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Category: Growth

The Accountability Advantage: How Tracking Your Efforts Drives Exponential Growth

Mark Johnson 1 Comment

“What is measured improves. What is measured and reported back exponentially improves.”

This simple principle has a profound impact on performance, whether you’re an Olympic athlete or a business professional.

Consider a study of Olympic-level figure skaters. When they trained on their own, they averaged 60 jumps and spins per hour. But when their coach started tracking their attempts on a whiteboard in real-time, their output soared to 100 elements per hour! Removing the whiteboard caused their performance to drop back down, proving the power of immediate feedback and accountability.

This same principle applies to your business. The single greatest leverage you can use to achieve the success you deserve is increased accountability. It’s about more than just setting goals; it’s about consistently tracking your progress and making adjustments as needed.

That’s why I’m introducing “TAG”—The Appointment Game. This simple 30-day challenge focuses on two key metrics:

  1. Daily New Conversations: How many new conversations about real estate are you initiating each day? This could be through networking, social media, cold calling, or any other lead generation activity.
  2. Weekly New Appointments: How many new appointments are you scheduling each week as a result of those conversations?

Why these metrics? They focus on the activities that directly drive business growth: connecting with potential clients and securing opportunities to present your value.

Here’s how to play TAG:

  1. Track Your Numbers: Each day, track the number of new real estate conversations you have. Each week, track the number of new appointments you set.
  2. Report Your Progress (Optional): Share your progress with an accountability partner, a mentor, or even on social media. Public accountability can be a powerful motivator.
  3. Analyze and Adjust: At the end of each week, review your numbers. Are you hitting your targets? If not, what adjustments can you make to your strategy?

Example:

  • Goal: 5 new conversations per day, leading to 2 new appointments per week.
  • Tracking: Use a simple spreadsheet, a notebook, or a CRM to record your daily conversations and weekly appointments.
  • Analysis: If you’re consistently having conversations but not setting appointments, you might need to refine your qualifying questions or your appointment-setting pitch.

What would happen to your business if you consistently focused on these two metrics for the next 30 days? I challenge you to find out.

TAG, you’re it!

Start tracking, start connecting, and start growing to win the day!

What is measured improves.
What is measured improves.

What Happened To The Real Estate Market?

Mark Johnson Leave a comment
It’s that time of the month… for the real estate market update. 
 
If there were 2 slides out of the 84 from this month’s KCM updates plus 1 from Altos, which ones would I share? … you will see the 3 below, plus a link to all the slides.  
 
Do you want to attract more people to your brokerage, team, or office? Then help your team translate what all the information and data means and how to act on it. We can help, HMU.

 
Key updates for this month: 
 
  • 247 years later, Adam Smiths’ laws of supply and demand are still working: 99% of US markets had a DECREASE in available re-sale inventory for sale. 
  • A supply-constrained market with no relief in sight 
    • Large institutional investors have indicated no reason to sell – residential is providing higher ROI than commercial. Follow the money. 
    • Consumers are unwilling to trade a 3% mortgage for a 6%, opting instead to remodel or upgrade. 
    • New construction is growing – especially in the South – yet not nearly enough to close the gap. 
    • Freddie Mac survey: In the next 6 months = 18% of consumers indicated a desire to buy while 16% of sellers indicated a desire to sell. 
  • While affordability is always an issue consumers have never been in better financial condition 
    • Average credit score the highest in 23 years – 714 Average 
    • For those applying for a mortgage: 765 is the median credit score 
  • Consumers have more access to data, and information YET lack knowledge 
    • YOU are the knowledge broker for local market activities 
    • AFTER speaking with a knowledgeable HYPER-LOCAL agent, 64.5% of homeowners were MORE likely to sell than before.
    • Creating a conversation with value-added content makes a difference – NO SECRET AGENTS! 
  • A few of the top 20 markets with the most listings sold are in Texas: Houston; San Antonio; Austin, and DFW. Some of the tightest pricing is seen in CA, with less than 12% of listings (the national average is 32%) taking a price decline in cities like La Mirada; Cypress; Fremont; Placencia & Garden Grove.
Key takeaways: 
  • Enabling Homeowners and Investors with value-added information does create listing opportunities. Especially non-owner-occupied and 1031 exchange opportunities.  
  • 16% of homeowners indicated a desire to sell in the next 6 months… that is your opportunity 
  • Sales and Rates Normalizing  – housing prices continue to show stronger growth than what was previously expected.
  • Homebuilders continue to add to supply, but years of meager homebuilding over the past business cycle means the imbalance will likely continue for some time. 
  • Seasonality has returned 
  • Prices rebounding 
Confidence is contagious, and so is a lack of confidence. There is plenty of actionable data to be confident about. 
PS: Recruiting and retention has never been more important. In all types of markets, we continue to see 10% of agents leave the industry; 10 %to 15% join the industry, and despite an 85% satisfaction rate with their broker 32% switch firms.  Need some help? Let’s chat.
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Real Estate Inventory For Sale
Real Estate Inventory For Sale

 

Credit Scores
Credit Score Trends

 

Top 20 Real Estate Market Trends
Top 20 Real Estate Market Trends

The Year Is Half Over

Mark Johnson Leave a comment

50% of the year is over… it’s time for a quarterly business and operations review!

  • Is it scheduled?
  • I have a powerful 23-question business review – info@winningtheday.blog

Are you ahead, behind, or on track with your goals? In any case, “declare it perfect and move forward powerfully.”

Review what’s working, and what’s not. Make the adjustments, and keep moving forward.

Basic agenda:

  • Mission, vision, values, and stakeholders  – any adjustments?
  • Key KPI s
  • What’s working. What’s not.
  • Start, stop, more, less!
  • Action steps (no more than 2 or 3.)

The results will happen – as long as we are all willing to execute the daily activities, track the results, make the changes to the behaviors, and engage an accountability partner.

Are you interested or committed to what’s left of this year?

Up Your Work Game? Get Moving!

Mark Johnson Leave a comment

Up Your Work Game? Get Moving!

In a recent HBR article, professors Bonnie Cheng and Yolanda Li conducted original research on how physical exercise impacts outcomes in the workplace. The benefits of physical activity on general well-being are widely acknowledged, yet there has been a lack of research on how it impacts outcomes at work, including job performance and health.

As emerging work modes have allowed for greater flexibility and convenience at work it seems we are finding ourselves sitting more and moving less. So, what were some of the key findings?

  • Motivation for physical activity predicts physical activity.
  • Physical activity improves next-day job performance and health.
  • Job self-efficacy shapes the capacity to gain resources from physical activity.

Well, that is compelling, yes!? So how do I get more physical?

  • Focus on building a habit of daily physical activity.
  • Some is better than none.
  • Motivated or not, just get moving!

In a separate study, a lack of time was cited as the most common excuse people give when asked why they don’t exercise. Here’s the truth — we don’t need a lot of time to exercise. All we need is the desire and 10 minutes. Walking just 10 minutes a day is one way to get started.

It seems straightforward that the study concluded that being motivated to partake in an activity would lead to doing the activity, but anyone who has ever made and then abandoned a New Year’s resolution knows this isn’t necessarily the case. Noteworthy is the finding that the more autonomous the form of motivation — in other words, the more people consider physical activity to be a fun and enjoyable activity rather than something to dread — the more likely they are to engage in daily physical activity.

In addition, the study found that daily physical activity generated a package of next-day resources, called “resource caravans,” that contributed to work-related outcomes.

The first resource immediately afforded by physical activity is quality sleep or a person’s degree of satisfaction with their daily sleep experience. Physical activity promotes protein synthesis and facilitates quality sleep as a homeostatic feedback process benefitting the body and brain. The second resource gain is vigor, a resource associated with energy and vitality. The third resource gain is task focus, a cognitive resource that supports enhanced information processing, attention, and concentration.

Interestingly, the study found job self-efficacy, which reflects an employee’s perception of their capacity to perform their job, amplifies the resource-generating benefits of daily physical activity on sleep quality and task focus. People with higher levels of self-efficacy tend to hold stronger positive beliefs in their motivation and ability to acquire work-related resources from daily physical activity.

So, there you have it; if you are looking to up your game at work, become more intentional and disciplined by including more physical activity in your days. Your body will thank you, and your mind will reward you with more energy, better task focus, and improved creativity.

 

Some is better than none
Some is better than none

Conquer Your “I Don’t Feel Like It” Moments: Using Your Imagination for Business Success

Mark Johnson 1 Comment

Ever hit a wall where you just can’t seem to get motivated, even when you know you need to? There’s a powerful technique, rooted in research on addiction, that can help you overcome these moments and achieve your goals: Functional Imagery Training (FIT).

FIT is a psychological technique that uses your imagination and all your senses to create compelling mental images that drive you towards positive action. It stems from research on how intrusive thoughts can sabotage self-control, particularly in addiction. FIT helps you replace those negative thoughts with vivid, positive visions of success.

Here’s how it works: Instead of just thinking about a goal, you vividly imagine the experience of achieving it, engaging all five senses.

Example: Overcoming Morning Resistance

Imagine your alarm goes off. Instead of dreading the day, imagine:

  • Sight: The sun streaming through your window.
  • Sound: The birds chirping outside.
  • Feel: The cool air on your skin as you get out of bed.
  • Smell: The aroma of freshly brewed coffee.
  • Taste: The first sip of that delicious coffee.

By creating this immersive sensory experience, you prime your brain for positive action, making it much harder to hit snooze.

How FIT Applies to Business:

This same principle can be applied to various business challenges:

  • Overcoming Procrastination on a Difficult Task: Instead of dreading a complex project, imagine the feeling of accomplishment upon completion: the satisfaction of sending that final email, the positive feedback from a client, the feeling of checking it off your to-do list.
  • Preparing for a Big Presentation: Imagine the scene: you confidently delivering your presentation, the audience engaged and nodding, the feeling of pride after a successful delivery.
  • Motivating Yourself for Sales Calls: Imagine the positive interactions: connecting with potential clients, understanding their needs, and closing deals.

The Science Behind It:

Research shows that when we vividly imagine achieving a goal using multisensory imagery, we’re five times more likely to achieve it. This is because these vivid images activate multiple areas of the brain, including the limbic system (emotions) and the frontal lobe (critical thinking), creating a powerful neurological drive towards action.

Using Physical Cues:

You can also use physical cues to reinforce your mental images. Place a visual reminder related to your goal in a prominent place—a photo of a successful project, a motivational quote, or even a symbolic object. This visual cue can help you quickly access your positive mental imagery and stay focused.

By mastering the art of mental imagery, you can unlock greater resilience, enhance your problem-solving abilities, and dramatically improve your focus, leading to greater success in your business and life. And that is how we win the day!

 

Imagine That
Imagine That

What’s Happening In The Real Estate Market?

Mark Johnson Leave a comment

What’s Happening In The Real Estate Market?

We are still in a supply-constrained market with more demand than supply, meaning in most US markets, it’s still a seller’s market.

The facts are the facts: there is not enough inventory of homes for sale to meet the demand of buyers. Check out your local market stats on this link – click here.

Why?

  1. Existing sellers will not trade a low-cost mortgage for a higher-cost one unless they have to (job change, death, divorce.) A boom for home improvement.
  2. Homeownership remains the #1 feature of the American dream. 74% to 78% of Americans say owning a home is still a dream.
  3. More than bonds, stocks, or gold real estate has been voted the best long-term investment.

Other thoughts?

  1. Consider the median home price metric in this market is meaningless. Median prices are distorted by the mix and repeat sales. In today’s housing market, we are selling more of the less expensive homes, thus driving down the median price. It doesn’t accurately reflect the value of each house.
  2. The median sale price measures the ‘middle’ price of homes that sold, meaning that half of the homes sold for a higher price and half sold for less. For example, if more lower-priced homes have sold recently, the median sale price would decline (because the “middle” home is now a lower-priced home), even if the value of each individual home is rising.
  3. Outdated models aren’t working in this market. You’ve got to dig 4 layers deeper to be of real service to your clients and prospects.
  4. For 50 years, the 30-year mortgage rate has moved in unison with the 10-Year treasury yield. The current 3.2 is historically high. It’s reasonable to assume that the spread and mortgage rates will retreat in the second half of the year, creating more affordability and demand in an already supply-constrained market.

Outdated models aren’t working in this market. You’ve got to dig 4 layers deeper to be of real service to your clients and prospects.

How do you grow in a volatile market with unit sales down from 23% to 31%?

Attract talent and recruit!

  • We have a proven system – 10X ROI – the fundamentals are the fundamentals.
  • It’s easy to make excuses.
  • Yet we know it’s the pain of discipline vs. the pain of regret.

Let’s have NO REGRETS in our recruiting efforts this week.
TCF+ no excuses.

     

    Real Estate Market Update

Real Estate Advertising’s Greatest Hits

Mark Johnson Leave a comment

By now, Real Estate Advertising’s Greatest Hits is an album all too familiar to us. The tracks unfold, on auto-repeat, in the background of our lives:

  • Find your place
  • Home is your shelter from the storm
  • Real estate made easy
  • Love where you live
  • Search to close
  • An exceptional experience
  • Going the extra mile

None of these are bad, necessarily. They hook into emotions that we understand to be real. But these archetypal messages may no longer ring as true as they once did and are, in all but exceptional moments of creative execution, woefully undifferentiated.

My friends over at 1000 Watt did some original research on Real Estate Marketing and this is what they found:

  • People are inundated by real estate advertising — 78% of respondents reported seeing real estate ads in the past 2 weeks. This indicates that the value of such information, being very abundant, is also generally quite low.
  • Messages that are broad (e.g., “we are your local real estate agents”) tend to be perceived as marginally more credible by consumers, but are not necessarily more effective. They are likely simply less impactful.
  • People don’t view ads that tell them that real estate can be made simple or easy as credible. They both know and feel that the process is neither simple or easy, and don’t believe assertions that dispute that reality. They “call B.S.” on such messages, to put it bluntly.
  • The findings above broadly align with peoples’ perception of the real estate transaction experience. 64% of respondents agreed with the statement, “buying and selling real estate is too complicated and should be made simpler.” Interestingly, 30% disagreed, and found that “real estate is too important to be simplified.” Almost all respondents recognize the fundamental gravity and complexity of buying or selling a home.
  • Men responded significantly better to forceful and specific claims (e.g., “We’ll sell your house faster and for less money”) or messages that communicate rankings or performance (e.g., “We are #1 in real estate sales”) than did women.

The principal conclusion?

  • Acknowledge the truth people hold within them, find a connection in candor, and build trust through recognizing reality as people see and feel it.
  • If buying or selling a home is complex and sometimes hard, don’t tell people it’s “simple” or “easy.” Make it clear you understand what they are likely thinking and feeling, then tell them how you can address those things better than anyone else.

The Greatest Hits may still be good to play once in a while but play them too much and people will tune them out. It’s time for some new music.

 

By design or by default
By design vs. by default?

When Desire Meets Confusion: What Prospective Sellers Are Thinking Now

Mark Johnson Leave a comment

According to my friends over at 1000 Watt, current market conditions are, in a word, interesting. Great for sellers, hard for buyers, confusing for agents, and difficult for the supervising brokers. Check out the trends in your area on my Altos Research link.

The era of dirt-cheap money ended abruptly, causing many buyers and sellers to call a time-out. Others are proceeding with expectations of a prior market condition, with, as one agent put it, “sellers thinking it’s last year, and buyers thinking it’s next year”.

In recent research, “change of lifestyle” was the #1 reason respondents cited for considering selling. This suggests that while a change in jobs, death, and divorce will always strongly predict transactions, less definite, more aspirational considerations are always present and active. Information about price declines accelerating next year make 53% of respondents more likely to sell now.

84% of respondents who have a mortgage on their home are either “very concerned” or “somewhat concerned” that high mortgage rates will impede their ability to sell. However, when presented with context that explained that refinancing to a lower rate in the future may be possible, 50% said this information made them more inclined to sell. 53% said that information about price declines accelerating next year made respondents more inclined to sell now.

91% of respondents report being “very clear” or having “a pretty good idea” of their home’s value

91% of respondents report being “very clear” or having “a pretty good idea” of their home’s value and indicate that an agent’s opinion, Zillow, and recent home sales contribute to that understanding. Notably, respondents who had yet to speak with a real estate agent relied much more on Zillow and recent sales to form their opinion of their home’s value. This suggests that if real estate agents leave an informational vacuum, others will fill it.

The results from 1000 Watts research show clearly that people who are thinking of selling are hesitant and concerned about the recent and dramatic changes in the real estate market. But these results show just as clear that personal engagement can have positive effects, both for the prospective seller, and the agent, broker, or marketer who reaches out to them.

We cannot control a great deal of the market right now. Yet I believe that professionals with a capacity for well-executed marketing are far from powerless in achieving their goals for the year. In times like these the listings are in David Knox’s 7 D’s:  

  • Death,
  • Divorce,
  • Diplomas,
  • Diamonds (engagements),
  • Downsizing (10,000 people in the US turn 65 every day),
  • Daily Grind (job changes), and changes in
  • Discretionary income.

 

Control the Controllable
Control the Controllable

 

 

Willing To Eager

Mark Johnson Leave a comment

So this just happened… my granddaughter was born yesterday (Maggie Rose), and Willing To Eager was finally published.

Please, but not satisfied: Several months behind schedule; looking at it now so many things I would improve. That means there will be a second expanded edition with many more success stories – from many of you – next year.

Willing to eager – the ultimate secret. In this collection of real-life stories, I’ll share some of the distinctions of those who thrive in adversity, using it as fuel to achieve, meet and exceed their goals.

Willing To Eager
Willing To Eager

Marketing, Awareness, and Opportunity

Mark Johnson Leave a comment

1000 Watt Marketing recently completed some original research and asked people a range of questions to identify areas of opportunity and vulnerability in today’s real estate market.

There is intense competition for the attention of homeowners. While only 46% report that the agent they bought with has contacted them post-transaction, 28% receive “a lot” of real estate marketing, and only 25% report that they receive “little or none.” Moreover, 47% can recall the name of “one of two” agents from whom they receive marketing (who are not their own former agents), and 22% can remember “several” agent names.

Only 46% of home buyers report that the agent they bought with has contacted them post-transaction.

There appears to be little negative sentiment around how much agents are paid when context is provided. 63% of respondents said agents are “probably” or “definitely” paid too much. However, when provided with a hypothetical scenario involving the sale of their own home that involves specific dollar figures, 73% thought the agent was not paid too much. This suggests to us that stepping toward, rather than away from, specific conversations about compensation is a good idea. We also found that the appeal for discount real estate services was broad but weak.

Stepping toward, rather than away from, specific conversations about compensation is a good idea.

The biggest challenge with homeownership this group of recent homeowners expressed was “ongoing maintenance costs” (42%). This beat out “stress about my home’s value” (20%) and “affording my monthly payment” (34%). While engaging recent buyer clients on this issue could be a somewhat fraught proposition, it nonetheless underscores an opportunity we have identified in earlier research: people need help being homeowners, and real estate brokers and agents are uniquely prepared to deliver value in this area.

Follow Up
Follow Up