Unless you’ve been living under a rock all this while, you would have come across a TikTok trend in one form or another.
Whether it’s food, dance, beauty, comedy, or art – every week there are viral trends in every TikTok niche, and real estate is no different.
Check out my short TikTok presentation I recently did for a group of Realtors©
All the best,
Wade
Have you branded your real estate business using your name? Does your branding reference what you do, where you do it, and who you serve? Do you have a brand that is hyperlocal or niched based? If not, you are losing potential customers because you are marketing with an ineffective brand. A great brand immediately calls the product to mind. To illustrate this point, how many of these brands do you recognize? The “UnCola,” the “Ultimate Driving Machine,” and the “Breakfast of Champions” (i.e., Seven-Up, BMW, and Wheaties). My personal choice for best-branded real estate brokerage is “Next Home.” Your name: the least effective way to brand your business when most agents and brokerages launch their businesses, they seldom have any training on what constitutes an effective brand. The result is they usually end up branding with their name. Here’s why branding with your name is a poor idea: Please Note: If you are currently branding with your name and have had success in doing so, do NOT disturb what’s working. Instead use the “niched” branding strategies outlined below as additional sources for generating more leads.
1. Interference – Do you have trouble remembering names? Almost everyone does and for good reason. Each day you are bombarded with thousands of names of people, places, products, and companies. All this incoming data results in what psychologists call “interference.” To illustrate how interference works, what did you have for dinner lunch yesterday? If you were able to answer the question, the information is stored in your long-term memory. On the other hand, can you describe what you had for dinner 365 days ago? Chances are you can’t. The reason is you have had 364 other dinners since then.
2. The Ebbinghaus Curve of Forgetting. – Ebbinghaus’s research shows that we lose half of what we learned within the first hour after learning it. Within two days, that number climbs to almost 75 percent. In other words, even if the potential client remembers your name, 48 hours from now there’s only a 25 percent chance they will be able to recall it.
3. Your broker’s brand is usually better known. – Broker brand alongside your brand. My home was heavily prospected by agents sending out monthly postcards. I don’t remember any of the agents’ names, but I do remember who they worked for: Royal Lepage, Coldwell Banker, Keller Williams, and RE/MAX. Brokerage names are usually more visible due to multiple yard signs, their print and digital advertising, plus all the marketing pieces their agents send out that are branded with the brokerage name. If your brokerage also brands with a name (i.e., Berkshire Hathaway, Coldwell Banker, Keller Williams, Sotheby’s etc.) it’s even harder for potential clients to remember your name. They’re more likely to remember your broker’s big For Sale Sign as opposed to your name rider.
4. Name branding usually makes a business more difficult to sell. – Branding your business with your name also makes it more difficult to sell. “Wade Webb Realty” doesn’t work as a brokerage name for someone named Tom Smith.
5. No reference to the real estate industry. A strong brand references “real estate” or “properties,” yet many of the major brands have confusing name brands as well. For example, is “Coldwell Banker” a bank? Before Prudential was acquired by Berkshire Hathaway, I had a number of clients who commented, “I thought Prudential sold insurance, not real estate.”
6. No reference to your city, state, province, postal or zip code. – One of the biggest mistakes agents make, especially on their websites, is failure to include the state and zip or postal code where they specialize. To illustrate why this matters, did you know that there are 22 places in the U.S. named “Paris”? Consumers typically search by street name, city, and zip code. Always include these on your website, social media sites, plus any digital or print marketing you do. People don’t remember names, but they do remember features and functions. To illustrate how this works, assume my niche is selling probate properties. If I were to meet you at an open house, you would probably remember me as the blond lady who specializes in probate sales as opposed to remembering my name. When you need me to help sell a probate property eight months later, you will probably remember you met a blond lady who specialized in selling probate properties in Austin. To find me, you would probably enter “Austin,” “probate,” “real estate,” or “properties.” If several agents are serving this niche, you could easily see my profile and identify that I was the agent you met at that open house. Use these steps to expand your branding. Here are the steps to take to make sure leads who don’t remember your name can still find you: Use words or phrases that show you are in the real estate business: “real estate,” “homes,” “properties,” etc.
Reference the geographical location and/or the market segments that you serve. For example, do you have a geographical farm or specific subdivision where you specialize? Do you specialize in specific types of properties such as luxury estates, new construction, relocation, resort properties, second homes, 55+ communities, etc.? Do you serve a specific profession or type of customer? Examples include home-based businesses, seniors, couples in transitions, distressed properties, people who share your religion or politics, charities, clients born outside the U.S., investors, green or environmentally friendly, military, loft living, Mommy Market, golf properties, etc.
7. Putting your new brand to work. – We’re still at a point in time where you can build a strong digital real estate presence at virtually no cost. For example, you can set up a Facebook or Instagram business page for each niche or specialty market you serve. Add as much data as possible to that page and post regular updates. It’s also smart to create a Facebook and Instagram business page for each listing you take. Be sure to include the street address, city, state, and zip code as part of the name. Your clients will share these sites with their friends and followers, giving you free exposure to their contacts. These are also a tremendous conversion tool on listing appointments. In terms of your website, you can set up a separate subdomain that redirects back to your main site, although you can set these pages up to look as if they are your home page. Alternatively, you can also set them up as landing pages. The secret in getting conversions is to provide property reports and other data that would motivate web visitors to give you their contact information.
The bottom line is while it may be tempting to keep using your existing brand, going hyperlocal and having the highly niched branding strategies discussed here will give you a huge advantage when it comes to potential customers finding you, no matter where you meet them.
Strength and courage,
Wade
A mentor of mine said to me “agents aim for nothing and hit it with amazing success!” 2021 is wrapping up and what did you aim for? What did you hit? It is the perfect time of year to aim for something in 2022 and hit it with amazing success! So when 2021 begins to wind down you should not wait until the very end to start planning for 2022. This means having a crystal clear understanding of the successes and challenges of your current year, how it impacts your upcoming year, and developing a vision of what you want to accomplish, and how. Many agents aim for nothing every year and most hit it with amazing accuracy!!
I believe you should always start working on your next year strategy months in advance of the new year. This awards you enough time to make an impact on your final quarter, and lay the groundwork for making sure your next fiscal year starts off on a solid footing. For agents who want to achieve greatness, push the envelope, and grow their business through market share, market penetration, paying down debt, increasing sales, profits and cash flow, I urge you to get going now! The way I see things is, if your business isn’t growing, pushing the envelope, thriving, and maximizing profit, then all you’re really doing is suffering a slow death.
Believe me, your competition is fighting the fight every day, and they didn’t wake up in the morning and say “Gosh, golly, I hope I stay even in 2022.” They want to eat your lunch, take your business, absorb your market share and steal your customers away.
Some people might ask me if they should start planning by looking at their competition, and I say NO. Why focus on the competition, instead of focusing on yourself? When it comes to my business, I don’t care what others do. I care about what I do. Recognize your competition for what and who they are, and then put your best foot forward by pushing the envelope in your business. You should approach the new year as if you are going to battle, and for that you should develop a strategic plan.
Business Plan – a written document that describes in detail how a business, usually a new one, is going to achieve its goals. A business plan lays out a written plan from a marketing, financial and operational viewpoint.
FACT:
LESS THAN 3% OF REAL ESTATE AGENTS HAVE A BUSINESS PLAN
FACT:
ESTIMATED 3% OF REAL ESTATE AGENTS IN NORTH AMERICA DO 97% OF THE BUSINESS
“If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” Writing a business plan may seem a daunting task as there are so many moving parts and concepts to address. Take it one step at a time and be sure to schedule regular review (quarterly, semi-annually, or annually) of your plan to be sure you are on track to meet your goals. It is that time of year again when we begin to build our plan for 2020 so let’s look at the key areas of the agent’s solid business plan.
Step 1) “Success and history always leaves us clues.”
I began by looking back to identify the clues that have been left for us and the business. I would look at the real estate market first and search for the following clues.
What have the number of sales been doing the last year? 2-5 years? Up? Down?
What have the number of listings been doing the last year? 2-5 years? Up? Down?
What have the average and median prices been doing?
What price ranges are experiencing more activity? Less activity?
What neighborhoods or areas are experiencing more activity? Less Activity?
What property types are selling more? Less?
What buyer types are buying more?
Where are the buyers coming from? Local? Next state or province? Over Seas?
Imagine the targeted and strategic plan you would be able to build for you and your real estate business with this kind of information? Now you are not just winging it. You really know where and what to focus on.
Step 2) Looking At The Present State of Your Own Real Estate Business
What have my sales been doing? Up? Down?
What have my listings been doing? Up? Down?
What is my average price? Can I raise my average selling price?
What is my Gross Commission Income doing?
What is my average deal worth?
Where are my listings and sales coming from? Sources of business?
What types of buyers do I represent?
Where are the buyers coming from? Local? Out of area?
What are my pending sales?
What do I have for potential buyers and sellers?
What is working? What is not working?
What do I need to start doing again? Stop doing?
What if you took the time to really track and measure and reflect on your business at a deeper level and see your strengths, weaknesses and opportunities of yourself and your own business?
Step 3) Activity Plans – Take the time to lay out your activity plan calendar a year in advance.
Focus on the activities you know you are good at and you see a return on your invested time and money. I am guessing for most agents it would be your sphere of influence, referrals and face to face or voice to voice activities. Set up a schedule for a month or two in advance of your activities for generating business. What is the activity? When? How? To Whom? Track and measure each of these scheduled activities to help identify the best of the best.
Step 4) Budgeting – Profit is the goal in business.
Knowing what your personal life and your business world cost you monthly is so important. Expense management is just as important as your income and earnings. Have a clear picture of your expenses and measure all of them for their return on investment or if they can be reduced in any way. I understand this my be terrifying for most of us to see what we are spending personally and professionally but it is the foundation of your business plan to know what your personal and professional lives cost and then be able to set a financial target that is enough to cover them both and leave you some profit! So many of us stay away from this and run in a deficit and that is not good practice for any of us.
Step 5) Goals – If your “Why” is big enough the “how” will take care of itself.
What is your purpose? Vision? Values? Mission Statement? Taking the time to know what it is you want and why you want it is a game changer for us all. Nothing gives me more joy than impacting and improving people’s lives personally and professionally every day. I have realized that the driving compelling force in my life is serving others and having the means to create memorable experiences with the people I care about most and nothing else has given me more joy than these amazing WHY’s in my own life.
In my own real estate business, taking the time over the last 25 years to create a business plan has been so incredibly beneficial for me and I know it will for you as well. In today’s post I have given you a brief business plan overview. To help you get going with your own plan I put together a Step-by-Step Real Estate Business Plan Workbook you can download for
Strength and courage,
Wade
2021 has not been easy for anyone. The pandemic shooed away the whole of humanity to their houses with no definite return date. While it is distressing, the pandemic for a REALTOR© can also be a “blessing” if you have been procrastinating on personal goals and new year resolutions. Setting up work goals must be a regular occurrence for you if you have been a true professional for a long time. But getting to the process to achieve them is a very tough cookie to bite. Nowadays, the circumstances have changed. Suddenly, you have a lot of time to make that dream a reality. Here’s how you can get started for the remainder of 2021 as a productivity guru.
1. Treat Yourself with Some Self Care. – One of the most important goals that you need to achieve is Self-care. It is necessary for every professional that they must take care of themselves first, both physically and psychologically. This will help make sure that they are sharp and ready to take on any and every challenge that their work-life throws at them.
2. Reconnect with Old Peers. – When you are working in a professional paradigm, you need to understand that every person that you know, or meet is a potential asset that you need to keep in your arsenal. The best asset is your old classmates and peers from your schooling days. Why? Because they are most likely a part of the professional paradigm as well, and they can help you connect with numerous potential clients, no matter what your area of expertise is. So keep those peers close as they can prove to be quite beneficial business connections for you.
3. Revisit Your Career Goals Every Year. – You must have set your career goals when you were in college, or even earlier than that. This is the normal scenario for a lot of professionals out there, but what will set you apart from all of them is when you would revisit all of the career goals every single year. Many people suggest revisiting these goals every 5 years, but what this year has taught us that you can never wait that long to make some major life changes that actively shape the way you live your work and personal life because it can all change without a moment’s notice.
4. Leverage a Task Scheduling App. – If you want to achieve your bigger work or personal goals this year, you need to start using a task scheduling app, such as nTask. A task scheduler can make your work easier in planning, organizing, reminding, executing, and reporting on the tasks set by you. nTask app is available on iOS and Android devices. It will keep you in the loop of your goals so that you won’t miss anything. The task scheduler app such as nTask will help you create tasks, set due dates, give priorities, get notifications, assign tasks to team members, manage workflows with Kanban Boards, and visualize the progress with the help of a Gantt chart.
5. Maintain a Proper Sleep Schedule. – Sleep is not just for beauty; it is the most important personal trait that you have to gain control over if you want to keep a hold on your sanity while performing so many professional tasks. Maintaining a proper sleep schedule is a prime example of a common entity among personal and professional goals. That makes it a very important work goal that you need to achieve in 2022.
6. Keep Funds Ready for Emergencies. – One of the most important things that the pandemic has shown us that no one’s job is secure. Every one of us is disposable and you can be evicted from the house you called home for so many years, in a matter of days. This is why you must set a personal and work goal to save money whenever possible. That money will help fund your personal and work life in an emergency.
7. Keep a Daily Journal. – Many of us already have this amazing habit where we document every happening, or write-up the most relevant of happenings from our day into our personal Journal or diary. This helps us keep a record of what our shortcomings and positive aspects have been over a long period and can help us to make different personal and work-life decisions in the future. The majority of experts recommend journaling for 5 minutes in the morning and at night, but most of us cannot do that even once in the day. So, if you cannot get yourself to do the daily writing, you can try doing it weekly, but the problem with that is that you cannot remember so much from your day when it has been 6 days. So we would recommend doing it daily and maintain consistency.
8. Travel More. – One thing that you MUST do is to travel. Our lives have been made quite stagnant by our work priorities, even without the help of the pandemic, and the only way to liven things up is to get out of your normal routines and travel to different locations where you are bound to learn some new things. These new things can be beneficial to both your work and personal life, in addition to throwing you into an effervescent state known as ‘Holiday High’.
9. Keep a Healthy Diet. – Since you are working from home right now and even when you go to the office after this nightmare is over, you need to make sure that you keep a healthy diet full of fruits, vegetables, and meat if you are into it. This diet will provide you with all of the different nutrients and elements associated with physical and mental health, which will strengthen your immune system and make you more active and healthier for the personal and work challenges you face every day.
10. Keep a Gratitude Journal. – We have already talked about keeping a Journal but that was to write-up all of the different happenings in your day. This journal is establishing a more positive outlook on your life. A gratitude journal is a great way of recalling different aspects of your life so that you can have a more positive attitude while tackling the different challenges that you face in your personal and professional life.
11. Maintain a Morning Routine. – Whenever we look at the most common traits among all of the successful entrepreneurs and businessmen people around the world, the first thing that pops up is their morning routine where they wake up early and start their day way before anyone else. This is because the most productive hours in your day are when you wake up and when those hours are in the morning, you get to enjoy the peace and serenity of the morning before the hustle and bustle of the day consumes you. This is why maintaining a morning schedule is an excellent work and personal goal that you have to achieve in 2022.
12. Read More. – Reading has always been an amazing personal trait. It enhances your vocabulary and helps stuff your mind with some amazing facts about life and work, and also many other things depending on the books that you are reading. Experts suggest that you should read at least 12 books, one for each month. Some people already read more than double that, but it is a good start for people who are not habitual of even reading a single book in a whole year.
13. Arm Yourselves with More Skills. – The professional paradigm is a war. You and every single one of your peers is competing with each other, and just like in war, victory is always given to the people who have the best arsenal under their command with the mind to wield it. This is why you need to arm yourselves with more skills because, in the professional paradigm, the best weapon to be victorious is a diverse skill set.
14. Drink More Water. – The next item on the list to keep yourself hydrated. You do not need us to tell you how important water is, so we’ll skip the lecture. Just remember that keeping yourself hydrated is useful for keeping your mind and body fresh, which will help you defeat all of the challenges that your personal and professional life put in your way.
15. Workout. – Fitness is a drug that is universally accepted as the salvation for the human race – i.e. if we want to defeat the rampant obesity that is all around us. For many of us, that reality is not clear enough and they are still prone to left swipe the option to choose a healthier life for them. When this is the case, then workout might not be for them. What they can do is that they can do other activities that can keep them fit and healthy like meditation or hiking. Something to keep them moving and keeping them releasing those endorphins so that they can have a fresher and healthier personal and professional life.
16. Maintain a Clutter-Free Environment Around You. – One of the best things that you can do to keep your mind away from distractions and also keeping the environment around you pleasant, is to make sure that the everything around you in perfect symmetry, and if you’re not prone to OCD cleaning then you can just keep your surroundings clutter-free. This will keep your mind away from all of the distractions that a cluttered workspace or home can fester in your mind. Declutter your home, be happy.
17. Spend Less Time Online. – The Internet is everyone’s friend/ enemy in the 21st century. It is a complicated relationship that can only be fixed when you can control your urge to being online 24/7. You need to try at-least to distance yourself from the internet because the constant flow of information has made us all immune to all of the stuff that is happening around us in our lives. To do that, you need to spend more time outdoors camping or doing some physical activities with your friends and family that will not only keep you happy but also keep all of the people in your life happy, who have been avoided by you because you were busy on the internet.
18. Get Rid of a Toxic Habit. – The next item on the list is removing a toxic habit from your life and let’s face it, we all have something attached to is that we want to get away from. It can anything like smoking or sleeping a lot, and we understand that you have tried to get away from it but failed to do so. Just remember that life isn’t fair to anyone and you have to keep trying and trying until we get exactly what we want. Don’t give up and one day you will succeed.
19. Maintain a Monthly Budget. – If you are reading this article, then you are someone who is independent and wants to keep their boat from capsizing in the ocean of bankruptcy. To do that, you need to maintain a monthly budget and take control of every little expense in your life. This will make sure that everything you earn and spend is documented and you don’t empty your pockets while spending money on unnecessary things that provide no benefit to your personal and professional life.
20. Join a Club. – You need to make a list of all of the different interests and hobbies that you have and find out which of them is your favorite. When you have done that, find a club whose workings match your hobby and join it. Joining a club is a great way to meet people who have the same interests as you, which can help you grow meaningful connections and make sure that you have a safe space to talk about your thoughts and hobbies. It also helps you make some amazing new friends with whom you can do a lot of fun activities in your free time.
21. Create a Work-Life Balance. – Last but not the least, you need to make sure that both aspects of your life, work, and personal life, are balanced out and either one of them doesn’t smother the other one. Doing so will assist in removing all the burdens that you are currently carrying in your work life or your personal life, and ensure that you are of the sound of mind to tackle any challenges that your life throws at you.
22. Improve your time management skills. – Time is everything — you have to live and die by it. There are a lot of different people in the industry who will fill you in on different solutions to all of your problems. Especially if those problems are related to deadlines, completing milestones, and such other things. If you don’t have the skill of time management in the bag, you really can’t save yourself from the fast-moving storm that is going to swallow you whole. Make everything count. Do a retrospective of yourself and see where it leads.
23. Improve your emotional intelligence. – If you want to approach anyone, whether it is a potential partner in life or a potential client, you need to up your EQ game. EQ is emotional intelligence. What it does is that it makes you a little more responsive and accommodating about your emotions and the emotions of the people around you. The next time you want to sign a client or invite someone to coffee, make sure that you understand their emotions and answer them with the same depth and gusto as they do unto you.
24. Always find new challenges to complete. – Finding new challenges is a great way to make any job role exciting and fulfilling. It is a great way to make sure thatyou don’t have a boring day at the office. Ever. The problem is that finding new challenges and facing them head-on is not possible for all of us. Many of us have problems interacting with the challenges that are already in our lives. We understand that. That’s why we recommend that you take things slow and find out what your strengths are. Once you’re done with that, you will be aware of the things that you can do and what challenges you can take on. This will help you and your organization to flourish beyond belief, whenever there is a change in the wind. Finish 2021 strong and start 2022 new and alive!
Strength and courage,
Wade
Have you ever felt like you weren’t enough? That no matter how hard you tried, you couldn’t silence the negative self-talk that stops you from chasing your dreams and your goals for your real estate career? You might experience imposter syndrome, a nagging feeling that makes you doubt your abilities. Escaping that mind state isn’t easy, but millions of people have done it—and so can you. It starts with identifying who you want to be and letting go of the perfectionism crippling your journey in real estate. I personally struggle with self-doubt and feeling like I am enough more than I would like to accept or admit it. What I have learned from this feeling is we don’t reach success or our full potential until we become the hero of our own life! This week I want to share a few tips to help us all including myself battle the self-doubt, self-worth battle in us all.
1. Envision your best self. – All personal growth in ourselves starts with one question “What does my best, most powerful self, look like?” It’s a challenging question because you can’t use someone else as a reference point. It’s not as simple as responding, “I want to be exactly like my mentor or an entrepreneur on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list.” Upgrading your life is a deeply personal task. Every little tweak should be intentional enough to move you in the right direction. Instead of modeling your life after someone else’s, identify what makes other people successful. Is it their confidence that propels them forward? Do they have more discipline than the average person? Whatever those superpowers are, write them down. Keep the list close by so that each day you can work on adopting those traits. In the meantime, be patient with yourself. It can take years to identify all the changes you need to make and master new habits. No matter what happens, know that each failure—and they’re bound to happen—isn’t the end of the world. You still have time to correct those mistakes and get better each day. Even if you want to be a nicer person—let’s just say that to keep it easy—you don’t wake up, and all of a sudden, you’re nicer. It takes time, effort and energy from repetitiveness to become that.
2. Stop chasing perfection. – Did you know that perfectionism has more to do with ego than wanting everything to be perfect? Most people know that life has its flaws. But the ego has a self-serving agenda and tries to convince us otherwise. It pushes us to believe that if we try a little harder, everything can be perfect. It’s impossible to grow with this mindset, especially when you’re facing self-doubt. The good news is you can beat perfectionism with flexibility. When facing a difficult challenge, reframing the situation stirs those rigid, unproductive thoughts. I [went] from spending two days feeling bad about myself, letting a negative voice come in and hold me back, to the point where now, in real-time, I can say, “ How do I want to respond to this based on the person I want to be?” Here are four steps to reach that point:
3. Manage your emotions. – Before you get stuck in feelings of self-doubt, try to regulate those emotions. Ask yourself one question: “What are the things I need to do right now to show up? That could mean you speaking up in meetings, even when you are immobilized by fear. I found being in those meetings extremely detrimental to my self-esteem…. You’re in a room full of people, and you have no idea what they’re talking about, and I felt bad about myself. Then I said, Ok, you have a choice. You can keep coming into this room feeling bad about yourself, you can stop coming into this room or you can admit that they’ve got 15 years on you, and now you can start putting your head down and learning instead of focusing on the emotion you feel badly about. Another part of emotional regulation is taking care of yourself. No matter how busy you are as an entrepreneur, eating well and exercising are two ways to stay in control of your emotions. It’s hard to make good decisions when tired or hungry, so creating healthy routines is vital. I lift weights with my trainer (after resting well), and do my best to be mindful of how certain foods affect my body. Everyone has different needs, though. Be sure to learn your body so you can have an emotionally successful day, stay in control and slowly conquer the self-doubt that’s holding you back and know you are not alone.
Strength and courage,
Wade
Feeling overwhelmed is a natural part of life. Everyone occasionally feels overwhelmed by expectations, responsibilities, and a lack of time. The past 16 months have been a huge test on us as Realtors© and being able to handle everything coming at us. However, dwelling on feelings of overwhelm and letting them knock you off course can be detrimental to both your mental health and your productivity. If you find yourself saying “I’m overwhelmed” or feeling stuck with more than you can handle, here are some things to keep in mind to help you get through it.
1. These Emotions Are Natural. In the scope of the Earth’s history, human emotions are a fairly recent development. It’s no wonder we haven’t learned to peacefully coexist with them and end up fighting them on a daily basis. It can often feel like these feelings should be easy to overcome, but feeling overwhelmed is a natural response to having too many things going on at once. It’s your mind’s way of telling you that you need to slow down if you want to live a healthier life. Recognizing that overwhelm is your body’s way of trying to help you through difficult times can help shift the relationship you have with this emotion. Once you recognize it for what it is and invite it in without fighting it, you can begin to work with it to improve your feelings in a healthy way.
2. It’s a Breakdown of Thoughts, Not of Life. Our minds are powerful things, and feeling overwhelmed can feel like the end of life as we know it. In the book, As a Man Thinketh, James Allen says: “As he thinks, so he is; as he continues to think, so he remains.” We have the power to manage our thoughts, and as a result, manage who we are and who we will grow to be. This involves making our mental and physical health a high priority. When you’re feeling overwhelmed, your life isn’t falling apart—your thoughts are. Take a minute to find and clean out all your self-deprecating, negative emotions and thoughts. As you do this, you will find yourself feeling refreshed and invigorated with renewed energy to take on the world.
3. Things Can Turn Around Quickly. Maybe you’re saying “I’m feeling overwhelmed” as you face a project at work and don’t think you have the energy or time to finish it. You start letting yourself play out every negative scenario resulting from a failed project. Sitting on the couch and dwelling on these thoughts isn’t going to make anything better. In fact, it usually makes things worse. Things seem to fall in place as you chip away at a project and come to realize it wasn’t as bad as you thought. A good friend of mine always say to me “Things work out most of the time, just not all the time. It’s all good.”
4. You’ve Felt This Way Before. Think about the last time you felt overwhelmed. How did you overcome it? In the end, was it really as bad as you thought? If you don’t learn from past experiences, you’ll find yourself suffering from the same problems over and over. Successful people are the ones who understand that every experience, good or bad, is valuable. Go to a quiet place, and take as long as you need to remember previous times in your life you felt this way and how you overcame it.
5. Your Problems May Not Be as Bad as You Think. The best way to find out how good you actually have it is to take a break from worrying about your own life and do something kind for someone in a worse spot than you. Volunteering at a homeless shelter or orphanage can help put your problems into perspective, and that tight deadline may not seem so overwhelming. Furthermore, acts of kindness can produce oxytocin, which can help you feel better all around. This is vital when you’re feeling overwhelmed.
6. It’s Easy to Keep Doing Nothing. Your situation changes quickly when you start doing something, but it’s always easier to continue doing nothing. The mind generally doesn’t react well to change and will do its best to help you keep doing what you’ve been doing. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, that may mean it tries to make you do nothing. Those who overcome their struggles quickly are the ones who never give up, even when they feel that all is lost. At times, it might feel like there is nothing you can do, but that is exactly when you need to do something. How will you ever know for sure there was nothing you could do if you didn’t try? At the very least, you will find personal confidence in knowing that you did everything you could.
7. Gratitude Can Help Immensely. In a world of people obsessed with putting their best self forward, it’s easy to feel like everyone has more than you. Get that thought out of your head, and remember what you do have. Often, the things you have right now are things you were worried about having in the past. Don’t let an insatiable desire for more blind you from seeing and appreciating everything you have right now. Gratitude can combat feelings of overwhelm by bringing you into the present, which will combat worries of the future. Once you’re in the now, you can focus on what you need to do to get past feeling overwhelmed and overcoming the many things coming at you at once. If you don’t know what to do you’re overwhelmed, take some deep breaths and try to start a gratitude journal: How a Gratitude Journal and Positive Affirmations Can Change Your Life
8. People Want You to Succeed. Remember there are people in your life who want you succeed. Your life touches so many others, and there are people out there rooting for you. These people are part of your support system, and you can turn to them each time you’re feeling overwhelmed. You can call them for a quick pep talk, invite them out for coffee if you need a break, or even ask them for help with your overwhelming list of things to do. The bottom line, feeling overwhelmed is a natural part of life that comes from trying to always take on more than we should. This feeling is difficult to avoid in today’s world, but there are things you can do to reduce those feelings once they do arise. Remember the reminders above whenever you’re not sure how to move forward, and you’ll soon find yourself on the other side.
Strength and courage,
Wade
Summer 2021 is here, can you believe it? It seems like the first half of the year just flew by us so fast! Are you like me and tired of never really taking a vacation from real estate or more importantly, is your family and friends tired of going on vacation with you because you’re working remotely? Now be honest, are you taking a vacation this summer and planning to sit on your phone or tablet, texting or emailing while the rest of your family sit by the pool and enjoy the waves crashing on the beach while you were working remotely the whole time? Is that what a vacation for real estate agents is supposed to look like?
Is there something very wrong with our mindset and business set up that can’t allow us to vacation 3 or 4 weeks a year and not have to work remotely? What would a vacation be like with no mobile devices, no internet connection and cell phone reception completely unplugged and off the real estate grid? What about to be in the moment and present with the most important people in your life? I need you to believe this is possible and here are some strategies that can make this type of vacation as a real estate agent a reality!! Let’s break it down and commit to this, including me.
What happens every time before you are about to go on vacation? If you take a 4-7 day break you still come back and you are still busy I guarantee it, but refreshed and recharged to crush it. If it is meant to be then it is up to me! Choose to be on vacation and enjoy it, especially when you are spending your hard earned money to create those moments, experiences and memories with the most important people in your life that will last a lifetime. Be present in the moment and really relax and enjoy your time away and reload and re-energize to be able to come back and do amazing things in your business.
Strength and courage,
Wade
It has happened to me and it happens to every agent. Someone you know just listed their house for sale, and they didn’t even call you. It’s a crushing blow when you make the discovery, but I have to be real with you for a moment – you lose listings, buyers and referrals, every day, that you probably don’t even know about.
Let me explain a bit more… You see, my greatest mission is helping agents generate repeat business and referrals directly from their sphere of influence. I’m so passionate about this because I hate seeing agents in a position where they feel like they’re constantly chasing the next deal. At the same time, I see every agent who implements a proper strategy for generating business from their existing contacts, see results almost immediately, and that feeling of chasing starts to melt away. Over the years it’s become very clear that this means there were always transactions to be had, but agents without a good strategy were all missing out on them. So, why are agents missing out on commission opportunities right within their own sphere? Here are the 5 reasons why people you know will go with another agent (and why NOW is the time to ACT):
1. You Didn’t Reach Out To Them Consistently – Did you know that you lose 10% of your contacts for every month that you don’t follow up? Generating business from your list requires some maintenance and the best practice is to reach out every 21 days. So if you haven’t been emailing, direct mailing, calling, or popping by to stay in touch, it’s time to get started. If you stay in touch consistently, people are more likely to have you front of mind when talking about real estate and could even help you grow your contact database by word of mouth.
2. You Didn’t Connect In A Meaningful Way – Maybe you are reaching out on a consistent basis, but the way you’re reaching out isn’t giving you a lot of opportunities to connect on a deeper level. If you’re not connecting with people in a meaningful way, it’s as though you’re not even following up at all. However, if you want to guarantee that people always do business with you and send you referrals, you have to create a bond with them through the marketing you do. Creating a bond through marketing is actually easier than it sounds… but you have to change your definition of what ‘marketing’ is when it comes to your past clients and close personal contacts. They are looking for things from you that are much more personal than the traditional pieces most agents are using. Things like handwritten notes, your own newsletter, and a text or a call on special occasions will go much further with this crowd.
3. You Didn’t Provide Value They Were Interested In – People expect real estate content from you, but they don’t necessarily want it. Look, the reality is that you probably have some great information, but people are only interested in it when they’re actively thinking about buying or selling, which is about every 7-8 years. Obviously you want to communicate great opportunities in the market, and you absolutely should – but be sparing with these in your Sphere. Instead, provide value that people will appreciate any time, by focusing on lifestyle content, like tips and tricks.
4. You Didn’t Ask Them For Their Business – If you don’t ask for business as a real estate agent, you probably won’t get it. This is something that every agent learns at some point in their career, but it’s not always easy to make the dreaded ask. Don’t let this be your shortfall as an agent. Make sure your clients understand that you are on a mission to earn and keep clients for life, helping them with all the real estate services they will need from buying their first home, to upsizing, to retiring – and everything in between. Helping people understand all the services you can provide means you will be top of mind when those situations come up.
5. You Didn’t Ask Them To Send You Referrals – Similar to asking for business, if you don’t make it clear to people that you accept referrals, you probably won’t get as many. Now as I said before, people only actively think about buying and selling about every 7 years, but in between that time, a single client will likely know multiple people per year that buy or sell a home. You’ll have to do a lot more than just sticking “By the Way I love Referrals!” on your business cards and emails, if you want to generate an income from them. To get referrals flowing, and keep them coming, it’s crucial you use a system that includes 1) regularly informing people that you run your business on referrals, 2) making it easy for them to send you business, 3) incentivizing all referrals, and 4) recognizing people publicly for their advocacy.
6. When people refer business to you, it reinforces their own loyalty to do business with you themselves! It Takes Time, Get Started Now I understand what the market is like right now, so I’ve been talking to a ton of agents about how they’re positioning themselves to capture as much business as possible in the coming months. Almost every agent that I speak with says the same thing – they’re “just trying to keep up” and “don’t have time to try new things”, full-well knowing that doing business this way will catch up with them eventually… but they feel like they have no choice. If you wait until “the market calms down” to implement a plan, that probably means your business has cooled off too… but now you’re busy looking for leads. This is why I constantly recommend implementing a system for building and bonding relationships with your sphere, and using a tool like Service For Life!® that consistently motivates people to get in contact with you on their own.
It seems as if some agents are only worried about generating clients when they don’t actively have one – but it takes time to build relationships and get people to refer their friends and family to you, so make sure you start that bonding process now. Like I said, I know that most agents are too busy right now to generate leads, but using a low-maintenance, high-performing referral tool all year long will keep your sales pipeline full of buyers and sellers.
Strength and courage,
Wade
The way our industry is progressing today we can expect a large portion of sales possibly 40-50% generated by agents in the business will have been paid for either by a fee for service, subscription or referral fee % charged to the agents’ commissions.
Why?
How can that be possible Wade? Because everywhere you look, people and companies are trying to wedge their way into our industry… to become that “go to” resource as the first step in the buying or selling process – all so they can sell you a lead… …A lead that should have come directly to you in the first place! A lead that they used your inventory that they scraped and placed on their own platform and charged back their fee for you to have it.
When you’re suddenly paying 25-42 percent on a transaction, that will mean just one thing – you’ll need to work much harder to maintain the same income you’re earning now.
Sound good to you? No, it doesn’t. Of course not.
So let’s do something about it. Here’s the thing – this isn’t a simple fix. Those Big Tech entities pursuing your pocketbook already have deep pockets of their own. They’ll out-fox you, out-spend you and out-market you – if you let them. This dilemma requires you to get really serious about your business and do the work. I don’t say that to imply you’re not serious or you’re not doing the work already. Some agents are. Some aren’t.
The strong will emerge victorious from this battle because they built their moat and protected their castle by doing the right things. The way I see it, it boils down to three big-picture actions you need to take. Let’s look at those action steps.
Step One: Establish Trust Through a Powerful Personal Brand – Who do you want to work with? People you know, like, and trust. Right? Now ask yourself… does your current marketing allow people to know you, like you and trust you? If not, it’s time to finally build your own brand. If you don’t have the creativity or inclination to do it yourself, hire a professional marketer or an agency to do it for you. Without a strong brand, you simply can’t compete with the Zillows and Redfins of the world, even in your local market. Which means you’d better get used to paying those referral fees and working extra hard to make the same money.
Step Two: Proactively Educate and Inform Consumers – How do I? How can I? Should I? Answer the consumers questions. Once you’ve established a brand identity, one of the quickest ways to elevate it is by consistently providing consumers in your market with relevant, useful real estate information. Whether it’s a direct mail campaign, email/BombBomb campaign, social media – you need to establish yourself as the definitive source of real estate information inside your marketplace. (Think “video first” to accelerate your ascent.) Send them an unsolicited CMA. Keep them informed of local sales, market trends, tips and tricks. Don’t be afraid to have some fun, too, to inject some of your personality. Be the knowledge broker for these people so when that day comes, YOU are top of mind.
Step Three: Make Your Calls and Stay in Touch – Branding and education will protect you from Big Tech to an extent, but to completely encircle your business with a protective moat…You’ve got to pick up the phone and make your calls! Put simply, you can’t rely on the consumer to make the call – unless you love the sight of competitors’ yard signs sprinkled throughout the neighborhoods you (supposedly) serve. Call them, build rapport, get to know these people. They’re your lifeblood. You don’t have to be “salesy.” You can be yourself, reach out, ask how they’re doing, see if they have any real estate questions, and move on. But you’ve got to make the effort. This is a full contact sport and a relationship business and keeping in touch and checking in on people is key to our relationship with our clients. Now that you know these three “big picture” steps, the question becomes – Are you willing to do the work? Protecting your business from Big Tech will be a big part of your future. I hope you’re as concerned about this trend as I am and let’s reverse the trend!
Strength and courage,
Wade
Last week for the first time in way too long, I was able to unplug and literally get off the grid and completely get out of cell phone reception for a good 4 days and I didn’t realize how badly I needed that time away from the business and the toll it has taken not only on me but on so many others as well in the real estate industry. They say, “Strike while the iron is hot.” In real estate, the iron has most certainly been hot for some time. At a certain point, you’ve got to ask: How many times can you keep striking until you strike out? For the last nine months or so, many agents have been operating at warp speed, and when you’re moving that quickly, hitting a wall isn’t pretty.
So how do you keep your energy up to maximize this market without burning yourself out? I’ve got some strategies this week for you.
1: Delegate, Automate, Systemize & Outsource. We’ve talked about this before… There’s no reason why you should be doing everything yourself in this business. Leverage is so important to a business owner like ourselves. Even if you’re relatively new and not quite ready to bring on an assistant, you can outsource tasks to Virtual Assistants, your company’s transaction coordinator or others. Put simply, you’ve got to be willing to trade some dollars to buy back your freedom. Why? Because digging yourself out of burnout mode is much more difficult than simply avoiding it in the first place. If you’re doing it all yourself and feel that wall approaching quickly, act now to delegate or outsource tasks.
2: Earners Are Learners. I’m a firm believer that new ideas create inspiration. So if you’re always learning something new, it keeps you on your toes and keeps your business fresh. When you’re knee deep in transactions, it might seem difficult to find the time to learn new things. But the impact it will have on your mindset – the promise of working toward better days – is worth devoting 20-30 minutes a day to that effort. Remember, small steps taken repeatedly will get you where you want to go. Learn a little every day, and I bet you’ll feel a difference in your energy.
Burnout Avoidance Tip No.
3: Train Something New. Instead of learning something new, teaching others something new can have the same energizing effect. Maybe you’ve recently hired a new team member who you can transfer some of your skills to… This is a powerful way to keep yourself engaged while also freeing yourself up in the future. The more you teach others to do things you handled previously, the more you can focus on your HABU – highest and best use of your time.
4: Reflect On Your Successes. When you’re super busy, it’s all too easy to slip into “grind” mode where you complete one transaction and move directly into the next one. But if that’s what you’re doing, you’re missing a crucial element in the process…
Celebrating your wins! There’s huge value in stopping for a bit to recognize your hard work and how it paid off. Maybe it’s a nice dinner out. Maybe it’s “treating yourself” to something you’ve wanted. Maybe it’s an impromptu “happy hour” celebration with your team. Or maybe it’s contributing to a cause that’s meaningful to you. Whatever you do, take the time to reflect and recognize your achievements. Because if you don’t, you’re depriving yourself of the joy you work so hard for – and headed toward eventual burnout.
No. 5: Live a Life Outside Your Work. If you read this tip and it stings a little, you probably need to work on this. There’s a tendency among some real estate agents to almost take pride in working 24/7. But you and I both know that’s not a recipe for long-term success. If all you do and think about is real estate from the moment you wake up to when your head hits the pillow, your days in this industry are numbered. And you’re likely not living a truly fulfilling life. Instead, maybe you start your day with a meditation. Or exercising. Doing something like that – anything other than diving head-first into more real estate – will actually bring you greater clarity and energy as you proceed through your day. (While we’re at it, don’t forget the other two elements of taking your M.E.D.S. – Meditate, Exercise, Diet and Sleep – to avoid burnout.) Also, make sure you’re scheduling your life before your business. Whether it’s your kid’s soccer game or dance recital or just a few hours of quality time at home, block out that time on your calendar to make sure it happens. Then get your work done in the time remaining. Remember, work expands to fill the time we allow for its completion, so you can get the same amount done in less time as long as you establish the right boundaries.
No. 6: Attitude Of Gratitude. You probably know I’m a huge fan of practicing gratitude as part of my morning routine. The simple act of writing down the things and people you’re thankful for is transformative. If you struggle to identify what you’re grateful for, here are some great questions to ask yourself:
What do I love about my job?
What do I love about the people I help on a daily basis?
What do I love about my colleagues I work with?
Who do I love?
Who loves me?
Ask yourself these and other similar questions every day. Then watch the impact it has on your mindset.
No. 7: Time For A Holiday! I miss travel so much the past 15 months and cannot wait to book the next experience. For many people, 2020 was a year of crazy ups and downs. It started strong, then the pandemic hit and agents all wondered if they’d ever sell another house, and then the market came roaring back and hasn’t slowed down since. And here’s what I suspect happened to a lot of people… They now find themselves in late May early June 2021, and they haven’t taken any time off since they returned from that initial lockdown. As a result, you’ve been working for months on end with no break. With life returning to normal, it’s time for you to take a vacation. Simply scheduling something will get you excited and help prevent burnout. And we all know how productive you get when you’re in those final few days before departure. So here’s my advice to you: Book your trip, buy your tickets, and make it happen!
If you’re on the cusp of burnout, choose a few of these tips and implement them immediately! Like I said above, it’s a lot easier to avoid burnout altogether than it is to pull yourself out of it once it’s too late. Make the wise choice, honor your work-life balance, and give yourself the fulfilling life you deserve!
Strength and courage,
Wade
