Courtney Poulos, founder of SERHANT. CA and team lead of ACME | SERHANT. in Los Angeles, has a stark diagnosis for her profession: "We have a mirror problem." She is not referring to vanity, but to the gap between how real estate agents perceive themselves and how they are viewed by the public. "A lot of people see real estate agents as overpaid paper pushers who don't earn what they make," Poulos says. "And while the class action lawsuits and the public relations battles are largely driven by forces outside agent control, the way we show up, how we communicate, how we position ourselves, that is on us."
Poulos recently completed Harvard University's Advanced Management Development Program (AMDP) at the Graduate School of Design, where she worked alongside urban planners and commercial developers. She graduates in July. The experience sharpened her observation that agents fail to see themselves as senior-level executives. "The only thing that is really missing is real estate agents considering themselves as senior-level executives in a business. We are not taken as seriously as we ought to be, like a lawyer," she says. She recounts a client who chose to rent rather than sell and attempted to negotiate her commission below the cost of marketing already invested. "That is the level of disrespect I am talking about."
One standout session in her coursework was led by Carmine Gallo, who trained executives on communication. The key lesson: audience-centric messaging—starting with what matters to the listener, not what impresses peers. "Real estate agents fall into the trap of marketing to each other," Poulos says. "We post about our sales for other agents to see. We compete on metrics that our clients don't actually care about. And we miss the opportunity to explain, in plain terms, what we actually do and why it matters." She argues that the core work—data analysis, risk management, negotiation, sustained client relationships—mirrors executive roles. "We protect our clients. We navigate. We clarify. That is the message. And most agents are not saying it."
Poulos is now developing workshops and seminars, with the first session launching in Orlando this week, open to agents at all brokerages. The goal is to help agents build messaging that resonates with clients, the press, and regulators, and to rebuild public trust. "If what we can clarify for the public is that we are not overpaid, that we are experts, and that our public relations battles are not actually about whether we deserve to be paid, then we start to reverse the narrative," she says. "And the housing market is a place where there is a lot of good stuff going on, despite the headlines. It is the moment for something optimistic."
This article is based on information provided by the expert source cited above. It is intended for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, financial, or real estate advice. Readers should conduct their own research and consult qualified professionals before making any real estate or financial decisions.
