Brenda Garretson, CB Richard Ellis/Albany

Name : Brenda Garretson, CCIM Title : Associate Broker Company/firm : CBRE-Albany Years with company/firm : 4 Years in field : 8 Years in real estate industry : 25 Address : 100 Great Oaks Boulevard Telephone : (518) 452-2700 Email : [email protected] URL : www.cbre.com/albany Real estate organizations/affiliations : CCIM, CIREB, NAR What was your greatest professional accomplishment in 2010? Becoming president of the Upstate New York CCIM Chapter. CCIM stands for "Certified Commercial Investment Member" and only 15,000 +/- practioners in the world have earned this designation. What was your most notable project, deal or transaction in 2010? Confidential tenant that works for the federal government and Homeland Security. How do you contribute to your company and / or the industry? Staying involved in commercial real estate organizations like CCIM, where the goal is to provide the BEST newtworking, education and technology in the commercial industry. I want to continue to raise the standards within the (commercial) industry - through education and professional organizations. What advice would you give to women just starting out in commercial real estate? Get involved with CCIM at their chapter level, start taking their classes and only focus on commercial real estate. Reach our to a CCIM or to chapter leadership for mentoring. How do you manage the work/life balance? It is a constant struggle that I manage almost every minute of every day. The "balance" is just juggling balls in the air and staying focused on what's important. I will not be at high school graduations saying, "Where did the time go?" I do not take "me" time-my life (right now) is divided between my family and my career-and I'm ok with that. I will have "me" time later in life. Who or what has been the strongest influence on your career? Growing up, my father (who was a general contractor) and my mother restored our (old) homes and my time spent living in Manhattan at a time when the stock market crashed, Wall Street was a popular movie and Donald Trump's "The Art of the Deal" was number one - it's the blend of being around construction/buildings and the "deal making" that fuels my passion for commercial real estate. What impact has social networking had on your business? It has allowed my business to move at the speed of light, to get information (on listings, services, etc.) out to a larger pool of people. I have been able to re-connect with people from my hometown that I haven't seen in 25+ years.