perception: Conformity is the Modern Cowardice
- 07/22/14 06:36 AM
With the coming new year, I've been reflecting on something. Conformity.
In meeting real estate agents across many states, I see many that are “wantrapreneurs.” These are people who claim they are entrepreneural in their thinking but are too risk averse to ever make a leap to something new.
They talk about their plan, sometimes all their life. Or they put forth time and money to start in real estate (or another business) part-time, but never enough commitment to ever have a real chance to succeed.
A more advanced version of the “wantrapreneur” may work on their real estate career or business for … (1 comments)
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perception: Don't Tailgate
- 12/09/13 03:53 AM
Bear with me a moment, as this may seem unrelated to real estate but is actually something applicable to all of us.
A few weeks ago I’m driving to the office along a four lane highway. The speed limit along this stretch of road is 55 MPH.
In the fast lane, a small SUV is going about 35 MPH, twenty miles below the speed limit.
Naturally, this is gumming up traffic flow and vehicles all work their way around this slow vehicle using the right lane. As I get closer to the SUV, I notice two identical magnetic signs on … (3 comments)
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perception: They Give Us Silence and Lies
- 09/26/13 11:53 AM
Anyone that has worked the cold-call side of real estate (or any other business for that matter) knows the most common response to cold calls, and even luke warm calls, is silence and lies.
Voice-mails are often unreturned. Emails go out and nothing comes back.
Or you get the dreaded responses like, “Just send me some information and I’ll talk to my wife (or boss). We’ll be in touch if she’s interested.”
In other words, lies that really mean, “Don’t call us, and we won’t call you and hope you go away if we ignore you long enough.”
We want to … (11 comments)
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perception: Dove Soap and The Power of Self-Deception
- 05/04/13 01:26 AM
At first glance, this may not seem real estate related, but bear with me and I think you'll see.
Dove (yes, the soap brand) has an interesting project that, aside from a logo, is not even really an advertisement. It is a unique project to reveal how poorly women see themselves and the critical nature of perceived beauty.
The project is called Real Beauty Sketches and utilizes FBI-trained forensic artist Gil Zamora, who has drawn over 3,000 criminal sketches.
In the project, Zamora uses only the verbal description several women provide of themselves to draw their likeness. He then makes a … (2 comments)
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perception: My Dog Never Lies
- 03/09/13 11:55 PM
Our dog Rosie never lies. She is smart, playful, sweet, and clever, but never deceitful. What you see is what you get, like it or not.
If she makes a request or sounds an alarm, she has her own valid reasons, even if those reasons seem to us to be incomplete. Her barks of alarm are never lies; they are always a call to action for the true situation as she sees it.
Does she ever bark when there is nothing really for me to be alarmed about? Sure. ("Yes Rosie, the school bus is big and beeps when it … (3 comments)
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perception: Fooling You With Percents (and other words too)
- 02/11/13 07:56 AM
In the last presidential debates, there was an exchange that struck me as very interesting and it has stuck with me for weeks now. In particular, I believe this is a great example of how we see (or write) listings and offers using different words to create a different response.
In the interest of staying non-political and focusing on the communication lesson we should all know, I'll not identify which debater said what.
In debating a point, one of them referenced three percent of small business owners, while the other referenced the same group as the small businesses that employ half … (3 comments)
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perception: Attitude is a Skill
- 01/13/13 11:52 AM
Think about buyers, sellers, lenders and even other agents. Most people think that their attitude is based on what the world throws at them or gives them. But I say that is Wrong! It's not what happens to you. Attitude is what you do with what happens to you.
Like communication, I believe attitude is a skill. I would even go so far as to say that attitude is a communication skill. Your attitude projects who you are for the world to see. Your attitude also strongly influences how you respond to the attitudes of others. This may be a … (3 comments)
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perception: What is the Sound of a Million Dreams?
- 08/20/12 01:34 AM
Real estate is one industry that is tied closely to the dreams of people. The All-American home, a new business, an investment, a growing company, or the entrepreneurship of agents and lenders.
So this makes me wonder, what is the sound of a million dreams?
Since our business work is still often driven by emotions, I thought about the answer this way: It is a song that keeps us going when we’re tired or told we cannot succeed. It is an inspirational story or a movie about an underdog that we can see in ourselves. It is the cheer of … (0 comments)
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perception: What Are You Waiting On?
- 07/06/12 01:02 AM
Okay, so my thoughts today are not just on real estate. But what I've been pondering for days is something I see in just about everyone in real estate, including agents, brokers, buyers, and sellers.
It is a question I ask myself sometimes and often want to ask others: What are you waiting on?
Are you happy? Do you like your job? Do you like the people in your life? What about where your life is headed? Do you find joy in each of your days?
If you could change your fate, would you?
Now, forget the answers you would tell … (5 comments)
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perception: 10 Dangers of Shortcuts
- 06/02/12 11:26 PM
In many of our deals and projects we must battle the common mindset of, “That's not how we’ve always done it.” The power of old habits is strong, even if there are newer, faster, and better ways to proceed.
At the same time, I’m often intrigued by buyers, sellers, lenders, and agents who keep avoiding solid solutions while searching for almost mythical short-cuts.
Often they are searching for an unrealistic, low-cost solution and doing so without making the effort to genuinely understand the problems or the available real solutions.
This is particularly common when technology is part of the discussion. “Technology … (5 comments)
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perception: They Lie Because We Taught Them to Lie
- 05/23/12 11:56 PM
Anyone that spends much time in real estate, or any sales-oriented work, knows that when the truth is told and is not the desired answer, most people punish. So to avoid being punished for telling the truth, people lie instead.
I had a phone call from a salesman recently. It was like many calls we all get periodically. I listened briefly. I understood the salesman and was not interested at all. This is where many people lie and say something nice like, “Well, send me some information and we’ll think about it.” Such a tactic can be particularly common in … (12 comments)
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perception: Your Waiter Can Teach You About the Importance of Attitude
- 03/07/12 08:43 PM
Ever have a waiter in a restaurant that was efficient, polite, said the right things, got the order right, kept beverages refilled but yet for some reason you thought, “They don’t want to be here”?
The waiter did nothing wrong. Yet, something didn’t feel, well, warm, or connected. It was just not an engaging experience.
How did that make you feel as a customer?
Now for the real questions: Have your clients ever felt that way about you? Do you take the time to pay attention and even notice?
Even if every one of your clients loves you, I bet … (5 comments)
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perception: Beware of "The Deadly Experts"
- 02/02/12 09:22 AM
We all know the deadly experts. These are the people that use their expertise to kill sales, listing opportunities, and even relationships.
In many organizations, you find these experts in every corner, including technology, marketing, sales, training, and legal. In real estate, you find them among the sellers, buyers, brokers, attorneys, and just about every type of service provider.
The deadly experts use BIG WORDS to intimidate, bully, disgrace, protest, and even brag. Even someone that has comparable expertise may be casually dismissed by these deadly experts. (For if they admit that someone else may be right it damages their power and self-esteem.)
They … (6 comments)
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perception: Killing the Southern Accent?
- 01/19/12 10:04 PM
Okay, so this is not really real estate related, except perhaps that it speaks to the human nature side of how we all see each other and respond to each other (which is often the biggest point of failure in real estate deals).
I've been thinking about how we perceive our world and how it is heavily influenced by how those around us perceive it. Or how they project it.
For instance, a Southern accent is often used in media, particularly television and movies, to project the image of someone uneducated and not very bright. Think of Gomer Pyle, Forrest Gump, or … (5 comments)
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perception: How can you think that way? ! ?
- 06/27/11 04:06 AM
Every time I hear someone say, "How can you think that way?" I think, "They just told on themselves."
I find this question is not uncommon when in discussions of purchase offers, appraisals, listing prices, commissions, and a host of other topics involving real estate, business in general and life.
The rub is that people typically do not ask this particular question to learn a new perspective. Instead, this is asked to question the validity of someone else's perspective. However, I think there is something more than first meets the eye (or, in this case, the ear).
When someone says, "How can you think that … (0 comments)
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perception: Do You Prejudge?
- 03/12/10 05:36 AM
Are you one of those people that regularly salt your food before you taste it? No matter where the food comes from? If so, you prejudge the food and its level of saltiness based on habit or expectations, not fact or confirmation.
Despite the old adage "Don't judge a book by it's cover," we all still instictively prejudge, whether we are aware of it or not.
What do you prejudge? People? Ideas? Businesses? Projects?
Experience can be our friend, from helping us pick good food to saving our lives. But there is a big difference between relying on experience and just being … (3 comments)
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