Today's Thought: Keeping It All Together In Challenging Times

Being a real estate agent can be quite overwhelming. Burnout can come quickly with all that we have to know do to complete a transaction.  There is just so much information to wade through.  Not to mention that real estate laws, rules and regulations seem to change daily.  Not only do we have to stay abreast of changes in real estate law and ethics, we've got to be on top of changes in the mortgage industry as well.  How do you keep it all together?

Each real estate transaction comes with challenges and no two deals are exactly alike.  We can't possibly attend every training class available nor can we read every available book to help guide us through to a successful career.  But what we can do is learn by doing.  We can welcome each challenge with open arms and recognize that our challenges become our training ground and through that training we build an arsenal of valuable information that will continually help make us trusted experts in our field.

There may be a new and more popular term for information overload, but the concept has not changed.  We've got to know what the mortgage company is doing.  We've got to be mind readers and anticipate the actions, thoughts and requirements of everyone and every entity in our transaction.  It's no wonder we're able to keep our sanity at all.  At some point we've got to realize that we can't and don't know it all and that it is impossible for one human being to know every single aspect for the all encompassing real estate industry (from selling, buying, mortgage, lending, title, appraisals, etc). 

 We simply know what we know but we should never stop seeking information and asking questions when we are not sure.  Where we make our mistake is that we are constantly "on" and rarely take a timeout out or relax and recharge.  It's perfectly okay to do so.  It doesn't mean that we  are not as hard working as the next guy.  In fact, it probably means that you've earned that time to yourself.  You've earned that vacation or that Saturday at home cuddling up to a good book and not showing houses.  Even books about your work can be enjoyable as well as knowledgeable.

Taking time out to take care of yourself is necessary in order for us to serve the public.  After all, we don't work for the government, but we are public servants just the same.