Sometimes life takes unexpected turns. Divorce can knock you off course, other times it’s a career change and still others, when a family member faces a life-threatening illness. Gayle Drogier knows sometimes it’s all three.
Single mom to Dyllan, 14, and Madyson, almost 11, Drogier was a hardworking waitress for 18 years. When her mother, Laura Grosenick, developed cancer, Drogier stepped in to help run the administration of her step-father, Jerry Grosenick’s, real estate brokerage, EXIT Realty XL in Germantown, Wisconsin.
“I was doing administration work for Jerry and I decided to get my real estate license to help with contracts. I fell in love with real estate”. With her additional responsibilities, Drogier found herself spread thin as a full-time single mom and part-time waitress, administrator and real estate agent. “It was tough,” she said, “what with the divorce and my Mom’s health challenges. It was my new partner, Mike Matt, who pushed me to give up waitressing and pursue real estate full time. He said, ‘You have support here. Just do it’”.
She took the leap and never looked back. Her production skyrocketed from $3,000 her first year to six figures the next and increased by almost 37% again the following year. With all the twists and turns along the way, Drogier discovered a straight road forward. “At EXIT there’s a family within the family. There’s nothing cutthroat,” she said. “It’s all about sharing and caring and teaching and I love how there’s always somebody there to help you.” EXIT’s training, branding, culture and technology all helped to pave the way for Drogier’s success but when she started to take advantage of the EXIT Formula of single-level residuals, magic happened.
Drogier learned that with EXIT Realty’s unique business model known as the EXIT Formula, she could introduce other agents to EXIT and earn a bonus paid by EXIT Realty Corp. International based on their production as a special thank you for helping to grow the company. This is a process known as sponsoring at EXIT. Residual bonuses are deposited onto an Associate’s debit card, known as the EXIT Success Card in the US. “Other people started to see the love I have for the business and approached me about getting their real estate license. I’ve sponsored four people into EXIT now, including Mike, and I make sure I’m there for them.”
At Christmas two years ago, Drogier put her residual income to work for her family. When a commercial for Disney World aired on television, her son turned to her and said, “Mom, I’d really love to go to Disney.” In that moment, Drogier decided to make it happen. She wanted to include her mother to fulfill a lifelong dream. “Mom always wanted to go to Disney with her grandkids and who knows what could happen in the future with her health. We didn’t know how it would work out but she was on a break from chemo so we went. I paid for the trip using my Success card. Spending time together – just the four of us – was a special treat,” she said. As of this writing, Laura Grosenick is continuing with cancer treatments to prevent the spread of the disease.
So what’s next for Drogier? She and Matt plan to expand their sales team with the addition of a buyers’ agent. “We want to grow EXIT in our area. I talk to other agents about the training, the family atmosphere and I show them my Success Card. I make sure they understand that the money comes from EXIT Realty Corp. International, not from them, and that’s surprising to a lot of agents.” Drogier is using her residual income to help build her business within a business. “We built a home two years ago and I have a home office which I furnished with my residuals. I had a slow month sales-wise this year and the residuals helped pay my bills.”
Reflecting on their trip to Disney World, Drogier said, “It was our Christmas present. How many times can you buy kids a new iPad or phone or computer? I bought them each an iPad Mini and they don’t even play with it. That’s why I decided to get them a memory. I wanted it to be a good memory because they’ve been through a lot what with the divorce, their new blended families and my Mom’s cancer. I wanted to be able to go somewhere and make happy memories and I never could have done it without residuals.”
Editor’s note: Sadly, Laura Grosenick passed away on April 18, 2020.
