REAL ESTATE NEWS

For commercial real estate professionals wondering whether to leave a secure role and build a firm of their own, panelists at the recent GlobeSt.com Women of Influence conference offered a frank look at what that leap really requires, from confronting fear to relying on relationships and purpose-driven business plans. They report that the decision is less about perfect timing and more about whether you can live with the regret of not trying.

Leaving The Corporate Comfort Zone

Moderated by Carrie Bobb, CEO of Carrie Bobb & Co., the discussion featured Marcy Moneypenny, founder of The Moneypenny Collective; Dr. Nkem Ezeamama, ER physician and CEO of Pheenyx Capital Investment; and Amberly Washington, founder of 4P Ventures and director of consulting at JLL.

Together, they walked through four stages of the entrepreneurial journey that Bobb outlined: deciding to make the leap, exiting a current role, surviving the "trenches" of building a business and reflecting on how the experience changes a person.

Panelists described the moment they chose to strike out on their own as a turning point rather than a single impulsive decision.

For Moneypenny, it began with a conversation with another woman in commercial real estate who felt her career had stalled and was in tears over limited opportunities, which forced her to confront how she could have a broader impact on the industry.

"I had two options," she said. "I could continue to do that on my lunch hour or breakfast, or I could do something about it instead of nibbling around the edges."

After months of reflection, Moneypenny made it official in a meeting with her company's U.S. president.

"I told him to write this in all caps: 'Moneypenny leaves in 2025,'" she recalled, telling attendees that while the decision was bittersweet, it brought peace rather than fear and was "worth the risk."

Washington told the audience that waiting for ideal conditions can be its own trap.

"One of my biggest regrets was waiting for it to be perfect," she said. "I just went out and did it." According to Washington, as responsibilities grow, people often become more risk-averse, but entrepreneurship pushed her to look at every challenge through a problem-solving lens.

Today, while she balances consulting work with a corporate client at JLL, Washington said trust, confidentiality and strong relationships are still essential to how she operates. Her message to would-be founders in commercial real estate was to stop waiting for a perfect moment and start building the relationships and skill sets they will need once they are out on their own.

Pushing Past Doubt And Fear

For Dr. Ezeamama, the hardest part of moving into entrepreneurship was not the business plan but the reaction from people closest to her. Family members urged her to "stay in your lane" as a successful physician and questioned why she would leave a stable, lucrative career to start over. Despite those concerns, she told the audience there was a point at which she felt she had no choice but to pursue her vision.

"There was something inside of me that said I had to try," she said. "Even if I failed, I needed to say that I tried."

According to Dr. Ezeamama, that conviction was tested repeatedly as she raised capital and worked to earn investors' trust. She admitted that she questioned herself throughout the process, but the experience reinforced how central relationships are to any entrepreneurial venture.

"It took one person to trust in me," she said.

"You never know who the next person you will link arms with [and] who will help you." For commercial real estate investors, her story underscored how a single anchor relationship or early believer can change the trajectory of a new platform, even when the market or peer group is skeptical.

Moneypenny closed the session by stressing that the panel was not urging everyone to walk away from a job but was warning against letting fear dictate a career.

"We aren't all saying you need to go quit your job," she said. "But risk and fear shouldn't control your life. It will shrink you and make you small."

Building Businesses On Purpose And Relationships

According to the panelists, successful founders in commercial real estate and related fields build their companies around a clear purpose, strong relationships and resilience rather than relying on a single transaction or trend. Washington said that in her own practice, trust and confidentiality are non-negotiable with corporate clients, a discipline that carries over directly into how she runs her firm.

Dr. Ezeamama told attendees that entrepreneurship continually forced her to evaluate who she was linking arms with and how those relationships could move the business forward. She said the journey showed her that one committed investor or partner can be more valuable than a broad but superficial interest.

Moneypenny encouraged professionals in the audience to use one simple question when evaluating a major career or investment decision: "Will I regret not doing this?"

Whether it is launching a company, backing a new sponsor or pursuing a new role, she said growth comes from being willing to take risks rather than postponing ambitions because of fear.

"If it doesn't turn out, who cares?" Moneypenny said. "It's about trying, taking the risk and being the fullest version of who you were intended to be."

Come back to read more coverage from our conference.

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Source: GlobeSt/ALM