 |
Elsie
Phillips |
The
Woman Behind the Woman
After many years of
working as an executive administrator and always encountering
a glass ceiling, I decided to take my
mom’s advice and follow the road she claimed
was always meant for me -- real estate.
Who would have ever
known how much was involved – surely not me. Managing
my own business was challenging and fun except
for one minor problem. I was the only person filling the well
of production. I was working 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
When I slept, I was working out problems for my business,
new ad campaigns, payroll, bills, etc. I was never without
that greatest fear-- “suppose that house doesn’t
close!”
Closing day
in real estate is the only day in which you get paid. While
I was running to maintain a small business, my friend of mine
was maintaining an incredible real estate team.
Little did I know that our worlds were on the verge of blending
in such a magnificent way.
After my son’s
graduation and my reaching a state of complete mental
and physical exhaustion, my family and I went to
the beach for a long needed respite. As I sat and looked into
the ocean waves, I realized I had created a business that
I could not maintain. Also knowing that I had my nine year-old
son still at home, I longed to be his mom
more than a businesswoman. But I had to work since my financial
contributions to the family were important.
As tears rolled down
my cheeks, my wonderful and supportive husband, Jimmy told
me to focus on being happy. We agreed nothing
was worth my unhappiness. As I prayed that day while overlooking
those waves of emotions, I realized a major
change in my life was needed. I picked up the phone and called
my friend, Ida Terbet. I told her I was closing
my business and asked her if she had a position open.
In her kind and always,
gracious manner she said to me, “Don’t
go anywhere. Don’t talk to anyone.” As
I began to laugh, I realized she was opening her heart and
her business to me at the same time she was trying to get
in her car and head off to an office meeting. I returned from
the beach that week and began my new career as Ida Terbet’s
Office Manager. I have been with Ida now almost two years.
Since that infamous beach trip, I manage Ida’s
seven buyers’ agents, seven administrative assistants,
business manager, public relations plus overseeing all IT
and internet development while being a personal assistant
to Ida, herself.
 Most
importantly, I am a mother of three: Emily, 21, a
junior at NCSU, Gray, 19, a sophomore at ECU and Jimmy, 11,
a joyous 5th grader at North Ridge Elementary. I never miss
an event in which my children are involved. For my youngest
son who is still involved with athletics, I am a board
member for the North Raleigh Athletic Association.
I can be found most Saturdays yelling from the sidelines wearing
my famous baseball hat. Now I cherish the moments at home
with my family and love my early hours of serenity
when I can read and sip my coffee while sitting in my famous
blue fleece pajamas!
I feel blessed because
Ida truly is “The One Name You Need To Know,”
not just for real estate, but also for her kindness
and generosity. What she extended  to
me that summer day, she gives to all her clients and staff.
Without her and the phenomenal business she
has created, my position would not nearly be as satisfying
or rewarding. Many of Ida’s clients and friends would
offer the same compliments about her. For without Ida, their
homes would not have gone to the closing table and their lives
less enriched by the person she really is: the #1
agent in the Carolinas for the past FIVE
years and also my dearest friend for the
past two years!
|
