Most people spend their late teens figuring life out. At 18, Niall McCabe was walking into £300,000 homes praying no one would answer the door because he was the estate agent selling the house, and somehow from that terrified first valuation to becoming one of the top-ranked agents in Europe, he’s built a career in an industry where nobody expected someone his age to last, never mind lead.

From leaving school at 16 because the classroom never worked for him, to winging his way through early valuations, to navigating an industry dominated by people twice his age, Niall’s story is proof that graft, personality, and a bit of panic-driven resilience can take you further than anyone imagines.

In this episode of Success or Excuses, James Fleming sits down with Niall to dig into the real journey behind his rise. The nerves, the graft, the pressure, the wins and the moments he thought he’d made the worst decision of his life.

You’ll hear how he built a name for himself from scratch, how COVID nearly wiped everything out, how he rebuilt through pure consistency, and why treating clients like actual humans (and not transactions) has become his edge.

This one is full of straight-up honesty, Scottish humour, and real-world lessons on building credibility long before you feel ready.

Key moments include: ✔️ Leaving school at 16 and jumping straight into sales ✔️ Getting into estate agency young and why it terrified him ✔️ Winging early valuations and building confidence the hard way ✔️ The pressure, doubt, and loneliness of the early years ✔️ Why resilience and competitiveness carried him through ✔️ Going from self-employed to owning his own franchise ✔️ How small gestures make a massive difference to clients ✔️ COVID wiping out his pipeline overnight and how he rebuilt ✔️ Hitting top rankings across Scotland, the UK, and Europe ✔️ Inspiring the next generation at his old school ✔️ Niall’s top three pieces of advice for life and business

Subscribe to Success or Excuses For more straight-talking conversations with people who’ve built something real, pushed through the messy bits, and kept going even when it felt impossible.

Follow James Fleming: LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesflemingtpwtd/ Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/successorexcusespodcast YouTube → https://www.youtube.com/@SuccessorExcusesPodcast Website → https://thepowerwithintraining.com/

Follow Niall McCabe: LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/niall-mccabe-492040183/ Company LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/company/re-max-scotland/ Website → https://www.remax-scotland.homes/

Timestamps: [00:00] James opens the episode and welcomes Niall [00:49] Niall introduces himself and shares how they first met [01:23] Getting into estate agency at 18 [03:03] The nerves of his first valuation [04:38] Early doubts, resilience, and competitive drive [07:24] From self-employed to running his own office [09:06] The power of good service and small gestures [12:10] Industry reputation and outperforming older peers [14:55] Ranking among Europe’s top agents [16:13] Why school wasn’t for him [20:21] Landing his first major estate agency role [25:33] COVID hits fear, cancellations, and rebuilding [36:12] Marketing, consistency, and the long game [39:09] Returning to his old school to inspire students [42:16] Niall’s top three pieces of advice