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Have you found you are a big fish in a small pond? Are you bumping your head on an invisible ceiling? Do you feel stuck, working harder and harder to accomplish less?
If so, you are running into a very familiar problem for entrepreneurs — the dreaded plateau.
For most brokers or team leads, the larger the team grows, the more of a prison it becomes. You see this when you find the leader spending a bulk of time putting out daily fires or managing HR issues.
Stressing over immediate cash flow and spreadsheets dominate the evenings. Early mornings are typically filled with busy work like optimizing CRMs.
What’s not getting done is the important stuff. At this stage, the leader becomes an operation manager or administrative assistant. This is not just flustering. It is also very limiting.
The bad news? What got you to where you are is not what is going to get you to where you need to be.
The good news? It was far harder to get to where you are now than it will be to develop the skills to get to the next level.
The secret is to shift from the person doing everything to the person leading everything. There is an old adage that rings true right now: If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go with others.
Here are a few tips to help you break through a plateau and get back on track.
Delegation
Leveraging your team gives you much-needed stability in changing markets. The biggest challenge to effective delegation? Get over yourself. Yes, you can usually do it better or faster at first.
But once you train the staff, then you can focus on higher-level activities. Your growth is in growing your population and per-person productivity. Our business rises and falls on transactions.
Accountability
When leveraging, accountability is key, both with yourself and with others. Keep it simple. Focus on the leading indicators. Those things will drive the greatest amount of growth.
Ask yourself, “What is the one thing this person does that leads to more transactions?” That answer is your focus. If you draw a blank on that question, redefine the person’s role.
Candor
Be honest about your strengths. More importantly, be candid with your weaknesses. Find ways to manage your shortcoming. Invest the extra time in the areas where you excel. Your strengths will be where you find your secret sauce to your personal success.
Focus
Remember your “why.” Why are you on this trail to begin with? What are you doing this all for? If your answer is self-focused, it’s time to expand your vision to include others. If you can’t, then leadership isn’t for you.
Confidence
Be bold. Act with decisiveness. You have grown to a place few get to. You are already a rockstar. Now it’s time to level up. Confidence is the differentiator between those who can and those who don’t. Don’t be afraid to assert your authority and grow.
Plateaus happen. They are natural. They are also amplified when the market comes off an all-time high. Without any change, you will find yourself working harder for less. With a bit of concerted effort, you can supercharge your growth. Market share is won and lost in times of change. Make the most of it.
Chris Pollinger, CEO of RE Luxe Leaders, is the profit whisperer to the leadership elite in the business of luxury real estate. He is a senior sales and operational executive skilled in strategic leadership, driving profit, business planning, sales, marketing, acquisitions, operations, recruiting and culture building.
