A Roundup of Grandma Edith's Wisest Words

One of the highlights of Million Dollar Listing: Los Angeles has always been the wonderful relationship between Josh Flagg and his Grandma Edith. Edith's long and amazing life came to an end at 94 in mid-August 2014, but her advice will always live on. And now that it's not just Josh Altman making aggressive deals, but also new cast members the "Bond Street Boys," James Harris and David Parnes, the competition for Los Angeles real estate listings is higher than ever.

Josh already has a whopping three assistants to help watch his back, but he's been sidelined by health surprises like his strange "dusting vodka bottles" slip-and-fall, which left him confined to a gold-plated wheelchair in time for Wednesday's episode.

So Josh needs to keep his wits about him, and the one person who can give him great advice and always has a sneaky secret that helps keep his business successful is, of course, his grandmother. While Josh already collected Grandma Edith's best stories and her whole history into his book, A Simple Girl: Stories My Grandmother Told Me , she's also given him countless pieces of wisdom on Million Dollar Listing. Josh would do well to keep them in mind as he attempts to take on his three costars.

You Only Need a Few Friends

We got this gem just last week. When worrying about the fate of his relationship with James and David, Edith warned him to keep just a few friends around, who will "take it or leave it" … and the good ones take it.

Keep It Close to the Chest

Don't give away your secrets. If Edith had blabbed around New York that she'd discovered polyester, her discovery would have turned from a multi-million dollar empire into a scramble to stay ahead of her competitors. Always keep the upper hand by refusing to give up information to your opponent, and don't strike out with the first blow, because you end up vulnerable (unless, of course, your foe badmouths your grandma — then, all bets are off!). Of course, Edith also took this advice literally, since she kept everything from cash to lightbulbs in her bra.

Don't Be a Liar

Josh loves to joke, exaggerate, and tease, but as his grandma warned him, he never lies, and he's dead serious when it comes to business. That's probably why he gets so worked up whenever it seems like Josh Altman is stretching the truth.

Laziness Will Ruin You

When Josh was bellyaching about driving three hours to get to a listing, his grandmother snapped him out of it — and quick. The house was a lucky get from one of his parents' connections, and he'd have been lazy to turn it down because of the drive. As Edith said, "have a cup of coffee," aka "suck it up and work."

Keep Your Friends Close, Your Enemies Closer, and Your Grandmother Across the Hall

Obviously, Grandma Edith cared more about family than anything else, even business. And while Josh did eventually move out of her building and into a new house with his boyfriend last season, this year we'll still be getting the exact same family-oriented nature from Josh and plenty more advice from Grandma Edith. In the end, his love of family, friends, and relaxing is what will always give Josh an edge that gets under Josh Altman's skin. While Altman can't be beat for sheer real estate bought and sold, it's Josh Flagg's equal commitment to work and leisure that would make Grandma Edith the most satisfied. Life is all about balance for the Flagg family.

Images: Bravotv; Bravo