Harrison Beacher: I have been selling since age 10, when I created a landscaping business complete with business cards and a marketing plan. By age 12, I was creating and selling CDs to classmates. And at age 19 I started my first LLC—a company that accepted parents’ credit card payments for water delivery to Georgetown University dorms (yes, I sold water). Real estate, to me, required the perfect combination of my entrepreneurial skills that I had been building since age 10 and the relationships I had amassed as a lifelong Washingtonian.

Wade Corbett: At 19, I purchased my first home. It was a down market, and real estate professionals were running away from their careers in droves. I decided at that point there was never a better time to become a REALTOR®. My hunch proved to be true. My blatant ignorance about what a good market was made swimming through the recession as simple as wading through the shallow end of the pool. Although those first years in real estate were filled with countless ramen noodle nights and breakfastless mornings, I wouldn’t change it for the world.

Diego Espinoza: When I got my real estate license, I was driving around in a salvaged Mustang. I had to find a client base that needed a home as badly as I needed to sell one. In the Central Valley, the farm-working population is overwhelmingly Latino, poor, and non-English speaking. After the crash, prices were low enough so that many of these families could qualify. That was my start. Today, no matter the accolades, I will never forget about the people who dream of a low-priced lot to build their dream castle on, humble as that castle may be.

Mandy Friend Gigliotti: Seventy percent of our business comes from people who know our team, and we market a lot through social media. I do video blogs on topics pertaining to buyers, sellers, or home owners, which I post on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and YouTube, and now I’m recognized by my video blogs in Rochester. It’s been a strong branding tool for my team and myself. I was also able to represent buyers on HGTV’s House Hunters — twice — and we created a lot of marketing around those two shows.

Kyle Kovats: I often joke around that I’m at the age where I can’t rely on my friends to buy homes from me just yet because most of them are lucky if they make it home at night, let alone feel ready to buy a house. The large majority of my business is generated from old­school prospecting. If I have buyers who want to be in a certain neighborhood and there is nothing that fits their needs, I will go door-to-door until I find them something.

Chelsea Locke: The best decision I made was making the commitment to real estate at age 20 and choosing that as my career. It has helped make me an expert in my field at a young age. I was able to not only start growing my business but also have the money to begin investing in real estate. This is such a rewarding profession, and I want to figure out a way to get people into real estate at a younger age.

Bonnie Luckett: What gives me the most energy and gets me to the top of my game is “the hunt.” I am the kind of agent who likes to go door knocking. I thrive on the challenge of trying to earn a signed listing contract. For Sale By Owners are one of my main lead generation sources as they present a distinct challenge. I am not afraid to get on the phone and simply ask them, “What will it take for you to list with me?” I owe it to them to make sure they have enough facts in front of them to make the decision to hire me. I believe I am successful because I actually ask for the business.