I was twelve the first time I fell in love with real estate, and I didn't even know that's what was happening.

My grandfather, Rex Shoaf, had a thing for open houses — not because he was buying, but because he loved architecture and home design the way some guys love golf. Most weekends, he'd take me along to tour model homes, and I soaked up every bit of it. My dad, a general contractor, gave me the other half of the education: hours on job sites watching a blueprint turn into a building, sweat and all. Between the two of them, I was pre-loaded for this career before I ever filled out an application.

I got my Nevada real estate license about a month before graduating Carson High School in 2000 — while still selling gym memberships as my day job. That job taught me something useful: I liked helping people make good decisions, and I was pretty good at it. I handed my teacher my brand-new business card before I even had a diploma, and the look on their face is a memory I still smile about.