Evening star., 1926-04-25

<<YT'S all a matter of experience
Steve. When you've been il
the business as long as l hav'
i you'll be able to judge just lik'
that whether a prospect is {
live one or a dead one: whether III
has money and means pIsiness or il
just an old woman out shopping
Montgomery Lubbock removed {
fat cigar from his lips, blew out ;
great cloud of smoke and tipped
farther back in his upholstered swive
chair.
"Yup, Stevey my boy, that's half the
game-Sizing up your prospect; being
able to judge from a glance what there
is in him. The rest of the game i:
imaGination--reSo - tigur
ing out what ought to happen ant
then making it go ahead and happen.
II think l see what you mean, Mr.
Lubbock" said Steve.
Mr.. Lubbock! Call me Monty, my
boy. Forget the formal stuff. I'm q
few years older than you, of course
and I've had a whole lot of experience
which you haven't had, but that
makes no difference. We're office
mates. You're Steve and I'm Monty
Get me, my boy?"
Yes, l get you. Thanks Mr.
Thanks Monty. It's mighty decent OF
you to be so friendly to a new man.
Decent? Not at all. Don't accuse
me O. being decent. l won't stand for
that. l like the cut of you. That 5
all. I'm going to help you to get
ahead"
The new man, Steve Graham, flush.
ed with plea sure.
"Yes, my boy AS was saying, 1t s
five parts Judgment and five parts
imagination. Real eState-at least
the brokerage end of it's unlike any
other business in the world. 1 have no
patience with the plodder in this bust
ness, the chap who takes on all
Comers, one.to-three order. and fiddles
away as much time with some old
hag who wants to open a beauty
parlor as he does with the man who
wants a MISREPRESENTATION factory.
You've got to use judgment if You
want to get anywhere.
Are there any special rules for
forming your judgment, Monty, when
YOU get hold of a new prospect?
suppose you always look him up in
Bradstreet or Dun first of all?'
"Oh, no--not necessarily. / used to.
It's not bad practice while you're
learning the game. But I've rather
got away from that now. Those re-
ports don't mean much. Half the time
they're all wrong. No, 1 depend on
my own judgment mostly. Size em
up, you know"
Monty was leaning far back in his
chair, his cigar tipped at a rakish
angle, his hands clasped behind his
head.
Look here, my boy" he said sud.
denly. shifting his cigar to a far
corner Of his lips but not bothering
to remove 1t. 1.-The only way to get
the knack is by actual experience, of
course, but It'll help you a lot If you
watch somebody that's had experience
me for instance; and by the way,
don't mind what I say about myself.
peal to me. I know the real estate
business from the ground up and /
don't mind admitting 1t. Well then,
get this. Stevey. 1 always hang
around here from II to II. That's
my hour, you know, the hour when
take any telephone or counter bust
ness that happens to come in. You'll
have an hour assigned to you pretty
soon If you show you can handle it.
There's not a great deal of business
comes in that way, but there's apt to
be one or two calls most every day
Now I suggest that you stick around
mere ILLS DSlWccH IL anu &
Sit at that vacant desk in Edward
Spalding's office. He won't mind
Pretend to be fussing over a catalogue
or something, but keep your eyes and
ears wide open. Watch who comes
into my Office and watch the way !
handle 'em. You'll learn a lot. See?"
"Yes. / see. Thank you. I'd like
to do that. I think it would give me
an idea of the thing"
THE house into which Stephen
l. Graham had come a week or so
before was the largest and best known
real estate brokerage house in the city.
There were eight other men besides
himself and the three members of the
firm. The eight brokers worked to-
gether in friendly competition and
there was seldom any serious friction
among them. Disputes, when they
arose, were generally settled by the
toss Of a coin or by arbitration. The
older men, in point of experience. gave
the newer men plenty of advice, al
ways friendly. sometimes condescend-
ing. Montgomery Lubbock dealt 1t
out in large lots and only his gusty
humor and good spirits saved it from
being entirely offensive. He could call
a man his own age my boy" and
blow smoke in his face without seem
ing exactly insolent.
At IL o'clock that morning Stephen
Graham was ensconced behind a set of
card catalogues at the vacant desk in