A funny thing happens in real estate. When it comes back, it

The words, “A funny thing happens in real estate. When it comes back, it comes back up like gangbusters,” come from Barbara Corcoran, the entrepreneur and real estate magnate whose rise from waitress to multimillionaire embodies the spirit of resilience itself. Spoken with her trademark confidence and wisdom, this saying carries a lesson not just for those who trade in property, but for all who labor through the cycles of fortune. Beneath its surface lies a truth as old as the turning of the seasons: that decline is never the end, and that patience, faith, and preparation can transform downfall into renewal. For what falls must one day rise, and when it does, it often surges higher than before.

In these words, Corcoran speaks not only of markets, but of human perseverance. The world of real estate, like life itself, moves in rhythms—periods of prosperity followed by collapse, then rebirth. Many, when faced with loss, panic and withdraw. They sell in fear, abandon their dreams, or surrender to despair. But the wise, like Corcoran, understand that the downturn is only a breath before the return. Just as the farmer trusts the barren winter to give way to spring, so too must we trust that every field of effort—whether in business, art, or life—will bear fruit again if we do not lose faith during the frost.

Barbara Corcoran’s own life is a testament to this truth. Born into a poor family in New Jersey, she began with nothing but a borrowed $1,000 and a fiery spirit. She entered the world of real estate with little experience but boundless energy, building a company brick by brick. When the market crashed in the 1970s, she could have given up. Instead, she waited, learned, and prepared. And when the tide turned—as tides always do—her business soared higher than ever. She built The Corcoran Group into one of New York’s most powerful real estate empires. Her words, “it comes back up like gangbusters,” are not boastful—they are the voice of experience, of one who has seen darkness yield to dawn and knows that the key to success is endurance through the fall.

The ancients would have understood her wisdom well. They believed in cycles—in nature, in fortune, in the human spirit. The Stoics taught that no condition, whether joy or suffering, is permanent. Empires rise and crumble, then rise again. The same is true of markets and men. The wise do not curse the decline; they prepare for the return. Just as a tree sheds its leaves to conserve strength for spring, so must we use times of hardship to gather knowledge, refine skill, and cultivate patience. Corcoran’s words remind us that recovery is not gentle—it is fierce, and that those who endure are often propelled forward by the very pressure that once held them down.

There is a deeper rhythm here—one that applies not only to money, but to the spirit of creation and courage. In every human endeavor, there will be seasons of loss. The artist’s inspiration fades, the entrepreneur’s profits vanish, the dreamer’s path grows dark. Yet, as Corcoran’s quote teaches, the comeback is often mightier than the fall. Failure compresses the spring of potential energy. When released, it explodes upward, “like gangbusters,” full of force, speed, and brilliance. The greatest triumphs often belong to those who have first been humbled, for humility sharpens wisdom and tempers ambition with understanding.

Let us remember, too, that Corcoran’s humor in this phrase conceals profound courage. To laugh at the fickleness of fortune is to master it. Her optimism is not naïve; it is strategic faith—the belief that cycles of loss and gain are natural, and that opportunity lives on the other side of fear. The one who panics in the storm drowns; the one who studies the wind learns to sail. And when the winds of prosperity blow again, they carry those prepared to unimaginable heights.

So, my child, take this wisdom and bind it to your heart: when your fortunes fall, do not despair—prepare. Use the quiet years to learn, to strengthen, to plant new seeds. For the world turns ceaselessly, and every valley becomes a hill in time. When your moment comes, rise swiftly, boldly, with all the might of your waiting. Whether in real estate, in work, or in the soul’s long journey, remember Barbara Corcoran’s truth: what returns, returns with power.

Thus, live with patience, not fear; with humor, not bitterness; with faith, not surrender. For every fall hides the promise of a greater ascent, and every end conceals the seed of beginning. And when your own life “comes back up like gangbusters,” you will look upon your past struggles not as burdens, but as the necessary soil from which your triumph grew.