previous careers Past Days of Our Lives Meet Realtors who ew, jumped, poured, hiked and toyed in previous careers. by Kevin Fritz Knowing how to mix the perfect martini or how to jump out of a plane just might qualify as the requisite background to launch a successful new career in real estate. According to Realtors from Brooksville to Boca, the advantage lies not in what you used to do, but in how you use it. Greg DePalma Century 21 Gavish realty brooksville Dive into a New Career How many sales associates can say they ve jumped out of a perfectly good helicopter over russia with 39 other people? that distinction belongs to Greg DePalma, an 11-year real estate veteran, who was a worldwide skydiving instructor for 13 years. DePalma, who works as a sales associate for Century 21 Gavish Realty in brooksville, says it was teaching a 70-yearold realtor how to skydive that spawned his career change. She told me i should be selling what i m ying over, says DePalma, who has 8,865 successful jumps and no broken bones to his name [knock on wood]. His past life works wonders selling real estate. i tell my customers i know real estate from the ground up! Rich Cornelius Coldwell banker residential Clearwater Grounded in Tampa When you re a pilot, it s pretty important to get it right the rst time, otherwise well there is no otherwise in a career where second chances are pretty much nonexistent. Rich Cornelius, a sales associate with Coldwell Banker Residential in Clearwater Beach, says he now uses that maxim to sell real estate after hanging up his wings more than three years ago when his employer went belly-up, so to speak. He attributes his success in real estate to the life-sustaining lessons he learned by being in the air for four years. I m a problem solver, Cornelius says. I mitigate things before they become big problems. Good thing. Great IDea Former skydiving instructor Greg DePalma, Century 21 Gavish Realty in Brooksville, carries a photo of his skydiving mom that he shot when he took her on a jump. It s a great icebreaker, and it shows his attention to detail not to mention the huge trust factor! 30 FLORIDA REALTOR February 2009