helps you take the next step toward the extraordinary and launches a revolution in your life. Don't forget to rate and review the podcast and be sure to check us out on YouTube at Mick Unplugged. Remember, stay empowered, stay inspired, and stay unplugged.