Keep Those in Your Corner Close: Interview with Rogers Healy, Founder and CEO of Rogers Healy Companies

I recently went one on one with Rogers Healy, founder and CEO of Rogers Healy Companies, the largest independently owned real estate brokerage in Texas.

Adam: Thanks again for taking the time to share your advice. First things first, though, I am sure readers would love to learn more about you. How did you get here? What experiences, failures, setbacks or challenges have been most instrumental to your growth? 

Rogers: Just like many other successful people, I started out as a perpetual failure. Growing up I was constantly ridiculed for being an unathletic tall guy. I didn’t really get comfortable in my own skin until I started at Southern Methodist University. I began my real estate career while in college, and started out helping friends find apartments and places to live off campus. Before I could do this though I had to pass the real estate exam. It took me 22 times to pass it, more times than anyone in the history of Texas realtors. I realized early on how important it was to never give up, and that has been incredibly instrumental to my success and growth. 

Adam: How did you come up with your business idea and know it was worth pursuing? What advice do you have for others on how to come up with and test ideas? 

Rogers: After working in college as a side hustle, I tried my hand in some other career paths. I moved to Los Angeles and pursued acting, the business side of music, and real estate. I always ended up coming back to real estate, because I understood that it took hard work and consistency to be successful. I worked at some larger brokerages for a couple of years, then made the decision to break off and start my own brokerage and business. Rogers Healy and Associates was born in 2006. 

Adam: What are the key steps you have taken to grow your business? What advice do you have for others on how to take their businesses to the next level? 

Rogers: My advice for those looking to grow their business would be to stay focused on not only yourself, but those you surround yourself with. The first step to growing your business is believing in yourself. Once you believe in yourself, others will begin to believe in you too as long as you work hard and dedicate yourself. 

Adam: In your experience, what are the defining qualities of an effective leader? How can leaders and aspiring leaders take their leadership skills to the next level? 

Rogers: An effective leader is always tenacious, confident, reassuring, and a resource. Possessing tenacity leads to not letting others get in your way. Being tenacious will help you overcome the challenges presented with starting a business. It is so important to not give up, especially in the beginning stages. Remaining confident is contagious and encouraging to those you are leading. It is important to be both reassuring and resourceful, because you want to be the cheerleader that helps others reach their maximum potential. 

Adam: What is your best advice on building, leading and managing teams?

Rogers: It is important to keep those in your corner close. You also must establish a hierarchy so that your operation runs smoothly. When selecting team members, you have to pick people based on a culture fit as well as qualifications. Both aspects of a potential team member are equally important. 

Adam: What are your three best tips applicable to entrepreneurs and business leaders? 

Rogers: My first tip is to wake up early. While you sleep, the world of opportunity is wide awake. Waking up early gives you the kickstart that your day needs to be productive and intentional. My second tip is to be present. I am very active on social media. I believe it has the potential to drive business and to learn from and engage with others. My third tip is to actively give the gift of confidence. Growing a business would be very difficult if you didn’t believe in yourself. Be sure to maximize your potential and others will learn from you. 

Adam: What are your best sales and marketing tips? 

Rogers: Both digital and physical advertising are very essential to my business. I began my marketing journey utilizing billboards, and I still continue to today. You would be surprised by how well they still resonate with people. I also pride myself on being the first realtor to disrupt the industry by using social media. Social media is free marketing, so it is so crucial to stay consistent. 

Adam: What are your best tips on the topic of negotiations? 

Rogers: A good deal is a deal that closes. A good deal ends with both sides happy and satisfied. It is too easy to sometimes lose track of what the most important aspect of the deal is. My advice would be to stay focused and protect your client. 

Adam: What is the single best piece of advice you have ever received? 

Rogers: Oscar Wilde once said, “Be Yourself - Everyone Else Is Taken.” This quote resonated with me at a very young age when my grandmother gave me this piece of advice. I learned that if you are not being yourself, you are only hurting yourself. In most situations, including mine, not everyone is going to like you. It is important to not value your self worth based on other people’s opinions. I believe that you must give the world your truest version of yourself in order to benefit yourself.


Adam Mendler is the CEO of The Veloz Group, where he co-founded and oversees ventures across a wide variety of industries. Adam is also the creator and host of the business and leadership podcast Thirty Minute Mentors, where he goes one on one with America's most successful people - Fortune 500 CEOs, founders of household name companies, Hall of Fame and Olympic gold medal winning athletes, political and military leaders - for intimate half-hour conversations each week. Adam has written extensively on leadership, management, entrepreneurship, marketing and sales, having authored over 70 articles published in major media outlets including Forbes, Inc. and HuffPost, and has conducted more than 500 one on one interviews with America’s top leaders through his collective media projects. A top leadership speaker, Adam draws upon his insights building and leading businesses and interviewing hundreds of America's top leaders as a top keynote speaker to businesses, universities and non-profit organizations.

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