America’s happiest cities. Researchers for decades have studied the science of happiness and concluded that some of the key ingredients include: a positive mental state (a growth mindset); strong social connections; job satisfaction; health, and financial stability. One study suggests the incremental amount of happiness stops at around $75,000 of annual income.
Many factors affect our happiness, so the study included a panel of experts who commented on various aspects of happiness, like:
Can money buy happiness? No. The consensus: it’s far more important to have a sense of purpose and a way to give back.
Does happiness increases or decrease with age? Yes. The consensus seemed to be a trend of more happiness in younger and older individuals and less in the 40 and 50 age group! Maybe the burden of providing for the family?
Does where you live influence happiness? The consensus was yes with a footnote. So research suggests it’s not about the place, but the match between the place and who you are as a person combined with the family and friend connections.
I’ve lived in 8 states (VA, CO, TX, KY, OH, MI, CA, and MN) and 10 cities, and what I’ve found? Grow where you are planted! Every city, state, and region has a history, a story and a community. As I recall, Abraham Lincoln said it best:
Do it until… is the most common denominator for success in anything.
Some of us learn fast, others slowly, and many of us in between. When you are committed to the cause, the effort, and the result, “you do it until ___.”
Fill in the blank; you do it until you gain mastery; you do it until you have confidence; you do it until you are the best!
The common denominator is “I did it until I got it! It doesn’t matter how long it takes.” This is a great growth mindset.
You don’t know how long or short it will take to become an expert, yet if you keep doing what needs to be done – one day at a time – one hour at a time – one minute at a time, one second at a time – eventually all those seconds add up to minutes and minutes add up to hours and so on.
It’s not about how long it takes – if we keep doing what needs to be done – eventually, we get there, and we win.
Ever wonder why so many of us have to hit rock bottom before we find a breakthrough?
Let me explain… from working with others, I’ve discovered a pattern. Typically after a huge disappointment, the fear of failure disappears. When fear of failure disappears, taking a positive action becomes easier, yes!?
Once a major low is hit, the realization is that any action that is taken must lead to something better. Think about that for a moment… “any positive action taken leads to something better!” Make sense?
The Problem.
Waiting for a major breakdown to get to a breakthrough.
Maybe you’re satisfied with mediocrity?
Maybe you believe you will fail and be subject to the opinion of others?
Maybe you are addicted to worry, the past, or to drama?
Maybe you let overwhelm, and distractions get in the way instead of taking the next right action.
Maybe you succumb too often to those 5 words that kill more dreams than any other: “I don’t feel like it!”
For the vast majority of folks I’ve worked with, the answer to the question, “why don’t you do what you have to do to get what you want?” Can be summarized in 5 dream killing words:
I don’t feel like it!
And that feeling stops you from taking positive action and keeps you from being consistent. It’s the one reason you’re not getting what you want. Your feelings overpower your commitment. Your feelings overpower your ability to take positive action.
The Solution.
Act opposite your feelings.
The story of Mario Lemieux:
There are many athletes who have played through or returned from life-threatening illnesses. Others have come back from debilitating injuries that would have forced mere mortals to give the game up.
And then there is Mario Lemieux, who not only suffered from Hodgkin’s lymphoma but also endured chronic back pain throughout his career.
With his puck-handling dexterity, long reach, and accurate shot, Lemieux won three Most Valuable Player awards in the NHL and six times was its leading scorer.
Lemieux is the only player to average more than two points a game (2.01). His goal-scoring percentage of .823 (613 goals in 745 games) is the best for players with 150 games.
I know there were many times Mario “didn’t feel like it” yet his commitment to his teammates, to his fans, and to himself was greater than his feelings.
When your commitments overpower your feelings, that’s when breakthroughs begin. That is worth repeating: “when you take action despite your feelings, that’s when your breakthrough begins.”
“The key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.” ~ Stephen Covey
Have you ever worked backward from Friday? At the end of the week, imagine you are sitting down and looking back…what would make this week great?
We can’t control the market this week, yet we can control the daily activities that lead to our expected outcomes.
I’m sure you would agree – without a doubt – we are in uncertain times. The paradox is this: we need both uncertainty and certainty in our business. Yet, from the conversations I’ve had this week, we have more uncertainty than certainty. How can we create more certainty?
If you show up for the day with no structure in your calendar and decide to do “urgent” tasks like returning calls and texts and checking Facebook, those activities will expand and eat up all the time you hoped to devote to more “important” activities. You will end the day unfulfilled and have more uncertainty. Get clear on what you want, make it part of your everyday routine, and have a plan for when you feel stuck or lost. That is a winning formula.
The key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule but to schedule your priorities.
The key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.
Ten excuses the top 1% all made, yet figured out a way to bust through:
1. I don’t have time
2. I don’t have the money
3. I will try it next year
4. I don’t have enough data
5. I am too tired, skeptical, or biased
6. No one ever did it before
7. It’s too much work
8. I could fail
9. I will wait until I retire
10. It’s too risky
You can bust through too. One of my associates told me all of these “excuses” are rooted in some sort of fear, so really the top 1% are masters of fear.
You cannot give someone something that you don’t already possess.
We all want others to believe in us, our ideas, and our services, yet as real estate professionals, to what degree do we believe in ourselves?
Nothing can demonstrate your confidence, commitments, and beliefs more clearly than your willingness and determination to persist despite resistance. It’s not always easy, but it is always possible.
Some of our most influential real estate coaches, like Tom Ferry, Brian Buffini, and other mentors and trainers, have exemplified and articulated the importance of persistence. You’ve likely been advised by me and others to “never give up and keep going.” Heck, even the Bible contains dozens of inspired verses encouraging us to be persistent in all areas of life.
So, why is it then that so many people fail to persist and even look down upon those who do when it pertains to sales?
Perhaps it’s because real estate sales persistence is often confused with sales pressure. In actuality, they are entirely different.
Sales pressure is communicating the same thing repeatedly regardless of the other person’s fears, worries, or concerns.
On the other hand, real estate sales persistence requires that you empathize, adjust, and move forward with a new approach, better message, and more value. After all, who better to serve and take care of them than you?
When It Matters
Persistence is not something that only applies to certain people, at certain times, under certain circumstances. The merits of being persistent apply universally.
Do you spend most of your time finding real estate deals or truly working to forge real estate deals? If the goal is to find enough people who will show up ready and do business right now, you operate in a tiny world. Expand your definition, and your possibilities expand as well.
By in large, people are naturally reluctant and not quick to act. The majority of our opportunities exist in creating interest, creating engagement, creating desire, and creating urgency.
When you are persistent, you take time out of the equation and communicate in a way that allows you to bring value, add value, and become a person of immense value.
Persistence communicates that you:
Genuinely care about them. Do you believe that people are better off when they conduct business with you? You are changing lives, whether you realize it or not. What you do matters. I believe it, do you!?
Are confident in your abilities. Do you believe in yourself? It is you and your efforts that ultimately make the difference. It’s what you say, what you ask, and how you act that determines your success.
Understand their situation and are specific in your solution. Do you believe that your real estate services improve people’s lives? While energy is essential, your certainty is far more influential than your enthusiasm. The best sales close will always be your personal feelings about your services.
That there are many reasons to move forward. Do you believe that a value goes beyond just taking a listing or showing a buyer a home? The highest level of importance is the value that you create by leveraging real insights. What is personal and unique to each buyer, seller or investor will always be what’s most compelling.
They Use Resistance to Gain Additional Insights and Add More Value
Why It Matters Persistence cannot be replaced. There is absolutely no substitute. Either you will lean in, stay with each opportunity, and figure it out – or you won’t.
Don’t sell yourself short. Just because someone didn’t agree to move forward right away at the first ask doesn’t mean you should throw in the towel and prematurely give up.
Ask yourself: What do I cost others when I don’t hang in there and get past peoples’ concerns? If it was important enough for you to start, it is important enough for you to follow through. When you are persistent, you communicate in a way that allows you to build connections and compel your customers to buy.
Persistence is needed because:
Sometimes people need to hear it another way. There are six emotional motives to do business: Profit or Gain; Fear of Missing Out; Comfort and Pleasure; Avoiding Pain; Love and Affection, and Pride or Prestige.
The right message delivered in the wrong way will not produce the result you are looking for. Without a doubt, until it feels right, it will never be right. Sometimes all it takes is reframing and repositioning your message with the correct language that hits home.
Sometimes people need more reasons to move forward. Every sale requires the buyer to sacrifice. Before moving forward, they need to feel good about what they are getting in exchange.
Sometimes all it takes is to stack on another level of value and effectively connect the dots to another reason to move forward. My friend Tom Ferry and I call this “stack the cool!” If you give someone a big enough reason to move, they will be impacted every time, but it must be their reason and not yours.
Sometimes people just really don’t know how to move forward. Whether it’s making sense of the time involved, making sense of the effort, it takes, making sense of the cost, or something else, there are times when people just don’t know how to move forward.
There are times people need accurate guidance. Showing the way is just as important as delivering the why. Sometimes all it takes is holding their hand and leading them through the next step.
Sometimes people just need more time to make sense of it all. We have all been there. We have all procrastinated or even wholly ignored an opportunity only to decide later that it all-of-a-sudden makes perfect sense. Sometimes customers just need more time to make sense of it, whether five minutes, five days, or five months. If asked at a different time, you can get a completely different response.
Persistence pays! I encourage you to adopt the six habits of highly persistent people to double down on your efforts and multiply your results.
Persistence, unlike pressure, always makes sense. You surely want others to believe in you, believe in your ideas, and believe in your offerings. Nothing can demonstrate your confidence, commitments, and beliefs more clearly than your willingness and determination to persist despite resistance. It is you and your efforts that make the difference.
It’s not always easy, but everything changes when you empathize, adjust, and move forward with a new approach, better message, and more value.
Near-death by a car accident, boot camp, Kilimanjaro Summit day, Hellmecula, Snowmageddon, Spartan Beast, crazy markets, and so much more.
Some things are just hard, and you want to quit.
I’ve made it through some tough situations with this one strategy: looking only a few steps, tasks or minutes ahead.
“Doing the next right thing.”
At certain times tunnel vision is a good thing.
Consider this – the next time getting through a challenge that seems like it might be too much for you. Lower your gaze to whatever the next minute, step, or task is right in front of you. Then take it.
There are times when big-picture thinking is needed. Yet the moments when you doubt you have the strength or the desire to put one foot in front of the other isn’t among them.
Focused Time. The top 1% know that less is more! Say what?
Who would you imagine to be more productive—someone who works 55 hours a week or someone who works 70?
If you guessed the latter, you’d be incorrect. Research done by Stanford showed that productivity diminishes after 40 hours and falls off a cliff after 55 hours. In essence, less is more.
Resource? Life on The Wire by Todd Duncan – in his book Todd challenges the status quo in search of a better, smarter way to work and live.
It cripples our society in destructive ways: racism is rooted in ignorance, bigotry is rooted in ignorance, sexism is rooted in ignorance, tolerating violence is rooted in ignorance, oppressing the poor is rooted in ignorance.
Ignorance causes misery.
Transformation requires suspending our ego along with an open heart and mind. I’m at war, I’d like us all to be at war against ignorance.
When you are inconsistent, nothing works at the optimal level.
Here’s what I know: recruiters, talent attraction coordinators, team leaders, managers, and real estate sales professionals who consistently set and attend appointments are producing more results, period. These leaders are consistent and disciplined in their daily prospecting and marketing routines.
Consistency… social media does not work if you are not consistent; geographic farming does not work if you are not consistent; repeat and referral does not work if you are not consistent; open houses will not work if you are inconsistent; online leads – a waste – if you are not consistent; recruiting and talent attraction is a roller coaster without consistency.
Show me something in your business that works when you are inconsistent.
Anything you are going to do, the more consistent you are with your mindset, attitude, approach, expectation, strategy, and tactics, the more predictable the result.
Bottom line: when you are consistent, everything works… when you are inconsistent, nothing works.
So my question is, what have you been inconsistent with?
What has that inconsistency cost you financially, emotionally, or physically?
I’d submit that the action we can all take is to be more consistent in creating, setting, and attending more new appointments.
We cannot control the market.
We can control ourselves, our thoughts, and our actions.
Next Steps:
Make an appointment-setting goal for the next 2 weeks and share it with an accountability partner.
Gather your past client list, all of your past leads, open house registers, and people you know, and start making appointments today.
Be CONSISTENT… list the 1, 2, or 3 things you must do consistently to propel your business forward.
