Real estate, as an industry, used to be full of people that would and could describe themselves as entrepreneurs. These do-it-all and do-it-right cowboys and cowgirls walked around ten feet tall and bulletproof. They were go-getters and self-employed renegades who got things done and made money regardless of what others said, and sometimes just to prove they could make money regardless of what others said.
Sadly, this seems to be less and less the case these days. And now, thanks to the help of research scientists, we've discovered why - the diagnosis of Latent Whiny Liberal Syndrome (LWLS).
Many people in the real estate business who thought of themselves as entrepreneurs have discovered they are indeed suffering from this nasty disorder. They look at the news, economic reports, Federal Reserve actions, home sales reports...and whine. Gone is the person at whom they used to see when they looked in the mirror who was going to leave the house and kick butt. Now they see only dark circles under their eyes, or red blotches from the tears they have cried over their suffering sales report and the red ink on their profit and loss statements.
The most damaging and easy to diagnose symptoms of this syndrome come in the order described in its name. First the whining hits. It will not be as dramatic as Chicken Little's "the sky is falling," plea - that comes later when the checkbook is finally at zero. No, the whining starts very gradually at first, usually when walking around his or her office, questioning other agents to make sure their business is as crappy as the sufferer. The whining then progresses to a more active stage, where gloomy comments are shared with other agents, brokers, and in its most destructive phase, with clients themselves.
Once the whining has progressed to full-onset, the sufferer then wonders what the President, Congress, or the Federal Reserve will do about things. This is the liberal stage, where the real material deterioration of one's entrepreneurial spirits begins. Before long, the once proud real estate cowboy or cowgirl is just an empty shell of despair, whining to anyone that will listen (usually other people with this disorder) and asking what the government will do about it.
There is usually a two-phase end to this disorder. First, the sufferer starts checking out the economic plan of presidential candidates Obama and Clinton. They will then usually progress to one of these candidates' websites to read more. They stop watching CNBC and Fox News and become regular watchers of Oprah, NBC Nightly News, and The View. And then suddenly, as a result of the influx of negativity and non-focus associated with these new habits, the disorder takes its final toll on its victim - the end of a once-hopeful and promising real estate career. Licenses are given back to the state real estate commission, hope is lost, and a salaried position is taken somewhere in a cubicle farm near their home.
We all know there are too many people in real estate right now, and some of them will be getting out of the business because the "easy money" of 2004-2006 is gone. The truly sad part is that when they exit, they will be taking with them a large number of former entrepreneurs that we enjoyed being in business with but caught LWLS in the process.
Fortunately, there is hope. In my next entry, I'll add the three step plan that our research scientists have prescribed to prevent you from being a victim to this career-ending disorder.
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