Strategic decision making means taking an objective look at your business and making cuts where necessary. Are you spread too thin? Did you branch out and try too many new ideas in 2019? I want to challenge you to take a deep look at your business and make the decision to cut something that keeping you from reaching your goals!
It feels really strange to take a step back and stop making things about the hustle. We are always looking to add more, do more, achieve more. But at what point is the hustle distracting you from your goals? Are you spending time focusing on things that you really hate in the name of “hustling”?
If you’re building four different bridges and none of them are reaching the other side, you are scattered and losing focus. It’s more powerful to simplify, build and complete one bridge. You’ll meet your goals faster and more efficiently.
How do you eliminate a process/procedure/task from your business? A friend of mine used the illustration that when you’re in the business, it’s like you’re stuck in a bottle trying to read the label that’s on the outside. You need to remove yourself from that bottle and read the label from the outside to understand what’s going on. Take a step back and look at your business objectively. It allows you to see things in a whole new light and gives you a high-level view of what’s working—and what’s not.
Are you doing things because you believe you have to? But instead of pushing you towards success those things are just distracting you?
Are you trying to use Instagram, Twitter, or YouTube because everyone else is doing it?
There are so many ways to find success, but you need to focus on what is working for you—and eliminate what’s not. It’s fine to test the waters here and there, but you need to be sure your attraction pillar isn’t detracting from your chase. Put your energy towards what is working, cut what isn’t, and move forward.
We are smack in the middle of what I like to call shiny object season. It’s a slower season and you find yourself with more down-time. Usually, that’s invested into conferences, training, business meetings, and day-dreaming about what else you can do. AKA, getting distracted.
But I believe you should also spend this time getting back to the basics.
What does that mean? Call people just to say thank you for buying a house through you. Send thank you cards. Cultivate leads, focus on matchmaking, work on conversions. Get back to the basics of what does work and make the strategic decision to simplify and eliminate distractions.
Now, go to the Facebook group and let me know what you’ve decided to cut in 2020!
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It is so easy to overcomplicate this business and lose focus on what is really important. It’s quite simple: you need to understand what consumers want and give it to them. You can simplify and structure your business in a way that does just that. If you want to learn my key tips, listen to this episode of the Agent Rise Podcast!
It is as simple as buyers wanna buy, sellers wanna sell. One of my biggest pet peeves is when agents call buyers with nothing of value to offer. They just want to “stay in the loop”. What a waste of the buyers’ time! They don’t want to see your phone call and be let down because you just wanted to check-in.
They want to pick up the phone and hear you say “I’ve found what you’ve been looking for”.
Do you know what you need to do that? Their search criteria. If you take the time to connect with them about what they’re looking for and listen, you can deliver what they actually want. You do not want to fall into the category of wasted time.
The basics of StoryBrand marketing is this: Your client is the hero of the epic. They are the most important part of their story. Many agents are too focused on touting their abilities. “I’m the best at _______” OR “No other agency can offer you ______”.
Stop making this about you!
You're not the hero—you are the guide. You are the person they’re hiring to guide them through the process and help them find their dream home. Learn to position yourself correctly, or you’ll continue to find potential clients choosing someone else over you.
Guess what? The buying process can be scary. As an agent, you need to learn to be empathetic to a buyer’s feelings. Some of the questions that could be going through a buyers mind include:
What if I don’t get this house?
What if I don’t get approved for a loan or mortgage?
What if something is found in the inspection that’s a deal-breaker?
You need to ask more questions, understand where their concerns lie and empathize with them. Recommend a great lender who will make the process easy. Let them know what the inspection process looks like. Find ways to ease their fear.
If something goes terribly wrong, remind them that you’ll work through it with them.
I’m sure you’ve heard this principle before. It’s all about simplifying the process, not overcomplicating it. Remember that it’s not all about you. Unfortunately,I see this a lot in agent presentations. Instead of finding out what a seller is looking for, they brag about their services.
“WE have the best high-end photography. WE will provide impeccable drone video. WE throw the best open houses”
Guess what? Your seller may not want anything you have to offer. Stop assuming what they want—and ask! My favorite question is “Have you seen marketing on another listing that you really appreciated?” Simple, easy, and client-focused.
Want to learn more? Listen to this episode of the Agent Rise Podcast now!
Recommended Resources
Connect with Neil!
And connect with me on ANY of the following social channels. I LOVE social!
And finally, if you would be so kind - leave a rating and review for the Agent Rise podcast on Apple Podcasts (formerly iTunes)
Creating a vivid vision statement is a practice I believe is necessary both personally and professionally. What do you want your future to look like? What will it take to get you there? Dreaming about your future is powerful. I walk through the steps to take in this episode of Agent Rise. Don’t miss it!
I define a vision statement as what it’s going to look like when you arrive where you want to go. This is where you get to dream big. Sit down in a quiet place and write down what you want your future to look like. Do you want to travel? Pay off debt? What do you want your business to look like?
I have a dream of publishing a book and buying an RV to travel the country with my family doing book signings. Note that I said these are dreams—but dreams that I believe will become reality. If you find yourself doubting that your dreams will come true, note it, and move on. You’re going to overcome those limiting beliefs.
Once you have a dream in place, write out step-by-step goals you can work towards and a timeline to complete them by. As you reach these goals, you are moving one step closer to the vision you’ve set for your future. I have a clear vision with a clear date in sight: By July 15th, 2020 my family and I will be traveling the country in an RV.
Once you have clear goals in place to reach your vision, you must focus on simplifying. What does that mean? Learn how to say no to the things that don’t help you achieve those goals. It will allow you to march towards milestones.
Once you’ve simplified, it allows you to amplify the things that will propel you forward. What do you excel at? Put your time into your sphere of influence, and chase and attraction pillars. You need to clarify the “do’s and don’ts” to find direction.
Get systems in place, delegate where you can, and find accountability with a coach. Build one bridge—don’t split your focus into multiple areas. You don’t want a bunch of half-built bridges and never reach where you’re trying to get.
What is your vivid vision statement for 2020?
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Connect with Neil!
And connect with me on ANY of the following social channels. I LOVE social!
And finally, if you would be so kind - leave a rating and review for the Agent Rise podcast on Apple Podcasts (formerly iTunes)
I just wrapped up the Agent Rise Summit and my goal was to help agents find clarity—simplify your business to amplify your results. I wanted to give you a short overview of how the summit went, what we unpacked, and give you some key takeaways.
Lisa Robb, of Raining Glitter Coaching, was the first guest speaker we had the opportunity to hear from. She spoke on the topic of confidence. So many agents leave the business because they lack confidence in themselves and their ability to do their job. So many of us strive to be the best at everything we do, and when we fall short, it can break us.
Lisa poignantly stated, “You don’t have to be the strongest and the fastest, you just have to be strong and fast”.
Confidence is a muscle, and just like weight training, it takes consistency and training to grow that muscle. You aren’t born with it. You are capable of building up your confidence. By focusing on the abilities that you can grow you can become strong and fast. You don’t have to be the best at everything to succeed.
This conference was meant to bring clarity to agents. To help you clarify what goals you want to reach, learn to simplify the process to amplify your success as well as to just have fun and grow with each other. My buddy Dustin Brohm—after delivering a great talk retargeting ads—brought us some comedic relief.
For his Q & A slide, he meant to imply that there are no dumb questions. But he wrote, “there are no wrong answers”. Let’s just say no one is letting that go soon, and it sparked a hashtag movement—#NoWrongAnswers. But wait, there’s more! There may even be some apparel coming out soon. Stay tuned.
Jerry Potter spoke on the topic of engagement and social media. He said something that left us all questioning if we had heard correctly: focus on one social media platform to master. He truly believes that if you focus your time and energy on mastering one platform you’ll see results.
Think about it. What would it look like if you did just focus on one platform?
I get the most traffic and engagement from LinkedIn. If I solely focused on that, how would it impact my business? He gave us all some food for thought, especially because it’s so easy to over diversify instead of simplifying.
I formed a panel that consisted of Chantel Soumis, Jared Wiese, and Carrie Bohlig to speak about LinkedIn. When you think of social media, your mind probably doesn’t jump to LinkedIn. It hasn’t always been viewed as the powerhouse that is. But when you Google a name or person, what do you usually get at the top of the search results? LinkedIn.
LinkedIn is well optimized so that it comes up in the search results.
So it’s time to start taking advantage of that. Beef up your LinkedIn profile to make it pop. Pour into the community with videos and resources. Make it speak to people so that they will go check out your website or reach out to you. Don’t miss out on the opportunity that it gives you!
Go to AgentRiseSummit.com to purchase access to the recordings of the summit! They’ll be available for a limited amount of time—don’t miss out!
Recommended Resources
Connect with Neil!
And connect with me on ANY of the following social channels. I LOVE social!
And finally, if you would be so kind - leave a rating and review for the Agent Rise podcast on Apple Podcasts (formerly iTunes)