The Hard Truth About Succeeding in the Real Estate Business Eden Sunshine Vice President Realty Executives 602-345-7870 esunshine@realtyexecsaz.com As I wrapped up a recent business planning event for a group of real estate agents, I asked an important question. “By a show of hands” I queried, “having completed your 2020 Business Plan, who discovered the necessary activities to growing your business are new concepts and approaches that you have never heard of before.” Not a single hand went up. In other words, they all had a good idea what they needed to do to grow their businesses. Yet, everyone in the room felt they had a long way to go to achieving the success they really wanted for themselves. There is one critical factor that separates highly effective, successful agents and those that struggle to achieve their goals. Before I share the critical difference between successful agents and those that struggle, there are a couple of things to put into perspective first. The real estate business is a relationship business. Period. Successful agents are simply more effective at establishing relationships that foster trust and confidence with their clients and prospects. The resources and tools we have available to connect with people today compared to the past have changed significantly, but the game is still all about relationships. Today, we have the internet, search optimization, email, texting, social media, YouTube and many other methods of communication compared to the past. Yet the game is the same; get connected to people, build confidence and trust and earn the business when people are ready to move. A good business plan helps you get clarity on what you are specifically going to do to foster and build relationships. It also outlines very specific actions that you will do on a daily, weekly, monthly and annual basis to connect with prospective and past clients. For example, the plan might specify that every day you will make 10 contacts to people in your sphere of influence or to previous clients via phone or text. In addition, you will make 2 social media posts per day and send a newsletter or direct mail piece to your farm area monthly. 14 Here is where the hard truth begins. Having a business plan alone is not going to ensure your success. In fact, in my years of coaching and supporting top producing agents throughout North America, many DID NOT have a documented business plan. Despite that, they still achieved extraordinarily high levels of success for one specific reason. THEY TOOK ACTION. They took action consistently and purposefully. They made sure they were regularly engaging in activities that fostered relationships with prospects. The difference between a wildly successful agent and those that aspire to greatness comes down to one thing: Doing the work that fosters great relationships. Some have referred to me as The World’s Toughest Business Coach because I’ve been known to have tough, truth yielding conversations with people that lead to massive transformation in their lives and careers. I am committed to helping people live great lives and love the work they do. Sometimes that requires a little kick in the pants or a tough, thought-altering conversation that will lead to new and inspired actions. If you aren’t ready for tough love, stop reading right now. I am going to share something with you that might rub against your beliefs, habits, and the way you’ve shown up in life and your career in the past. The reason why most agents struggle to maximize their potential is they don’t REALLY do enough of the work to create lots of conversations with prospects. They make one call a week, send a periodic newsletter or hand out a business card from time to time and believe that is sufficient effort. It is not! They make excuses like they don’t have time; they don’t have resources; they don’t agree with a proven methodology or they blame others. They always have some reason and consideration that will take precedent over doing the activities that will lead to results. Despite good intentions and knowing what to do, they still don’t do it. They aren’t keeping their commitment to themselves and their goals. If that stings, sorry! I warned you. Great agents have the capacity to take their limiting thoughts Continued on pg. 15 © 2019 Hogan School of Real Estate Sept/Oct 2019
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