I was thinking this morning about the year I started out in real estate.  I remember the feeling of being scared, excited, apprehensive and lost all at the same time.

I have always watched many new agents come and go during my career.  I have witnessed what characteristics the survivors and superstars have and what the common denominator is for those that do not survive. I was also thinking about what I would have done that first year in 1980 if I knew then what I know now and here is my list:

1. I would have immediately gotten in my car and spent the first 2-3 weeks driving around town and become familiar with not only my companies listings, but with the competitions.

2. I would have created a mailing list of those in my Church, rotary club, friends, family, etc.  And would have mailed them something of value at least every quarter.  I am not talking about recipes but something of value like market reports, interest rate changes, area news, etc.

3. I would have taken a class on creative writing and photography and would have learned how to write attractive attention getting real estate ads and awesome photos.  When I look at the real estate ads and photos of those years I can't help but giggle and it isn't much better today.

4. I would have never gotten sucked into relying on floor time to make me successful.  The agents that have always relied on floor time have never been top producers.  When I elected to stop taking floor time in 1997 my business exploded because I was able to focus 100% of my energy on growing my own lead generating machine.

5. I would have never expected anything from my Broker other than to run a solid, honest and respected firm.  Too many blame the Broker for their failure.  Bill Gates never depended on anyone to make him successful and the Realtors that rely on their Brokers to make them successful will never reach the level of success they are capable of.

6. I would have talked less and listened more.  Back in 1980 the "Look at me" era was starting and this meant there was an enormous Realtor ego in advertising and I never liked it.  Many Realtors wanted to let their client know how great they are.   This still happens in today's market to some degree.  Although I never embraced this concept, I could have been a better listener.

There it is...."If I had known then what I know now"