Commercial Investment Real Estate Summer 2020 | Page 21

STRICKLAND: Well, my first reaction to that question is that my 87-year-old father, who lives in Colorado Springs, Colo., is healthy. He’s safe and he’s healthy, so I’m pretty darn happy about that. He’s not active in the business anymore, but he’s certainly somebody you would want to model yourself after. My son is 29 years old and is about 40 minutes away in Central Florida. I became a designee in ‘87, my dad in ‘84, and my son in 2018. That’s the first time that’s happened in history. We just hit the demographics perfectly because the institute is 53 years old now. But my dad was a leader in his day. Teaching is still a joy. Students can hardly wait to run back to their businesses because they’ve now been armed with powerful tools that they can immediately put into play. Life With The Pin CCIM Institute provides its members with the most sophisticated knowledge, technology, and operational platform to power their business. CCIM Membership Benefits Lifelong Learning Free and discounted courses covering development, data analysis, and more I was very active with the local organization back in my day, and I’ve been an instructor for the last 13 years, teaching six or seven times a year. Now, my son is the president-elect of his local district. It’s been a lifelong passion for us. We’ve all bought into the same organization and the meaning of the designation — the relationships that we’ve built really have been life-changing for us. And teaching is still a joy. Students can hardly wait to run back to their businesses because they’ve now been armed with powerful tools that they can immediately put into play. That might be the single most magnetic element of CCIM Institute to me, which is that the information that we traffic in makes people better at what they do. It is street driven. CIRE: AS AN INSTRUCTOR FOR CCIM INSTITUTE, YOU IN- TERACT WITH YOUNG, DEVELOPING PROFESSIONALS ON A REGULAR BASIS. WHAT SKILLS WOULD YOU RECOMMEND CRE PROFESSIONALS EITHER BRUSH UP ON OR START LEARNING TO HIT THE GROUND RUNNING IN LATE-2020 AND 2021? STRICKLAND: I would simply say this: I’m an old guy — most of the industry is younger than me. But I enjoy studies, mapping, and visualization. This is a way to be more valuable to your clients. I have been continually impressed with the information that can now be converted or transformed into a visualization. When I started many years ago, if you were a real estate director, you would come into town blind. You’d get in the car and drive around — it was called a windshield tour. You’d think, “Oh, this is a nice part of town…” Now, you can paint such an unbelievable story with the layers of data that are available. If you’re not doing that, you will soon be surpassed by the competition. People are using it — and they are pressing that advantage. Nicholas Leider Senior content editor of Commercial Investment Real Estate Contact him at [email protected]. Editor’s note: For more with Blaine Strickland, CCIM, and his book, “Adapt,” listen to a full-length interview on Commercial Investment Real Estate podcast, which can be found on SoundCloud, iTunes, Spotify, or wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts. FindaCCIM.com and CCIM Connect An exclusive global network for business and industry intelligence Site To Do Business The industry’s best digital toolkit for market analysis Member Advantage Program Exclusive discounts on travel, proptech, printing, and more DealShare A database of listings not found anywhere else Commercial Investment Real Estate Magazine The award-winning publication and popular podcast that cover market trends and innovations Experience life with the pin. Visit www.ccim.com/benefits COMMERCIAL INVESTMENT REAL ESTATE MAGAZINE 19