GROWING UP EXIT BY CHRISTINA LUIS, SR. VP I’m not sure anyone sees themselves starting their “foreverjob” at 18. I certainly didn’t, but soon after my fateful interview with a serious-looking, no-nonsense (dare I say intimidating) gentleman on the fourth floor of a real estate office in the High Park area of Toronto, something told me that EXIT Founder and Chairman, Steve Morris was going to be a major influence in my life. Although I didn’t know it, he had me doing affirmations during that interview already, asking weird questions like, “Are you coachable?” (Was I signing up for a sporting event?) We talked about family. Having been with my boyfriend (now my husband of 25 years) for only a short time, I hadn’t thought about it much, but I knew I wanted kids. I emphatically told him, “Three – two girls and a boy.” Guess what? I have two daughters and a son. I could bore you with a dozen situations where this affirmation principle has impacted my life, but just know that even at that age – a tremendously formative age – I knew he was onto something.
In the Beginning Once Steve decided to launch EXIT, he reached out to me to handle the front desk. I really wasn’t looking to work for another real estate office. The environment was always so cut-throat, and everyone was just out for themselves. However, realizing that Steve was at the helm, I jumped in, knowing that he would encourage and nurture a different atmosphere. The original EXIT head office was near the Toronto airport. Not glamorous, it fit the bill at the time, and we had the best security being located above an old Italian gentlemen’s club. These humble beginnings hold so many wonderful memories for me. At the time, I was the receptionist, graphics department, supplier liaison, corporate records administrator, travel agent, and tended to a never-ending list of jobs that just needed to be done. We were small, but I was busy! And the stories! I’ve been sworn to secrecy with most of the best, but one memorable time Maria Orzakovski, our VP of Operations and I almost called the police on a man sitting in a van in the parking lot for three hours, only to find out it was Sr. VP, Susan Harrison’s husband, David, waiting for her to come out of her job interview with Steve Morris! I’ll also never forget when the towers came down while we were hosting Broker/Owner training. It was all over the news and we had to inform our mainly U.S. attendees what was happening. There are certain things you just never forget.
18 Volume 11 Issue 1
