Heather McColaugh

For Heather McColaugh, her rookie year in real estate is something she will always remember, not just for her great sales success, but the invaluable impression it left upon her.

“A rookie season comes and goes, yet in my lifetime, I hope I never grow out of, become too successful for or forget the raw grit and passion that I have carried with me every moment of this first year,” says McColaugh. “This recognition and season is a springboard from which I will catapult myself, without any guardrails or safety net. It has given me confirmation that I am created to change lives, and I will use real estate as a vehicle to shape the world around me, one client at a time.”

McColaugh took a chance when she left a career in pharmaceutical sales to pursue real estate, shouldering the responsibility of caring for her three adopted children post-divorce. When she overheard her 12-year-old daughter refer to her as the strongest person she knew, it locked in McColaugh’s focus and commitment. “When I quit my job in pharmaceutical sales to pursue real estate, I remember thinking I’m either crazy or I’m going to take over the town—nothing in between. As I turned in the keys to my free car, handed back the security of my stock options and 401K, my health insurance and steady paycheck, I knew I was made for that moment,” she explains. “I knew that every perceived setback is a setup for the most spectacular of comebacks.”

As for her new career, McColaugh says she has “never been more comfortable being uncomfortable in my entire existence. I love this career because it is exactly who I am. Being able to guide my clients one transaction at a time, to meet them in the midst of their chaos and stress, and offer solutions and a calm presence to get them to the other side successfully, is a gift like no other.”