Looking back, I still have mixed emotions about that year. By any standard, a $47.2 million year is amazing, but underneath the gratitude I felt a little like a fraud. It didn’t come easy. I worked my tail off and was busier and more stressed than I could remember, but that year I had help, a lot of help getting there. It wasn’t something I did alone.

Most years in this business are pretty solitary. I was often the only agent working alone, and success rode entirely on my ability to help buyers find the right home and manage their purchases through to completion, and in new construction that can take seven to nine months with many obstacles in between.

There were years I came in first and knew I’d earned it, fighting my way to the finish line with each one of my clients. There were years where my numbers didn’t look this good, or even close, but I still knew my all and felt confident no one could have done better. And there were stretches where I had to be honest with myself about whether I was really doing my best, and the answer, admitted with some shame, was sometimes no.

That year was different. I had a team behind me that made it nearly impossible to fail. They kept me sharp, kept me moving, and met with me regularly to game plan and adjust strategy the moment something needed to change.

Here’s why that season still matters to you now. It taught me what a well run team makes possible, and I’ve carried that standard forward. Today, that same commitment to strategy and teamwork lives on through Thence House, where Carrie Kissel and I work as partners, now backed by an amazing team. Whether you’re buying or selling, you get the same benefit that made that year what it was: a team who’ve spent decades learning how to get it right, working for you.