Tricia Lee on Owning Your Narrative

Tricia Lee doesn’t leave her story to interpretation. She crafts it, claims it, and carries it with precision.

As one of New York City’s most recognized real estate professionals and a standout on Netflix’s Owning Manhattan, Tricia Lee sat down with Isabella Savini of Luxury Presence to explore a subject she’s mastered from experience: Owning your narrative. This conversation is the first in a three-part series unpacking how Lee crafts impact through story, cultivates trust through hyper-local expertise, and sustains visibility through strategic repetition. In this opening installment, she speaks to authorship as a daily practice — one shaped by clarity, consistency, and conviction. For Lee, success begins not just with being seen, but with being understood.

A leap of faith becomes a narrative foundation

Long before listings and luxury showings, Lee built her reputation in Brooklyn’s beauty scene, running a business that became both a local staple and a platform for community connection. But when the time came to shift careers, she didn’t strategize the announcement or test messaging angles. She wrote from instinct.

“The whole idea of me working in real estate [came] through a personal letter that I wrote to all 23,000 clients in my database,” she recalled. “It wasn’t edited. It wasn’t thought out. I just sat on my couch, and I just emailed someone as if I was sending a note to a friend.”

The message was simple, raw, and without a filter: She was leaving beauty for brokerage and asked readers to follow along. “It was authentic, it was truthful, and people really responded well to it.”

That single email announced a career move, but it also set the tone for everything that followed. Lee realized that her clients weren’t looking for a perfectly packaged pitch. They were looking for sincerity, and that became her strategy.

By presenting her pivot not as a rebrand but as a continuation of her personal story, Lee invited her audience to grow with her. The decision to communicate with honesty instead of spin became the blueprint for how she’d lead her business, build her content, and shape the trust that now defines her brand.

Letting go of perfection to get to work

Self-doubt didn’t vanish when she hit send. But she learned quickly that confidence was the byproduct of showing up.

“Once you get over yourself, then the work starts,” she said, echoing the advice she was given early in her career. That mindset, Lee explained, helped her quiet the noise and tune into the actual demands of the job. She leaned on consistency, repetition, and personal reflection, even listening to her own podcast episodes for motivation.

“On the days when I need to be reminded of how I put my brand out there, absolutely. I’ll go back to something that I’ve already done well. And I will remind myself of how I do it. It always works.”

Digital storytelling with purpose and personality

Lee’s social media strategy isn’t reactive or trend-chasing. It’s a form of expression, education, and client acquisition all in one. From posts about local businesses to behind-the-scenes glimpses of luxury listings, everything she publishes reflects the high standards she applies to her professional identity.

“Everything I do is an advertisement or a commercial for the future client that I hope to gain,” she said. “Those are all tied to the brand and how I want people to experience that brand.”

It’s not just about visibility; it’s also about shaping perception. Her content is timely, relevant, and, most importantly, true to who she is. It reinforces not just what she does, but how she does it.

Agents as cultural catalysts

Lee doesn’t shy away from a bold declaration: Real estate professionals were the first influencers.

“I 100 percent believe it,” she said. “Who else is going to tell you where you live, what you do, where you hang out, what’s the right neighborhood for you, based on your interests?”

For her, being an agent extends far beyond contracts and closings. It’s about helping people make meaningful lifestyle decisions. From neighborhood restaurant picks to family photo shoot locations, she positions herself as a trusted resource, not just a transactional player.

“If there were no social media, I would still be an influencer.”

Assurance born from preparation

For Lee, belief in her abilities is grounded in evidence. Success isn’t an accident; it’s the outcome of intentional practice, measurable progress, and deliberate repetition.

“My confidence personally comes from my competence. It comes from my ability to get the job done. I have the record to prove it — or the receipts, as you’d say,” she said. “I have every right to be confident about it, because the track record is the track record.”

Knowing her value empowers her to communicate it effectively. But as Lee pointed out, it’s up to the agent to ensure clients recognize that value. That’s where platforms like Luxury Presence come in: By elevating the message and providing the digital scaffolding to support it.

An evolving voice that stays consistent

The secret to brand longevity, according to Lee, is marrying flexibility with structure. Her storytelling style has changed as her life has evolved, but the discipline behind it hasn’t.

“My clients have gone through my bangs era, my clients have gone through my love of Greek food and eating it every day for months,” she laughed. “I’ve been obsessed with kitchens at different times, and that’s led to great client opportunities.”

She advised agents to be intentional about the narratives they share, while also allowing space for growth.

“Be super consistent about putting it out there and allow it to evolve and change as you do.”

Building a brand that reflects the work

Lee’s approach reveals a truth many overlook: your narrative is your greatest asset—if you take control of it. The most compelling agents aren’t just selling homes; they’re articulating perspectives, values, and lived experience through every post, conversation, and client interaction. That narrative doesn’t just attract — it defines.

If you’re ready to own your voice and elevate your presence, partner with the platform that helps leading agents turn personal stories into professional advantage.