KGCI: Real Estate on Air - From Part-Time Agent to Real Estate Rockstar

Episode Date: January 13, 2026

Summary:In this episode, guest Nigel Wong shares his journey from a part-time agent struggling with motivation to becoming a top performer in the real estate industry. He discusses the critical mindset shifts that were required to achieve success, emphasizing the importance of consistency, time management, and leveraging social media effectively. The conversation provides a tactical blueprint for agents who want to scale their business and generate more leads, even while juggling other commitments. This is a must-listen for any agent looking to boost their motivation and learn valuable, actionable strategies for growth.

Influenced in real estate is built digitally, but it's grown authentically. I mean Wheatley from KGCI, Real Estate on Air, and I hate calling them part-time real estate agents. I like to call them dual career agents because those agents aren't making a partial effort ever. But so often, it's a question that they ask, how can I make real estate my singular career or go full-time with it? In many ways, they already are. So John Sy, he runs the Align Group and he's a top agent over in Vancouver, British Columbia for us Americans. That's in Canada. And for a long time, John was the president of EXP Realty Canada as well.

His Laika Beast podcast and his power half hours are some of my favorite real estate podcasts. And they are always streaming on KGCI Real Estate on Air inside of the always free real estate on air mobile app for iPhone and Android. For dual career, solo career, or whoever, there is a mindset that needs to shift. And there are simple strategic actions that are required for success in real estate. And in today's episode, John is joined by Nigel Wong. And I want you to listen for how Nigel's mindset became the cornerstone for his growth. And the focus on these specific activities that improved his production and how he expanded his digital footprint to build a broad. brand that generated leads that actually converted and how he continues to use it for client engagement.

Part-time, full-time doesn't matter. This conversation provides a technical blueprint for agents who want to scale their business sustainably and leave room for those other parts of life. Welcome to the Power Half Hour, everyone. Thank you for being here. It's going to be a very valuable episode and very exciting and a great story today to share with you guys. And none other than my friend from Markham, Ontario, Mr. Nigel Wong. Welcome to the call. Thank you.

Thank you so much. It's an honor to be here to be interviewed by you, the beast himself. Thank you. We've been collaborating for the last few years, and you are someone that I, you know, really had admired. The resilience that you have, the hard work that you put into your craft. and the never die mentality and attitude that you have is really inspiring. So tell us who you are, Nigel, and how has it been for you in the past four years in real estate? So, yes, I got my license back in 2020.

At the beginning, I wasn't really sure if I can actually do this as my career. First year, I only did one transaction. And it was actually helping a friend, my great. back into Canada from Hong Kong. So we did the whole thing, the whole process remotely. So from from from from then on I feel that okay, maybe this is something I can do. Give me a lot of confidence there. But still, I mean, that's only one transaction.

So but in in 2021, I started to become more serious about the business. That's how I got to know about EXP, join EXP in 2021. on. Yeah, and I did pretty okay. Did pretty okay. And then once I joined, join EXP, John Tlauress was my sponsor. He got me connected with a lot of great people, took some online course on like online leads generation from Jason Weinberger, and then started doing online leads. And then that gained some traction. Uh, 2020, that's when I went to XP in in Vegas and that completely changed my mindset they're like I'm gonna that came back became super motivated super consistent with my daily activities

calling people doing my social media stuff like that 2003 was my best year ever grows around 300k GCI so wow in nutshell this is this is my story and I believe it or not, I just became full-time at the beginning of the year back in March. March 1st is the first day I became

a full-time realtor at the same time it also lines up with my anniversary date with VHP. Oh wow. Coonsendarily, right? Well, that's awesome. Yeah, so what did you do before real estate and even full-time into real estate and part-time real estate, but full-time the other job. What was it? I was in the IT industry.

I was an IT, like, technical architect, and then I've been doing that for many, many years, actually. Yeah. How many years exactly? Close to 20 years. 20 years. Wow. And how long have you been in Ontario? I moved to Ontario in 2010. I was in Vancouver before, actually. Okay, so you did IT all these years from Vancouver to Ontario, still in IT, and what was that income like? My IT job? Yeah. Before I quit it.

I think I know. About 180K. $180,000. Ladies and gentlemen, that is a lot of money to give up. Okay. So I want to, you know, talk about this a little bit because a lot of people. a lot of people right now in the market who are still realtors in the market are part-time. What was your mindset like as a part-time realtor versus what your mindset is like now as a full-time realtor?

Talk about that. That's a great question. I think it is actually very hard to plan my day because I need to do both, right? I need to go to 10 meetings and stuff like that. Like I think for a while now, like my priorities are my real estate side of things. So it becomes very hard to manage. And it gets to a point where I feel that I cannot really give my 100% on both sides. Then what's the point?

Like I get to a point where you have to make a choice. And when that decision comes, then I either give up my real estate and go back to my full-time job. off or the other way around in. And I would never give up my real estate business when I get to this point. I feel that I would be just taking a major step back. And then that's not really what I want to do and doesn't line up with my long-term goals. Yeah, absolutely. So now that you're full-time, I remember when you were going full-time, you message me,

you're like, you know, can we have a talk? And we chatted and you were like, man, what should I do? you know, now I'm full time. Like, what was that transition like, mindset-wise? So I think, first of all, I really appreciate you always being available and taking my calls. And I think at that time, I was kind of across cross-road, right? Like, whether you totally committed or you kind of have to get out, right? Like, you cannot really go in between, right?

And always the fear is, hey, if I go all in, can I make it? But looking back now, it's like when failure is not really an option, then it will happen. You just have to continue to do good work, trust the process. And I mean, I know you are really into working out. And it's the same thing, right? Like you don't see the results right away, but you have to believe that, hey, this is the right way to do it. Let's do things properly. And the results will come.

100%. Just to bring back up again the other day when I was reading the $100 million leads by Alex Hermosie, the world belongs to those who can keep doing without seeing the results of their doing. So guys, you have to have blind faith and take action after action after action, going from failure to failure to failure without losing enthusiasm. Right. Right. And a lot of times people are thinking, okay, I'll see it.

I'll believe it when I see it. But in real estate, in any sort of success that you want in business, it's if you believe it first, then you will see it. You have to see it in your mind's eye first, right? So that mindset is truly very strong. For some people out there who are on the fence about quitting their full-time job and going full-time in real estate. What advice do you have for them? So I wouldn't advise anyone just blindly do it, right? Like at the end of the day, you still have, you may have a family, you need to feed, right?

You still have a likelihood you need to keep, right? So the key point is you need to plan it out. And then when the timing is right, you would know it, you would know it, right? But just don't blindly do it because it will create a lot of unnecessary stress. Then that would affect your work as well. Because when you're stressed, you become desperate. And people can always smell desperation, right? Like when a client can sit there, hey, this guy is really desperate for my business.

Or you're really trying to sell. your client's home, like desperately. That's not good. People can see it, can see through it, and then take advantage of it. So I think you need to plan that out, have a solid plan. But when the timing is right, don't be afraid and go for it. Okay. Well, thank you for sharing that.

And what are some of the things that you should prepare for to go full-time? If it was a plan, what was your plan? And how do you know when the timing is right? So in my situation, you kind of, you kind of can sense that it gets to a point where the full-time job is holding you back. Because when the job becomes more and more demanding and you feel that, hey, it is at a point where the job kind of requires more from me, right? Then I cannot give it. I also don't want to ruin my reputation over the years that I've built up in the IT field, right? Like I still have lots of friends in that field.

And I definitely want to make sure that no relationships are ruined. And I don't want to drag out too long. And then basically I look at what my pipeline is like, what are the different options in front of me. And then just do it. Yeah, guys, you have to have a plan. You can't go in blindly. I mean, I did, but I don't think it was the right thing to do. I just didn't know I could go part-time in real estate. I just went full two feet and right into the fire and I was $15,000 in debt right away. Luckily, I wasn't married or had kids, right? You do. How old are the kids? 17 and 15. 17 and 15. Obviously, you have a wife. So, guys, if you have a family, have a plan to go full-time in real estate. But my belief is, guys, if you want to truly be a top producer, you have to become full-time. All in and you have to burn the boats behind you, okay?

Failure is not an option. So thank you for sharing that. I do notice one thing about you. You are always hungry for learning. You sign up for Mike Sherrard's program. You sign up for Jason Samard and all these programs that you signed up for, what taught you to become so coachable and such a third. and hunger for learning. So one thing I learned is the best investment is invest in yourself.

Well, I believe in improving your skills. I think at the very beginning, because of my IT background, I got really into the online leads generation, like getting into CRM and all that kind of technical stuff. Yes, really into it, trying to, you know, fine-tune my ads and make sure that it's getting more leads and something like that. That's all good. That's great stuff.

The thing is, at the end of the day, I realize that I need to get back to my fundamentals. Like, how am I speaking to the clients? How am I speaking with the leads? Am I converting them? Am I building a relationship with these people coming through? So that's why, like, I got back into more scripting role play calls with you. I got into Jason Smart's Sims coaching system. that really emphasize on the daily activities, scripting,

and then basically, and also the mindset, right? Like you just have to set aside certain time of the day to do prospecting. You have to prospect every day. It doesn't matter if you're doing like tons of business. If you stop prospecting, if you stop getting new leads into your database, your business is not going to grow, right? So is this something you have to do every day? 100%.

I believe that. And I believe I say this all the time right now. If you can master social media and AI, that's good. And if you mix that up with prospecting, lead follow-up, negotiating contracts, and really know the skills and basics of sales, they're going to be unstoppable. And I think you are well on your way. With that being said, you're really good at Facebook ads. Talk a little bit about that.

how you got started with that and how you got good. Yeah. So I think when I first started, I signed up for a program by Jason Weinberger. Oh, could they. And so his program is fantastic. It talks about the Facebook ads and talk about the Google ads. And I think a lot of people, they say, oh, Google ads are better. But the thing is, based on my personal experience, I've been doing Facebook ads and it's been working well for me.

So basically my strategy is to market like certain pre-construction projects that's attractive to people. And then once they sign up, like even though they sign up for a pre-construction project, there may be different needs. Right. So basically compensation going, like, especially when I was, when I first started, I don't have a lot of listings, right? So, but everyone can sell pre-construction. Right. Right. So use that level. that to attract people and then once you have a database then you continue to nurture it like

I mean I have people that was in my database for over three years finally transact with me but I've been going like I've been like talking to them hey let's go for coffee build that relationship and then you know eventually the business will come and then but you cannot look at that one lead right you can't look at it hey it is about building relationship it is about you know, helping people, right? And I think that's really is the key. I truly believe that, again, when AI and social media are taking over, it's only going to make our job as realtors a lot easier.

But if you don't do the human factor, if you don't build that relationship, if you don't make those follow-up calls with that lead, it doesn't even matter. They're just dead leads in the CRM. Right? So in other words, you put out ads and you put ad dollars towards it based on the pre-construction project. Yeah. And you do a shoot little video or just a post? At that time, it's just pictures. Just pictures. Wow. Yeah. But I think I am going to slowly transition to more, doing more YouTube ads as well.

I'm heavily invested in videos. So since the beginning of 2003, I've been very active on social media. And then later on, I have gotten a social media manager, Shruti. He's been helping me a lot. Amazing. Also, I got a video editor. So I've been able to consistently put out content as well.

I love that. Yeah, Shruti is absolutely amazing at that. And so talk a little bit about putting out ads, doing Facebook ads, Google ads, and then also creating organic content to kind of amplify what you do in ads. Why do the content if you're already doing ads? Talk about that. So I think that's a very good question. So the way I look at it is when you have ads and people sign up, people, they don't necessarily know you. Okay. But the importance of continue to put out social content, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube. First of all, you're providing value to people. And then the second of all is you build trust.

And then people get to know you. So a lot of people, they sign up through the ads, right? So I call them and then say, hey, I actually have this kind of information for you. and then I have a video that talks about like home buying tips and stuff like that. And that person, oh, yeah, I always saw your video. Right. And that's why I signed up, right? So it is getting more and more important. Like if you can always put out, put money to do ads.

But the thing is, if you have the corresponding online presence to have that social proof, you get more banked your box when are right so you might be spending a lot of money but if you don't have the content you're gonna keep have to keep spending money whereas if you spend the money they click on your ad register and then they see your content organically they're like okay this guy's legit yeah i can trust him and then you make the call to them they're like oh yeah i've seen your content yes so in other words guys if you are putting out ads that are generating listing or buyer leads and you have the content, you're going to get more bang for your buck, meaning your lead cost will be lower

at the end of the day and you get more ROI for what you're putting out. Am I correct on all that's? Correct. Wow. So to people that are creating content or thinking about creating content now, what is the frequency of your reels and posts and all that right now for you? So I put out about five wheels a week. I wouldn't say that's like a lot. lot. I think sometimes you can put out more. So basically, I have two types of contents, right? One is like I recorded it and then I sent it off to my editor and then like he would put some production value into it, right? Put some editing, some graphics, some like that. But sometimes I would just do some random video, right? Like I need to mention this video. Like it's a video where I just

came across some pre-construction project. And they were late in the day. Like, I really didn't make any video. But I was like, oh, it's okay. It's going to take me like a couple of minutes. And I was just going to do it, right? So I put out that video about this pre-construction project. I posted it.

I actually gone two deals done out of it. So one person actually bought a unit from that pre-construction project. And another person actually reached out to me. and I helped him to buy a home and install built, which is just not of Markham. Straight from one reel that didn't, you didn't put any ads on that reel on Instagram. It's just organic.

Yes. Yeah. So guys, when you don't feel like doing something, you actually do it, those are actually the best days and the best actions. Yes. And that produce the most results. It's weird, right?

Yes. So keep creating content. And keep, so you have to have the ads first and foremost. have to spend some money. And number two is you have to have organic content. Yeah, I would say Facebook, Instagram, and of course, YouTube. Do you do TikTok? I post to TikTok, but I don't do ads on TikTok. Not as on, so only Facebook ads. Basically just Facebook acts and some and some Google ads like, yeah, Facebook and Google. But you convert the highest with Facebook ads. I convert the highest with Facebook. Yeah. Yeah. So, so guys, are you getting the

drift, I mean, social media, AI, and then plus the hard work and doing things when you don't feel like doing them would actually create the results. So if you're going to, if you're willing to do what other people aren't willing to do, you're going to have what other people can't have, right? So great job, Nigel. So circling back, switching gears on events and why you want to get around people. You said EXPCon absolutely change your mindset and your career. Talk a little bit about that. did it change you? So I still remember when I was thinking of going to EXP Con I was talking to John Tobleris right like my sponsor and I said oh man like I I'm not doing too much too much business this year like I spend that much money

like flying there the hotel and everything and he said Nigel you must go you must go you will change your life right and I was like yeah whatever like everybody's like And then, but I still go, I said, okay, I haven't been. So, so let me just go there once and then see how it is. Okay. So not only it was extremely fun. Yes. Not the 40s, okay.

But the key thing is the connection that you make, the connection that you have built, right? Like I met you face to face. I met Agent D.K. face to face. Right. And then, and you cannot really replace. place, that kind of relationship that you build, right? I met quite a few other agents from other provinces, right, as well. So I still remember I met a lady in Calgary, right?

So ex-becon, and then she gave me business. She referred business to me. And it's like every time I went to these events, good things will come along. Like, yeah, there's always something good happen when I go to these conferences. Wow. And it could be like, and I'm not just talking about like mindset or relationship. I'm talking about actual business opportunities from meeting these people. So, I mean, if you have never been, you know, just, you know, take the step, go to one of these conferences,

actually connect with people, then you know what I'm talking about. Wow, thank you for sharing that. And our next opportunity, if you're listening to this podcast right now, October 28th is the next EXPCon in Miami. It'll be the most fun we've ever had for EXPCon because Miami is a great city, guys. And referral opportunities, networking opportunities. And think about this.

If you just learn one new thing, right? You've won. Yeah. In fact, you can't afford not to go to events. events. Yeah, right? But yes, I get it. These days are a lot of events, but EXPCon, Miami, you're going, right? Yes, I am. Okay, well, we're going to have to party it up. That's awesome. Let's go stucing karaoke, okay? Let's do it. I don't know. I'm to be too embarrassed. You are like, you're avid pro-sing here. But, uh, Dr.

Louis, too. So, prospecting, leave follow-up, negotiating contracts, going on appointments. The basics of real estate, how do you hold yourself accountable to do those things? So basically, I have daily activities. Basically, I have a set number of calls I need to make every day. Number of texts I need to make every day. Okay, sometimes I slip. But I think you bring up a good point. Like, I used to have like some accountability partner to keep me accountable. Like I'm kind of losing that right now. So I mean if anybody wants to hold me accountable or wants to be accountability partner, feel free to reach out and we can talk. Well, there you go. There you go. You got to do the basics, right? And you got to keep yourself

accountable on the mindset work as well. How do you keep your mindset strong? I think to start your day right is very important. Like I, I find that, like, starting my day with exercise and with physical activities is very important. Keep myself in good shape, both mentally and physically. And then you feel accomplished on that day. You feel a lot more energetic, right? And also just, you know, you almost have this like compulsive behavior where, hey, this is the list of things I need to get done. And then you kind of, you don't feel good if you don't get through them, right?

So, so you kind of do that and it kind of keep you going. Like instead of focusing on, oh, this call is not that great, who cares? Just make another call. Let's say if you make a video, that's not that good. Who cares? Nobody's going to remember a video tomorrow, right? And it's just, you just have to keep pushing yourself to continue to work hard no matter what the outcome is. I love that.

Some will, some won't. So what next? For people that you talk to on the phone, door knocking, or even the next video. You know, if this one doesn't get a lot of hits, no worries. Tomorrow we make another reel. It's just another day. Another day, another opportunity. And when you do your daily activities and boosting your mindset,

exercising, you create wins along the way. And these small wins will start to snowball into bigger wins. And, you know, I'm just so happy. to see where you're at today, and I know a lot of bigger things are going to happen for you. I could just see, I could see the objectory, right? Only four years in real estate. So, first of all, big congratulations to you on all the success, first and foremost. Now that you're a successful, Nigel, if someone wanted to become a success just like you

in the next five years in real estate when they're brand new, what advice do you have for them from 2024 and beyond? I would say not too afraid to try things. Especially like, okay? So here's the thing, right? You need to strike a right balance. You don't want to get into the shiny object syndrome where you just try different things all the time.

Yeah. But if you feel that something can work, you can trust your instinct. I'm really. By looking at, hey, does this, with this work? Does it fit into my personality? Like, for example, when I look at, hey, I feel that I can make videos. I feel that even though at that point, I was not totally comfortable with the camera,

I was like, I believe this is the right way to do it. And then once you made that commitment, you just go and do it. And don't get distracted. Don't let the haters affect you and stuff like that. And just keep on pushing, keep on doing it. If they don't like the way you talk, then they're not going to watch. Or eventually they're going to like your style, right? Yeah.

So I think that's a key. Just don't get too attached to the outcome itself, but focus on the activity, focus on the effort, right? I mean, after a few months, you can review and then see, hey, what can you do better based on the results? That's the sensible thing to do. But you cannot also like just self-doubt like every step of the way. I know, right?

Yeah. You look at every single video. Do, oh, what did I do wrong? Then it's done here. But you kind of all maybe based on the result, this is the people. This is the type of people like. They do more of them. Like, right?

And then you do it. Continue to do it. I like that. I like that. So what you're saying is don't be, you know, don't have the shiny objects syndrome like well just keep trying new things because if you try for like a week and it doesn't work you go on to the next thing you have to be very impatient taking actions but very patient with the results right right and don't be afraid to try new things but keep with it right don't be

attached to the outcome right focus on the journey and less on the desk who is that super cute that this is kiwi oh my gosh Amazing. A dog always makes you smile, you know, the dogs make life better. So thank you so much for all that you've shared today. Nigel, how can people reach out to you if they want some of your content and if they want to join your organization? How can we reach you? So the easiest way is through Instagram. My Instagram handle is Nigel Realtor. So pretty easy to remember. You can text me as well, 6,4,000. 57, 549-1865. And those are the two easiest way to reach me. Like, you can reach me pretty much anytime.

Love it. Always fast to respond as well. Nigel, thank you for your partnership. Thank you for your support. And I can't wait to crush it with you for the rest of 2024 and into 2025. Guys, make it a great day. And we'll see you all next episode. Thank you.

All right. Bye.