Many new agents are reluctant to promote their services to their own network for fear of appearing self-serving, and they often lack the confidence to get the job done.
The reality is — while experience certainly counts for something, you can rely on four simple but essential characteristics to carry you through your professional journey and set you up for success for many years to come.
1. Grit
I believe that in real estate, there are two essential tenants to a successful agent: will and skill. I’m always looking for someone with grit — someone who will work hard and put in the effort to get results.
Anyone can be taught the “skills” to succeed in real estate, but if you lack the will, you will fall short. The most successful agents I know aren’t always the ones with the most years in the business. They’re the ones who dig deep every day and are relentless in their journey to success.
I continually watch agents in their second or third year beating the efforts of agents who’ve been practicing real estate for three or five times longer! If you demonstrate a continued investment in learning the business, practicing your skills and engaging your network, others will recognize this. They’ll be motivated to support you and help you succeed.
2. Humility
In our business, emotions often run high. It’s easy to feel frustrated or envious when someone within your own network chooses another agent in their buying or selling journey. In those situations, it’s easy to point outward and think, “Why didn’t she choose me? She should have called me!”
A more productive approach is to look inward and ask yourself, “What could I have done better to make me the obvious choice?” Successful agents consider these questions to understand how they can improve for next time.
While it may be a challenge at first, it’s important to ask direct questions of your network related to their living situation or inquire about life events, like a new baby, an empty nest, death or divorce.
Use your best judgment and offer your service to those experiencing a major life event, and continue to check in with your network to remind them you’re there to help when the time is right. In doing so, you will avoid being relegated to the sidelines when the time comes for them to choose an agent.
3. Persistence
Real estate is a contact sport, and trust me when I say this — business comes down to contacts. The more contacts you have, the more successful you will be.
For example, if you’re calling 10 contacts a day and not seeing results, bump up that number to 100, and your activity will increase exponentially. However, don’t let your increased activity stop you from making calls every day. Make it a priority to maintain a regular cadence of outreach to fuel a consistent pipeline of business.
The most successful agents still block out specific time each day to make this happen. Once you let this slip, you’ll find yourself playing catch-up while others capitalize on your missed opportunities.
4. Organizational skills
The easiest way to ensure success is to build a schedule and stick to it. Block out time each day for training and collaborating with your peers, making calls and updating your CRM system (we like Chime) with new lead information to fuel client smart plans.
Equally important: Allow yourself blocks of time each day to tackle fire drills, conduct house tours or respond to last-minute requests. Give yourself enough structure to foster productivity as well as enough breathing room to ensure you can be there for your clients when they need you most. If you take the guesswork out of your day, it will work like clockwork!
These four elements are what I’ve found to be tried-and-true. No matter how dynamic the market circumstances may be, if new agents commit to showing grit, humility and persistence — all underpinned by organizational skills and tools to help them be as efficient as possible — their efforts will pay off.
Remember, it’s OK to know what you don’t know! Dedicate yourself to learning on the fly and owning your mistakes as you strive to find your rhythm and showcase your value to clients.
Nick Waldner is the founder with The Waldner Winters Team of KW Realty Centre in Columbia, Maryland. Connect with him on Facebook or LinkedIn.
