When it all boils down to it - if you can't be honest with your clients when listing their home, for whatever reason (fear of losing the listing, fear of losing a friend, fear of hurting someone's feelings) then your in the wrong business; especially right now.  We've seen a long tenure of bad agents who "sold the farm" just to get a listing and it's up to those of us who chose to weather the storm to be one thing - HONEST!  If you can handle the truth, then you can handle me should be the first words out of your mouth when talking with prospective listings.  Come on guys, you know it to be true, most sellers need that "reality check" when you start talking about listing their most prized possession and rightfully so.  However, if you have that one client who wants to list their home $30K over market right now and you do it, chances are your gonna lose the sale and the client.  Days are long gone when you can just throw it at the wall and see if it will stick - the cold hard facts and truth are what clients are hungry for and again, I say, if your in it to win it, then be HONEST!  Actual story:  Client calls to list.  Do homework and present facts at appointment.  Seller angry and disgruntled, asked me to leave.  I did, graciously.  Next week, home listed by "discount agent" who priced home $30K over what I suggested.  Six months go by, client calls back.  Says not one showing and would I come back.  I go back.  Am brutally honest AGAIN.  Says no thanks (he somehow thinks its the agent and not the market)  Relists with same agent again, $20K over market.  Three months go by, calls me back.  I go back.  Am brutally honest AGAIN.  Insistent I list $20K over market and again says not one showing in 9 mos.  This time, I walked out.  So what's the moral - moral is this, it's been 12 mos. since our first meeting and he called again last night.  When I asked him point blank why he's still calling me when he doesn't want to listen to what I'm telling him, he said this, "Of all the agents I met with, none had a problem with me setting the price, they offered discount commissions and everything else to get the listing, but it was the way you looked me in the eye and was completely honest when you asked me "Are you ready to sell or not?"  I feel like I can trust you."  It may have taken 12 mos. to get my point across and to hold steadfast, but it got the job done.  If clients are truly ready to sell, the truth may be hard to swallow, but it isn't hard to hear.  HONESTY really is the best policy.