Lately, my inbox has been flooded with fear.
Agents from around the country offering escape routes — Florida, Tennessee, the Carolinas.
They write, “With everything happening in New York right now, maybe your clients are ready for a change.”
Agents from around the country offering escape routes — Florida, Tennessee, the Carolinas.
They write, “With everything happening in New York right now, maybe your clients are ready for a change.”
Every time I read one, I smile.
Because people who say things like that don’t understand New York.
They don’t understand that this city doesn’t break — it builds.
That every storm we face only sharpens us.
That the same pressure that makes others run… is the pressure that forges New Yorkers.
That every storm we face only sharpens us.
That the same pressure that makes others run… is the pressure that forges New Yorkers.
They said New York was dead during COVID.
They said it after 9/11.
They said it in the ‘70s.
And yet — every single time — this city came back harder, faster, stronger.
They said it after 9/11.
They said it in the ‘70s.
And yet — every single time — this city came back harder, faster, stronger.
New York doesn’t crumble.
It recreates itself.
It recreates itself.
It’s not politicians, policies, or news cycles that define this place — it’s people.
The hustlers. The dreamers. The ones who can take a punch, spit blood, and still show up the next day in a suit, ready to fight for their future.
The hustlers. The dreamers. The ones who can take a punch, spit blood, and still show up the next day in a suit, ready to fight for their future.
When you’ve walked these streets long enough, you start to realize something:
New York isn’t just a city.
It’s a test.
New York isn’t just a city.
It’s a test.
And if you can pass that test —
if you can stay when it’s hard,
if you can fight when it’s uncertain,
if you can still dream when everyone else is running scared —
if you can stay when it’s hard,
if you can fight when it’s uncertain,
if you can still dream when everyone else is running scared —
then there’s nothing in the world you can’t do.
Yes, Florida has sunshine.
Yes, Tennessee has land.
But New York has soul.
Yes, Tennessee has land.
But New York has soul.
It’s the heartbeat of ambition, the global stage where grit meets greatness.
You don’t come here to relax — you come here to rise.
You don’t come here to relax — you come here to rise.
And when you’ve built something in this city… it’s yours forever.
So no, I’m not running.
I’m not afraid.
And I’m not selling escape plans.
I’m not afraid.
And I’m not selling escape plans.
I’m selling belief — in the most resilient city on Earth.
Because if you’re built for New York, nowhere else will ever feel like home.
It’s NYC or Nowhere.
