James Glass’s story is one of unexpected twists, hard work, and strong values. From coaching basketball in China as a teenager to building an innovative training platform for real estate agents in Dubai, James Glass’s journey is an inspiring example of how faith, family, and work ethic can shape a meaningful life.
At just 15 years of age, James Glass left his family to move to Los Angeles for school and basketball, and at age 17, he took a summer job coaching basketball camps across several major cities in China, two summers in a row. This unique opportunity challenged him to step outside his comfort zone. “As a teenager, I learned how to work hard, adapt to a new culture, and be self-sufficient in any context,” he recalls. It was about more than just basketball. It was about discovering resilience and independence far from home.
This early experience laid a foundation of discipline and adaptability that James Glass carried with him throughout his life. During his university years in Chicago, his basketball coaches also spent four years shaping him, not just as an athlete but as a man who finds his identity in the fact that God loves him, leading him to care for his family, work hard, and love others.
For James Glass, the ‘why’ and the ‘how’ are as important as the ‘what’. Grounded in Christian integrity and ethics, James Glass believes that it is not only possible, but preferable to be competitive while maintaining honesty and strong moral values. This is something he finds all too rare in the business world, and the world in general.
“Learning to love being competitive while keeping high ethical standards shapes how I approach my work every day,” James Glass explains. This balance has been essential in his career, especially in industries where competition is fierce but integrity must never be compromised.
James Glass’s professional path took an unexpected turn in 2019 when he left the airline industry. When he got married to his wife Salomie, he accepted what seemed like an entry-level position in the prop tech sector as a sales trainer in real estate. This was a year before the Covid Pandemic.
“It was an accident,” James Glass admits with a smile. But that accidental decision marked the start of an exciting new chapter. One chapter opened another, and by 2023, James had worked in the L&D realm as a sales trainer for the middle east’s leading Property Portal, a top 3 Secondary Brokerage in Dubai, and the city’s fastest growing Off Plan brokerage at the time.
Over the course of 24 months, James Glass played a key role in helping his last company grow from 200 employees to over 850. Managing such rapid expansion while maintaining high performance and knowledge standards across a team that large, experiencing 450% growth in that short of a time span, was no small feat. James Glass especially credits the company’s recruitment team and his Learning and Development team for their critical impact on this success.
Currently, James Glass is focused on an ambitious project: developing a fully customizable online training program designed specifically for real estate brokerages. Hosted on a modern Learning Management System (LMS), this platform aims to equip both new and experienced agents with the skills and knowledge they need to thrive in Dubai’s competitive real estate market. Think ‘Master Class for Dubai Real Estate Agents’, and make it interactive and customizable. A first of its kind, and it will soon be available to every agency in Dubai.
While the program is currently geared towards businesses as a B2B product, James Glass plans to launch a second phase aimed at individual agents in 2026. His vision is to empower real estate professionals to build successful careers grounded in knowledge, ethics, and practical skills.
James Glass is a firm believer in financial discipline and living below your means. “If you learn to save and manage your expenses wisely, it opens doors to take risks, try new things, and reinvest in your future,” he advises.
He warns against the trap of living paycheck to paycheck, which limits people’s ability to pursue opportunities. “Most people live at or above their means and never get to a point where they can take risks,” he says. James Glass’s own leap from a stable airline career to real estate tech, and then again from a Director position to starting his own training consultancy, shows the power of careful financial planning combined with bold decision making.
Despite his professional success, James Glass is clear about what truly matters. “I don’t care if people remember me, but I want to make a difference in how they think about the purpose of life,” he shares.
James often tells others that money is important and worth working hard for. However, if money becomes the only goal, people will never find true satisfaction or happiness. His message encourages finding a balance between working hard and being content with what God has given. He summarizes this by saying, “We ultimately are just stewards of what God has blessed us with, and we can’t take any of it with us when we die”.
One of James Glass’s boldest pieces of advice is simple: “Take more risks. It’s just money.” This fearless mindset helped him transition from the airline industry to a totally new field.
This perspective doesn’t mean being reckless but rather understanding that money is a tool, not an end in itself. By managing finances wisely and being willing to step outside comfort zones, James Glass has built a fulfilling career in a very niche industry – real estate training.
Through his online training program and his personal example, James Glass aims to inspire the next generation of real estate professionals. He wants agents not only to succeed financially but to build careers based on knowledge, integrity, and purpose.
James Glass’s vision is clear: success is about more than sales numbers. It’s about developing as a person, balancing ambition with contentment, and making an impact on others’ lives.
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