16 Ahas from Fall Masterminds

“Motivation is something nobody else can give you. Others can help motivate you, but basically, it must come from you, and it must be a constant desire to do your very best at all times and under any circumstances.”

– Joe DiMaggio

Four times a year, we mastermind with our top agents from around the globe. We send invites to the top 250 teams and individuals. Of the 180,000 real estate agents in our company, these superstars represent the top 0.3%. This week, I’m sharing my favorite ahas from our most recent gathering.

THE SHIFTED MARKET

1. “In a shift, you’re naturally going to make less money. If you’re going to get back to your old income, you’re going to do it unnaturally.” – Gary Keller
2. ​David Pittiglio, who runs a CPA firm specializing in real estate, told us that agents should focus on managing their expenses instead of simply cutting their expenses. In an effort to get their expenses below their dropping revenues, many agents are cutting their lifelines (coaching, education, lead generation, etc). When your boat is taking on water, don’t jettison the life raft!
3. When managing expenses, start with your personal lifestyle. Now is not the time for your business to be held hostage to a luxury lifestyle. Batten down the hatches, folks!
4. Most agents have never had to serve clients in a buyers’ market. The skills needed to survive and thrive are quite different. For example, in a buyers’ market a motivated and financially able buyer is precious. Jen Davis shared that she’s coaching her people to understand that every showing ends with “Set or Sign.” If they aren’t writing an offer (Sign), they are setting an appointment for the next showing (Set). Don’t let active buyers drift away. Keep them engaged.
5. “Just because there’s less opportunity overall doesn’t mean there is less opportunity for you.” – Gary Keller. No matter how far your market drops, there will still be enough business for you to hit your goals. You will just have to get your unfair share!
6. “You can be the company that people flee or the company people flee to.” – Gary Keller, again. Shifts present opportunities to attract new talent. When others are laying off, you can make an investment in top-grading your talent. This market also presents opportunities to merge databases with agents who would prefer to tackle as a team or who simply are ready to retire.
7. You don’t know what you will need in the future. If you think you have just enough, you might be falling into a trap. There will always be unexpected opportunities and unanticipated obligations. I used to hang out with a fitness entrepreneur who constantly reminded me, “You can’t hold steady. You’re either getting stronger or weaker.”
8. Gary shared a formula for balanced growth: “In the hours that I’m willing to work, how good can I be? That’s the game I encourage you to play. Instead of being satisfied with how much you’ve done, ask how much more you can do.” For the overachievers reading the above, don’t ignore the opening words: “In the hours that I’m willing to work.” Set boundaries for work. And when you’re there, give it 100%.

LEAD GENERATION

1. In a shift, you have a math issue. Conversion rates will go down. This means your activities must go up. However many conversations it required to get an appointment with a motivated seller or buyer in the past market, it will take more to get the same result in the coming market. Ramp up or fall behind.
2. MOFIRs (Make Offers for Immediate Response) can be leveraged in your conversation and your advertising. What we love about marketing MOFIRs is that they’re functionally reverse prospecting. You make an offer so compelling, the prospect calls you or gives you permission to call them. In an age where TCPA compliance lawsuits are running into 8- and 9-figure penalties, MOFIRs like these are golden. This “aha” may be more of a “oh d’uh.” Nevertheless, thanks to Sarah Reynolds for highlighting this for me.
3. In order to get the most dollars out of your marketing, you need to change your messaging. It must be focused on the value you can give your customers. The best way to discover what they value is to make lead conversion a core part of your job description (again). When you’re setting appointments, you get a feel for objections in this market and you quickly learn how to handle them. Infuse your marketing with that knowledge.

LEVERAGE

1. One struggle most agents initially have is bringing people leverage to their business — “Business is easy. People are hard.” That said, if you don’t have an assistant, you are one!
2. “What people don’t do is spend enough time looking for the one.” Just like you make your money going in with investing, you make a great hire going in. Over-index on selecting a great candidate instead of over-managing a poor hire.
3. If your leverage isn’t at your level, you’ll never be able to hand off your job completely to them. You need to hire your equal.
4. If you’re hiring an assistant and they aren’t capable of thinking as big as you, they’ll make your world smaller. You need someone who will be excited for the growth of your business — even if that means they’re going to have a more complex or difficult job.
5. “The path of business success is the parallel path to personal growth. Your business will never outgrow who you are. You cannot escape your character.” — Gary Keller

There are other ahas to share that are harder to capture in just a few lines. You can look forward to those in future editions.

One question to ponder in your thinking time: What made you successful in the past that you have stopped doing?

Make an Impact!
Jay Papasan

Co-author of The One Thing & The Millionaire Real Estate Agent ​