Cynthia Froid and her husband, Ted Jirele, with sons Eddie, 11, left, and Wally, 9, at their home in Minneapolis’ Linden Hills neighborhood. (The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Cynthia Froid: 45, principal, the Cynthia Froid Group (three independent real estate agents, a graphic designer and an office manager), Keller Williams Realty.

Family: Husband, Ted Jirele, 46, works in IT at U.S. Bank; stepson Sam, 19, is a student at the University of Minnesota; sons Eddie, 11, and Wally, 9, attend public school in southwest Minneapolis.

Home: A family house in Linden Hills since 2001; cabin on the Whitefish chain of lakes.

Hobbies: Travel, skiing, fishing, hot yoga.

Favorite place: Paris.

Education: Hastings High School; B.A. from St. Catherine University in 1993 with a double major in elementary education and French.

Most influential books: "The Book of Awakening: Having the Life You Want by Being Present to the Life You Have," by Mark Nepo; and "Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make the Competition Irrelevant," by W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne. "That book is my business bible," Froid said.

Balance: "My husband's job is consistent and predictable, and mine is the complete opposite. I couldn't do this without him as my partner; he is the rock. With my career craziness comes flexibility. If I want to help with my kid's Valentine's party, I can. I take them to the dentist. I can make time."

Taking the long view: "I've seen how today's $200,000 client becomes a million-dollar client. I want to follow them all the way up."

Management philosophy: "We talk about getting the right people in the right seat on the bus. You go through growing pains when you form a team, figuring out how everyone best contributes. Sometimes you have to rearrange the seats to get rolling."

kevyn burger