Veterans Day Highlight: John Engel

In celebration of Veterans Day, we invited members of the Douglas Elliman neighborhood who’ve served within the U.S. armed forces to mirror on how their service experiences have formed their lives and careers in the true property enterprise.

John Engel, Real Estate Agent, New Canaan, Connecticut

Please briefly describe your army service.

I served as a Second Lieutenant within the Military. First, in Arizona, I studied on the Intelligence Faculty with Prime Secret clearance. Subsequent, I jumped out of planes in Georgia. Lastly, I served in a tank battalion in Stuttgart, Germany, earlier than and after deploying to the desert throughout Operation Desert Storm. I commanded a collection-and-jamming unit on the entrance strains of the principle assault so as to liberate Kuwait from Saddam Hussain’s invasion.

In what methods, if any, has your service expertise formed the way in which you method your life and profession in actual property?

I discovered early the significance of efficient and fixed communications. The perfect realtors are consistently speaking as offers ebb and movement, setting expectations with their purchasers, with the opposite aspect, with different realtors, attorneys and distributors because the scenario evolves. As a younger lieutenant, you study it’s not sufficient to provide an order, you’ve obtained to observe up. You must learn to inspire these round you. And it’s important to respect the chain of command.

What would you want your colleagues to know or perceive about your service expertise and what it means to you?

Sitting within the desert, day after day, ready for the assault to start, felt like a waste of time. I actually thought possibly I needs to be again in class or in some company coaching program, one thing actually worthwhile. It took a very long time to understand what the Military taught me about management, communications, problem-solving and mission-planning. As a 24-year-old answerable for 50 troopers and doubtless $50 million in tools, I used to be getting a unique however necessary schooling.