I BEGAN my estate agency career with Jon Carden in the late 1990s, where I was employed as Jon's secretary.

It was here that I took a keen interest in property and in 1998 I accepted a position as sales negotiator with Samuels Estate Agents.

I grew with the company for 10 years and throughout this time, worked very hard to succeed and do well for myself, as well as gaining a wealth of knowledge across all aspects of the residential sales and lettings markets.

Due to the changing market conditions, I left Samuels in the summer of 2008. It was at the time one of the biggest decisions of my career, but I felt the need for change and decided to open my own estate agency.

I recognised the need for a proactive approach to marketing during these difficult economic times.

Gone are the halcyon days of the mid 2000s, when property would almost sell itself with very little advertising or promotion by the estate agent handling the sale.

In these times, property needs to be energetically marketed to a more exclusive category of buyers in order to achieve optimum selling prices.

Having built up a large number of professional and client contacts over many years, I decided to use my name as the company name to ensure people realised I had opened independently and the response I have had since opening has been staggering.

People welcome the fact there is a female estate agent trading in Exeter in what has become a male-dominated industry.

I had to build the company from the very beginning with hours of research and what seemed like endless hours of telephone calls. I was eager to get my name noticed, so I approached the Express & Echo to ask if they could report on the company starting.

As a result of that coverage, I have also been featured on BBC Spotlight and Exeter FM.

I work from an office at home, having noticed steadily over the years that a large majority of inquiries and interest generated when marketing a home for sale or to let will come from internet or newspaper advertising.

This means we can offer very competitive selling and letting fees to our clients, as we have minimised our overheads to pass on to our customers.

The housing market sets us many challenges.

As I have already mentioned, it's not just about the selling of the property, but what comes after — liaising with solicitors, financial advisors, surveyors, and many other contractors that are instructed by the purchaser.

Very few sales progress without any hiccups or differences between buyer and seller, so it's important that each step is handled in the correct manner.

I believe the service I provide is second to none and I have welcomed the positive feedback and heartwarming testimonials I have received since opening.

I work very hard and I have an extremely positive attitude as well as a number highly-experienced individuals assisting me. I have no doubt that Naomi J Ryan will be a success.

You have to be prepared to throw everything you have into making your business a success.

I seem to live and breathe property — it's what I know and is what I do best — but it will be worth it.

Keep focused and you will succeed.