Words and Wisdom of Yogi Berra

Over the next month, I will be taking a brief look at the words and philosophy of Yogi Berra as it relates to real estate sales training.  Prior installments of the Yogi Berra Real Estate Sales Training Series included:

• Installment No. 1 - When you come to a fork in the road, take it - The Art of Making a Decision.  This installment focused on the need for decisive action and the need for making informed decisions.
• Installment No. 2 - It's never happened in world series history, and it hasn't happened since - The Art of Learning from One's Mistakes.  This installment focused on constructive criticism and the need to learn from our mistakes.
• Installment No. 3 - Nobody did nothin to nobody - The Importance of Teamwork.  This installment focused on the need to make a personal commitment to your brokerage and the attributes of being a team player.
• Installment No. 4 - Slump?  I ain't in no slump... I just ain't hitting - Dealing with Sales Slumps.  This installment focused on how to handle sales slumps by focusing on the fundamentals of sales, by adopting the right mindset, and by refusing to blame the market for sales slumps.
• Installment No. 5 - I don't know, I'm not in shape yet - The Importance of Physical and Mental Conditioning in Real Estate Sales.  This installment focused on the need for a positive attitude in real estate sales and how physical and mental conditioning is important to maintain a positive attitude.
• Installment No. 6 - Public speaking is one of the best things I hate - The Art of Public Speaking.  This installment focused on tips for improving the effectiveness of one's public speeches and presentations by focusing on simple tips to captivate and inspire your target audience.
• Installment No. 7 - He's learning me all his experience - Learning Sales Skills.  This installment focused on the various stages of learning and the importance of mentoring for developing sales skills.
• Installment No. 8 - If you don't have a bullpen, you got nothing - The Importance of Role Players.  This installment focused on the need to build a team that includes role players as well as bench players who can perform multiple roles.
• Installment No. 9 - If people don't want to come out to the park, nobody's going to stop them - Gimmicks Don't Work.  This installment commented on the use of gimmicks as a substitute for natural talent and building sales skills through training.

The tenth installment of the Yogi Berra Real Estate Sales Training Series starts with the quotation "You can't win all the time.  There are guys out there who are better than you." Yogi Berra recognized that everyone has a bad game and that there is often a thin line between winning and losing.  However, he also knew that it was equally important how you handle winning and losing.  In his book, Yogi Berra discussed the importance of acting graciously and describes his relationship with members of the Brooklyn Dodgers who the Yankees beat in prior World Series and lost to in the 1955 World Series.  It was all about competition and the better team in that year winning or losing.

Real Estate Sales Training

So, how does this Yogi Berra quotation relate to real estate sales training?  Well, Yogi Berra understood that competition should be a healthy or positive thing.  Here are some thoughts on how these concepts relate to real estate sales:

• Unhealthy Competition.  In real estate sales, we are first and foremost professional colleagues as well as competitors.  How we approach competition can tell a lot about one's character?  When another brokerage wins a listing, do you congratulate them or do you bad mouth them to the owner?  When an associate makes a sale, do you congratulate them or do you sulk and resent their success?  To be successful in sales, it is important to have a competitive spirit.  However, it is equally important to win and lose graciously.  In the end, real estate sales is a profession and our competitors are also colleagues.
• Losses Can Be Great Learning Experiences.  There is nothing better than making a sales pitch and obtaining a listing or closing a deal.  However, we won't win every listing and we won't close every sale.  Losses or rejection play an important role in the learning process of real estate professionals.  When we don't win, it is important to look at why we lost and rise to the challenge the next time.  Sometimes, it may mean changing our approach or improving our skills.  However, if we don't look at why we lost, we may not learn the secret as to how to win in the future.
• Advocacy and Professionalism.  Being an advocate for our customers sometimes means bargaining hard.  Negotiations can and sometimes do get heated.  Some real estate professionals can be aggressive, combative or ill-tempered.  You will win and lose negotiations.  In the end, there shouldn't be any hard feelings.  Too often, real estate professionals forget that there is a certain collegiality among agents and that you can often get more done by building bridges to other agents than burning bridges behind you because how you act during a transaction.

For the unfiltered words and philosophy of Yogi Berra, take a look at When You Come to a Fork in the Road, Take It! : Inspiration and Wisdom from One of Baseball's Greatest Heroes by Yogi Berra and Dave Kaplan.  It is quick read and mixes baseball, business and Yogi-isms in a great little package. 

Interested in real estate sales training? Or, better yet, purchasing a home in Yogi Berra's childhood neighborhood known as The Hill?  Contact Ryan Shaughnessy at PREA Signature Realty at 314-971-4381.