A Journey from Real Estate Agent to Coach, Redefining Success Through Human Understanding 

The real estate world is often seen as a universe made of numbers, negotiations, and square meters. Deals close, keys change hands, and yet, behind every contract lies something deeper: a change in someone’s life, a new beginning ready to blossom. 

For Maurizio Pesenti, however, it all began with curiosity about people. When he first entered a real estate agency in 1986, he realized that the job went far beyond selling spaces. It was about understanding lives in motion, seeing how every home marked a chapter in someone’s story. 

With a degree in Sociology, Maurizio learned to read what is not said: the emotions behind every decision, the meaning behind every action. That understanding became the heart of his approach. 

Over the years, he transitioned from being a real estate agent to becoming a coach, guiding professionals and companies to grow in more human and conscious ways. His mission has remained simple yet powerful: to help people evolve from routine to reflection, from habit to growth. 

Through his work, he invites others to see Real Estate as a form of transformation — a space where, like homes, people too can be rebuilt and renewed. 

The Role of Sociology in Shaping Leadership within Real Estate Coaching 

His degree in Sociology and interest in Political Science made him sensitive to systems, relationships, power, change, and culture. 

In Real Estate, this means looking beyond negotiation — observing how leadership influences teams, how corporate mindset shapes performance, and how solutions must be socially intelligent. 

In his coaching, Maurizio doesn’t simply teach sales techniques: he works on mindset, team structure, and the social context in which an agency operates. 

The Transformation of Leadership in the Italian Real Estate Sector 

The industry has undergone radical change: the digitalization of communication and sales, growing regulatory complexity, sustainability, and the need for leadership that is more authentic than hierarchical. 

Maurizio helps executives recognize these new rules, abandon inherited models like “we’ve always done it this way,” and build agile corporate cultures oriented toward change — where the team becomes the protagonist, not a mere executor. 

This requires developing soft skills, a coaching mindset, clear structure, and a shared value system. 

The Transition That Redefined His Leadership Philosophy 

One of the greatest challenges was the shift from real estate professional to coach and leadership trainer. Changing roles means stepping out of the comfort zone and risking becoming something new. 

That experience taught him that vulnerability is not weakness, but authenticity. From there, his philosophy was born: a true leader is one who can show themselves, ask for help, and create space for change. 

His coaching doesn’t just provide tools — it creates contexts for growth. 

When Systemic Understanding Opens New Possibilities 

He recalls a medium-sized company that worked traditionally — sales managed almost manually, a very independent team. By analyzing systems, processes, internal relationships, and digital channels, Maurizio discovered that the real obstacle was a leadership model that hindered data flow and continuous learning. 

By introducing a more fluid system — with data collection, short meetings, cross-feedback, and light technologies — the company grew in every direction: sales, revenue, retention, team motivation, and market forecasting capability. 

For him, seeing the system as a whole opened paths that had been invisible before. 

Balancing Traditional Experience and Innovative Coaching in Real Estate Leadership 

Traditional experience remains fundamental — knowledge of the market, regulations, negotiation, networking — but today, it is no longer enough. 

Maurizio believes what makes the difference are innovative coaching, active listening, awareness, cultural change, and an agile mindset. 

In his model, tradition is first respected, then transformed. Established processes remain but are enhanced with data culture, reflection, empowerment, and continuous feedback. 

For him, company values are each collaborator’s business card and must convey a transparent vision to the client. 

Winning leadership combines expertise and guidance: not just “I know how to do it,” but “I help others do it better.” 

The Role of Vulnerability in Leadership 

Maurizio states that vulnerability is an underused superpower. When a leader admits they don’t have all the answers, that they are learning and may make mistakes, they build trust. 

He encourages executives to: 

• share challenges with their team (selectively, not indiscriminately),
• ask for feedback on their own performance, 
• show that change is happening for them too. 

This creates a culture of “we’re not perfect, but we improve together.” Vulnerability breaks down command barriers and opens the way to collective growth. 

Leadership That Adapts to Different Cultures and Contexts 

Having worked in very diverse territories and settings — large cities and small towns, independent agencies and franchises — Maurizio has learned that no universal model exists. 

His approach is to: 

• listen to the context (history, values, people, local market)
• personalize the strategy (no rigid formats, but co-created solutions), 
• use real cases (everything starts from the field, not just theory). 

In this way, he manages to scale leadership concepts from Milan to provincial realities, maintaining both coherence and cultural adaptability. 

Discovering Hidden Leadership Qualities in Top Managers 

Among the most experienced leaders, three remarkable qualities emerge: 

• Strategic empathy — the ability to deeply understand people and turn that understanding into effective action;
• Constant curiosity — the desire to improve beyond “we’ve always done it this way”; 
• Creative resilience — the strength to reinvent oneself in the face of change. 

Maurizio guides executives in bringing these qualities from shadow to light, transforming them into concrete actions and tangible results. 

The Role of ASI (Italian Sociologists Association) in Leadership Development 

Being a member of the Associazione Sociologi Italiani (ASI) allows Maurizio to stay constantly updated on the ongoing changes in society, with particular attention to digital transformation, ethics, and continuous learning. 

This privileged observatory enriches his coaching performance and offers him a broader perspective to bring into the Real Estate world — not only on how to sell homes, but on how to lead people, build healthy corporate cultures, and integrate coaching into business processes. 

Maurizio is convinced that the future of real estate leadership will be increasingly human, systemic, and socially conscious. 

Sociological Insights for Adapting to Market Change 

Sociology taught him that organizations are micro-societies with their own norms, cultures, identities, and conflicts. 

Two key insights: 

1. Change is more cultural than technical. Changing tools helps, but changing mindset and relationships makes the real difference.
2. The systems around us — territory, community, technology, norms — matter.
3. Leaders who can anticipate not only sales but also these external ecosystems gain a real advantage. 

Thanks to this sociological vision, leaders don’t just react to the market — they become part of the change. 

As he writes in his latest book “We’ve Always Done It This Way”, available on Amazon. 

Building Resilience in Uncertain Times 

Maurizio urges new leaders to build solid foundations — to know why they do what they do. 

He encourages them never to stop learning, because competence is not a goal but a habit. 

He emphasizes the importance of building authentic relationships, reminding that a network is made of real people who support each other. 

Accepting mistakes as part of the journey and reflecting on them is essential — that’s how resilience becomes not just resistance, but resistance plus transformation. 

And he adds, with a smile, that investing a few euros in his books might be an excellent start to open up to change. 

Shaping the Future of Leadership in Italian Real Estate 

Maurizio envisions a future of hybrid leadership: professionals capable of reading the market while also being talent facilitators, interpreters of data and organizational culture, mindful of social and environmental impact. 

Digitalization and data will bring opportunities but also risks. Leaders will have to drive technological change while keeping the human essence. 

Sustainability — both environmental and social — will become the norm, and those who ignore it will lose credibility. 

For Maurizio, executive coaches will play a crucial role: they will be strategic partners to real estate companies, helping them build future-ready leadership, cultivate a growth mindset, implement concrete tools, and adapt to change. 

He often discusses this in his radio show on CasaRadio.it, “Il Salotto del Coach”, where every week he interviews leading figures from the business world connected to the housing sector. 

Key Quotes 

“Change is more cultural than technical: changing tools helps, but changing thoughts, mindsets, and relationships is decisive.” 

“One of the greatest challenges was the transition from ‘real estate professional’ to ‘coach and leadership trainer.’ Changing roles isn’t easy — it means leaving the comfort zone and risking becoming something new.”