We may have learned the secret to KDC CEO Steve Van Amburgh’s success. It’s a list of eight daily affirmations that he revealed when he stole the show (with his sage words like "your ego is not your amigo") Thursday at the 39th annual NTCAR Stemmons Service Award event at the Meyerson Symphony Center.

Steve (left, with the 2013 Stemmons Service Award winner, Colliers EVP Allen Gump) outlined his list for us:

1. Understand the value of persistence every day.

2. Let go of the past and only focus on the future.

3. Learn the importance of beginnings and take things one day at a time.

4. Anticipate setbacks and be mentally resilient.

5. Expect to work hard.

6. Persist in pursuing the right gifts in life.

7. Good enough never seems to be good enough.

8. Every morning rise with a reminder to be kind, be respectful, be honest and be responsible.

Hall Financial Group director of leasing Kim Butler (between Hall Financial chairman Craig Hall and president Don Braun) was named the winner of the 2014 NTCAR Stemmons Service Award. Kim credited her colleagues with a wonderful work environment and thanked her husband, Bruce, for his 30 years of letting her bounce ideas off him. She also recognized the other finalists for their contributions to the industry: UCR’s Mickey Ashmore, Colliers International’s Greg Cannon and Transwestern’s Nora Hogan.

Stemmons Award nominee Nora (seated in red) by her husband, Bob (a sculptor). On his other side is the 2012 Stemmons Award Winner, Cresa Dallas’ Susan Arledge. In a seven degrees of separation moment, Steve says KDC plans to install one of Bob’s sculptures in the CityLine project.

Younger Partners’ Trae Anderson (showing off his OU cuff links) and Colliers’ Daniel Rudd. The duo worked together at the old Grubb & Ellis. The NTCAR Young Citizen’s Award nominees included another Grubb & Ellis alum, Sean Dalton (who now works with Trae at Younger Partners). Other nominees were Hillwood’s Reid Goetz and Granite’s Aarica Mims. The award was presented to Transwestern’s Natalie Snyder.

Our DFW reporter, Tonie Auer, rubbed shoulders (OK, she's far too short to actually rub shoulders) with a couple of former Dallas Cowboys QBs: Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett and Dallas Cowboys Radio Network color analyst Babe Laufenberg (who just announced he’s leaving his sports anchor role at KTVT) at an after-party at Al Biernat’s in Uptown with the Colliers gang as well as a few other commercial real estate superstars.