2018 Women In Real Estate, Professional Services: Laura Brady, Concierge Auctions

Name: Laura Brady

Title: Founder and President

Company Name: Concierge Auctions

Real estate association / organization affiliation(s): The Young Presidents Organization (YPO), Austin Under 40; Texas Exes; Lake Hills Church; MentorTex, and I lead Concierge Auctions’ Key for Key initiative in partnership with Giveback Homes. 

What are some of your biggest accomplishments in the last 12 months?

In the past 12 months I have led Concierge Auctions to exceed $2 billion in property sales across 24 U.S. states and 15 countries, and our digital bidding platform has processed over $4 billion in offers. We also instilled our Key for Key initiative in partnership with Giveback Homes, whereas for every home we sell we build a home for a family in need—over 100 homes contributed thus far. 

What blogs, resources, podcasts or influencers have helped you?

My favorite podcasts recently are “Business Unu$ual” with Barbara Corcoran, which I especially love because Barbara is a mentor of mine and an advisor to my business; “How I Built This” with Guy Raz; and “Masters of Scale” with Reid Hoffman. My favorite book right now is “The Hard Thing About Hard Things” by Ben Horowitz — I’ve read that one at least 3 times in full. My latest focus, which you may have gathered from these recs, is on scaling Concierge Auctions to meet market demand, while maintaining a fun culture, profitability and sanity along the way!

How important is it for women to create a personal brand?

It depends on how you define brand. I think it’s important for everyone, not just women, and not just business professionals, to know what they stand for and to radiate their beliefs and skills throughout everything they do. We were each placed on this planet with different abilities, and it’s incumbent upon us to identify those unique talents and then use them to better the world. If we don’t put our talents to use, then by virtue the world is missing out. Once our talents are showcased, new doors will continue to open. 

How many messages are in your inbox right now and how do you manage email?

I just checked, and 190 emails are in my inbox, which makes me quite anxious. I happen to be on family vacation right now; otherwise, that number would be under 100. Luckily, only three are unopened, and they’ve arrived as I was completing this application! I use my inbox as a “to do” list, and I organize all other needed messages in my email files. One lifesaver for me is SaneBox, an email management tool that filters out messages that aren’t urgent. I review my SaneBox about once a day.  

What do you do like to do for fun?

Outside of work, my favorite time is spent with my wonderful husband and three young daughters.  

In one word, describe yourself: 

Persistent