I spend so much time with my Agents trying to explain to them how important it is to plan your future. No matter how much I do this, they don't listen. Even still, thankfully for our systems, they are successful. So what is the difference between one of my Agents who has almost 30 closings this year to my next best Agent that has 16 closings? It really comes down to work ethic and planning.
All my Agents are given there leads on a daily basis. The leads will give them 30+ sales per year if they work hard. Some of my Agents this year will hit over 25 sales...some a little less. But I think of how successful they could really be if they would really work the business.
Do you have a plan? Do you actually write down your goals for each year, quarter, month, week? As most of you know me as the owner of The eHomes Realty Network, I am also the owner/broker of Tropical Realty of Suntree in Melbourne Florida. The great news is as a company we are doing just fine in this horrible market. However, I have some Agents who are continuing to complain and blame the market on their failures. In the end, it all comes down to operating your Real Estate business as a real business. If you don't run your business like a business should be run, then how do you expect to be successful.
Many Agents started in the boom years of 2003-2005 where all you had to do was tell someone you are a Realtor and you made $100k. Today if you plan on making $100k or more, you better start changing your ways. It's just not enough now to just be a Realtor. Spend some time and write down what your goals are over the last few months of the year. Where do you want to be a year from now and how are you going to get there. Is time management your problem? Usually? Do you really think you work full time but really only work a few hours per day? Do you really want to be successful or are you really a wanna be? These are questions you need to ask yourself if you really want to be successful.
If you need help in working on your plan, feel free to email me. I help Agents become successful. Of course, I can only teach you this stuff...if you don't have it in you to be successful, then this is the market in which you should call it a day. Don't be a wanna be, be successful. It all starts with a plan of action and a real goal to achieve. You can talk all you want, but the proof is in the pudding. I always put my money where my mouth is and luckily the money is still flowing in!
I always stress a business plan when I talk to my agents. I want them to have a business plan for every property they list and every buyer they have secured. Just because they get a commission doesn't mean they're making any money.
Take care.
I'm constantly reviewing my business plan and what is working and what isn't. If you don't you could be spending time and money on activities that aren't productive in the long run.
Mitch,
I agree with you a 100%. I'm tired of Real Estate agents always talking negatively about the market.It's exactly as you said, agents started in the boom years of 2003-2005 where all you had to do was tell someone you are a Realtor and you made $100k. Well that sure doesn't work today. As long as you work hard, have goals and a plan in place you should not be complaining about the "market" Thanks for your post!
Regards,
Tony DeLuke, Abr, GRI
I train Agents all over the country and the biggest problem with most is their lack of planning. It amazes me how many Agents look at this like a job versus a business. I guess we are seeing many of these Agents disappear during this market. Great job on your planning and I'm sure that's why you are successful!
Hey Tony! It's the same with many of the Brokerages I go to. They started in 2004 or 2005 and are now complaining that they are not making it and losing all their money. I started Tropical Realty in March of 2005, probably the worst possible time to start a brokerage. Because of a good business plan with a great model we have grown each year. This year we will be doing over 250 sales, all from the Internet. The only difference between 2004 and now is the price of homes are about half! Other than that we continue to thrive in the "worst real estate market" this area has every seen! If Brokers and Agents actually had a plan, they would be capitalizing on this market instead of failing!
Hi Tony,
If you step outside the U.S. you will see that the other public in Europe, Australia, China, etc. doesn't spend like the U.S. citizens. They are much more thrifty with their money and don't throw it away. The U.S. public needs to get their priorities straighten out, even though it's a Capitalist country, we (as a people) need to put some of it away for days like all of this year! We need to think of the future....
;>)
Many of the agents (not all) that got into this business during those boom years have no idea what it's like to actually sell real estate as they were mainly order takers when they started. Now that they have to actually work for a sale, they are dropping like flies, and I'm capturing what could have been their clients. For those who have a business plan and ways to implement their plan, the business will always be there. For the others, just step aside now before you get run over from behind.
Mitch, I feel your pain. I have tried to form win-win relationships with Realtors to no avail. I always seam to meet the ones with no work ethic or I stop hearing from them when they find out they have to do some of the work. ????????????
One can still be very successful without a plan, but they will be spinning out of control with no end in sight as there is no goal in sight. This is seen alot with younger agents who want to sell as much as possibly can be done. Though this sounds unprofessional, I have seen agents hit $20mm+ without a plan....but in time, they will burn out. The line that failure to plan is a plan for failure is not necessarily true.....but it may be a plan for burn out, which can be termed as failure.
I, on the other hand, set two goals. One goal that is an achievable goal and one that is to shoot far the stars. This was taught to me at a young age to shoot for the stars, but if you don't make it, you still, most likely, achieved the achievable goal. This keeps one positive as the year progresses.
Mitch;
Great self promotion, I thank you for sharing.........................................................
Hi Mitch,
Having a plan is half the battle. Executing the plan is the other. But, if you dont have one, you have nothing to execute!
Good post,
Tim