It was a highly charged gathering of an eclectic group of people, each diverse in careers and personalities, that gathered at the Wascana Golf and Country Club in Regina just 10 days removed from Christmas. Arriving in the dark before the sun had risen, they were greeted by a glittering array of Christmas lights and decorations out in front of the clubhouse. And, as the sun rose, they were presented with an arresting view of the prairies background by the vista that is Regina’s expanding skyline off in the distant.

They had come as guests of EXIT Realty Fusion to enjoy a breakfast, a riveting talk from EXIT Realty International founder and CEO Steve Morris and then a luncheon. They had come from all walks of life. There was Marty Klyne, Publisher of the Regina Leader-Post and the Saskatoon Star-Phoenix, Saskatchewan’s two largest daily newspapers. He had brought a number of his managers. There was Canadian women’s curling champion Amber Holland of Regina. There was Roger Dumont, CEO of Special Olympics Saskatchewan. There were mortgage brokers and Agentsrug. There was Bill Waynert, a senior partner with the prestigious firm of Meyers Norris Penny. There was Joe Kazeil, owner of Suds car wash and a long-time successful Regina businessman. There was Lynn Armstrong, owner of Lynear Thinking Strategy and Communications Consulting Ltd. There were numerous people from EXIT Realty Fusion. There was Bernice and Ken Symak, owners of the Saskatoon EXIT Realty franchise. And, there were others of significance in the large crowd that sat at tables in the clubhouse’s main dining room.

They sat for about three hours and in an amazing testimony to his speaking prowess and the message he brought, they rarely took their eyes off or stopped listening to the message Steve Morris delivered in a talk that resounded throughout the room on this grey Saskatchewan winter morning. A gifted and polished speaker, Morris spoke in often eloquent terms, often inspiring, often right to the heart, and always in clear and easily understood language. His passion enveloped everyone there. That he held the attention of a large audience as he did for three hours said it all.

This was no waste of time to anybody who was there. Everybody went away having learned at least one thing about living a balanced and successful life, not just in their careers, but in their personal lives as well.

Morris’s talk was centred around the title Faceoff. It was not as much about real estate as it was about learning life’s lessons and transforming that knowledge into life’s daily routine. It was about careers and it was about home life. It was about health and self-image. It was mostly about realizing that the most important person in your life is you, and that from that recognition is rolled out a simple roadmap to fulfilling all your dreams if you are willing to take the steps and have the inner courage to do it. He made them laugh and he made them think. He made them react and he made look inside themselves. And as you scanned the room and noticed that virtually everybody was taking notes, you knew his message was striking home.

There was an extra significance to Morris’s presence in Regina. The man who has taken EXIT Realty International from scratch to where it is a significant player in the real estate industry in the USA and Canada was making his first visit to Saskatchewan since EXIT Realty Fusion arrived in Regina. He spoke of Saskatchewan’s growing economy and population, of the things he learned during his visit about Saskatchewan’s rich resource sector which is the engine driving this province’s surge in the North American economy. And, those who attended the session were equally impressed the man who has built so much. He spoke in glowing terms of the role EcoBroker Loretta Hughes has played in building EXIT Realty Fusion in Regina. This is a company that within just over three years of existence was named the ABEX award winner as the best new company in Saskatchewan in 2010.

As someone mentioned when leaving after the luncheon, “He is an amazing man and this was an amazing morning.”