Meet the 2023 President: Chris Pelkola Lee

A Mission to Focus On Our Mission

By Kim Morris

“I was a brand new Realtor when I joined Women’s Council,” Chris Pelkola Lee (ID) says, “and my mentor said if I wanted to be successful in real estate, join Women’s Council of REALTORS®.”

Chris didn’t understand the value of involvement until she joined a committee in her local network. “I was asked to be involved in leadership by my local organization,” Chris says. “I became more involved, learned more skills, got more practice, gained more confidence, then one day—you do it. All those skills translate.” She met people she could refer her clients to; she was able to have one-on-one experiences that developed skills she was able to apply to her business and with her clients.

“Our why’s are all different—why’s in our business, why’s in the Council, how we got here, what drives us. Being actively engaged in my local Women’s Council network gave me the tools to build my skills both in my business and unexpectedly in my leadership…through those experiences I simultaneously began broadening and developing new interpersonal relationships that I didn’t even aspire to seek.”

“Real estate is a relationship business,” Chris says. “Our members run relationship businesses. Women’s Council of REALTORS® is a relationship builder.”

Chris sees the similarities among the conversations we have at PTA meetings, around the kitchen table, with friends—“they are still the same skill set, it’s on an intimate level, which can be more difficult actually; we all have this ability to have one-on-one conversations that build relationships between us.”

As for the upcoming 2023 year, the wheels are in motion for end-of-year goals. “I’m excited to be part of rolling out our strategic plan. Our mission is to focus on our mission.” It’s a powerful direction, Chris says, “We’re doubling down and hyper focusing on our mission.”

“Our 2023 National Line Officers team is experienced, well balanced, we work in concert with one another, we challenge one another and importantly we support one another. We know each other’s strengths and weaknesses…we step up and fill in where needed and perhaps even more importantly we step back and support each other when perhaps the topic at hand is in someone else’s wheelhouse and it’s time to let them shine. It’s hard work to form a well-functioning team, and it takes the time, attention and dedication of each member to do the hard part – to put their own ego aside in order to be able to fully function as a team and work toward the common goal. Which, in the Council, of course, is the success of our members.”

This means connecting with local leadership, figuring out how to define their organizations’ goals and how to achieve them. Addressing the members, Chris says, “Local leaders, that’s where the kernel of success resides within our membership—we need to know your goals so we can meet them.”

Chris realized, when she got to the national level, “You’re not alone. You’re not running the ship alone, there are many resources: asking questions in other markets to learn about your own, creating relationships across the country, a built-in camaraderie across the country, a referral directory, national opportunities to meet members’ needs.”

“We can all plow through it and by sheer will power get things done, we’ve all done that. But to really rise in life and reach your full potential, you need to have a team.” That, according to Chris, is the important meaning of who Women’s Council is as an organization.

Local networks are actively looking for success and Chris and the 2023 leadership team are ready to jump into a year filled with success stories.

About the Contributor

Kim Morris is a Chicago-based freelance writer and editor with more than 25 years of writing experience.