But as Tim Garrity points out in this conversation, that mindset is flawed. Deal count is not the ultimate measure of success in real estate. More importantly, using numbers to judge or diminish other professionals does nothing to elevate the industry or serve clients better. Instead, it fuels an unhealthy culture where agents put each other down to make themselves look stronger in front of their clients.
The Ego-Driven Culture of Real Estate
Among agents, there’s a pervasive atmosphere of comparison. Success is often framed as:
How many transactions did you close this year?
What’s your total sales volume?
Are you on the leaderboard or recognized at the awards banquet?
While production is an easy metric to track, it’s not the only measure of an agent’s value. Agents who do fewer deals may provide more personalized service, focus on higher-end markets, or simply prioritize balance and lifestyle. Yet in a culture dominated by ego, those differences are overlooked. Agents too often look down on peers who don’t hit certain arbitrary benchmarks.
Why Insurance Doesn’t Work This Way
In contrast, the insurance industry operates with a different culture. Insurance agents don’t typically boast about premium written in the same way Realtors boast about sales volume. The competition is quieter, and the work is more focused on long-term client relationships and renewals. Insurance professionals succeed by building sustainable books of business, not by posturing about who sold more in a given quarter.
This contrast highlights how ego has become a defining factor in real estate in ways it hasn’t in insurance. While Realtors may engage in “pissing matches” about who closed the most deals, insurance agents often keep their focus inward — on retention, service, and incremental growth.
Tim Garrity’s Collaborative Approach
Tim makes it clear that he doesn’t buy into the ego-driven culture. He doesn’t spend time comparing himself to others, nor does he get caught up in competitions over who’s done more business. Instead, his focus is on collaboration, relationship-building, and finding ways to make transactions smoother for all parties involved.
In a business built on cooperation — where buyer’s agents and listing agents must come together to complete deals — collaboration makes more sense than competition. Yet too often, agents take the opposite approach, trying to prove superiority by tearing the other side down. Tim’s perspective rejects that cycle and emphasizes professionalism over ego.
The Hidden Costs of Comparison
Agents who constantly measure themselves against others often suffer from:
Burnout – Chasing volume for the sake of bragging rights leads to exhaustion.
Insecurity – Comparing your business to others creates doubt and distraction.
Toxicity – Putting others down damages relationships and reputations.
Clients don’t hire agents because of ego-driven posturing. They hire them for trust, expertise, and results. When agents focus on competition instead of collaboration, clients feel the friction — and deals often become more stressful than they need to be.
Why Collaboration Wins Long-Term
Collaboration isn’t about weakness. It’s about recognizing that every transaction requires two sides working together. A strong agent knows how to advocate for their client while maintaining professionalism with the other agent. A collaborative mindset:
Builds smoother transactions.
Strengthens professional relationships.
Creates reputations that bring repeat business and referrals.
Ego may win short-term applause, but collaboration builds careers that last.
Redefining Success in Real Estate
It’s time to move past the assumption that deal count equals success. Success in real estate isn’t defined by how many units you close in a year; it’s defined by how well your business aligns with your values, how satisfied your clients are, and how sustainable your career is.
For some, that means scaling to high-volume teams. For others, it means running boutique practices with fewer clients and deeper relationships. Both models can be valid. Neither should be dismissed simply because of the number of deals.
The Takeaway
The comparison culture in real estate is driven by ego, not effectiveness. Agents who look down on others because they do fewer deals reveal more about themselves than about their peers. In contrast, professionals who choose collaboration over competition are building reputations that will carry them further in the long run.