Just Do IT

This post is inspired by Melissa who just started her first AR contest, on what it takes to be a successful agent.

First I think one should probably define success, so I will define it as having been able to make a living in real estate for at least 5 plus years.  I've heard often enough that most small businesses fail within the first 3 years of being in business.  So the fact that someone has been able to make a living in the real estate industry for over the average time it takes for small business to fail, should be seen as a positive right?  I'll even go further for myself and say the fact that I've been able to average about 50 deals a year for the last 3 years, is also something that lends to showing my success in the field.  Irony is that even with that number of sales, due to the drop in the home prices it wasn't some thing that allowed for wealth building but certainly allowed me to make a living.

Many times in my real estate career I've had to re evaluate my business and what was or was not working.  When the economy shifted in 2008 and values plummeted, traditional sales began to disappear and then came the time of the short sale and bank owned properties.  As an agent you had to evolve to fit with the times, or likely you would have perished.  I did get the opportunity to list and sell bank own properties, but also did a lot of short sales from 2009 to 2013.  In essence I did evolve to fit the times. Yes, I just did it.

My very simplistic story on "just do it".  This is not rocket science, there is only so many ways that someone can find prospects right: door knock, expired"s, farm a neighborhood, network, web presence, pay per click, lead capture/landing pages, sphere of influence, calling database, open houses or buying leads from 3rd party vendors.  There may be more, but the thing is to pick one or some and just do it.  I recall many years ago, spending about 1 month or more focusing on writing the best expired letter and script campaign EVER!!!!  Each day I would dedicate time to looking at what I had been doing previously and try to improve on it.  Keep in mind I was not going out prospecting at the time, because I was working on perfecting this "system".  After a month of working on this seemingly never right campaign, I just started going out and actually making calls and following up with door knocking to expired properties.  I was able to secure at least 2 listing per month this way, and had a couple of months where I was the top listing agent in my office of about 70 people at the time.  

The principle I want to get across, and Nike's slogan is "JUST DO IT".  You wont take a listing, get a buyer, get a sale unless you put yourself out there in some shape or form.  For most of us agents, working 2-3 streams of prospects can lead to a good career.  Choose that which fits you best, networking, cold calling, adds, open houses..........whatever and just stay at it consistently.

Someone once told me, you don't have to be smart to be successful.  You do need to be persistent and stay with what works though, and just keep doing it.