The Color of the Grass is What You Use to Fertilize It!

The Color of the Grass is What You Use to Fertilize It!

At times, it seems as though the Q&A section has been hijacked by real estate students from Utah! Inevitably when a new group of students rolls through a particular instructor's class, they ask the same questions this instructor has assigned to them to ask...time after time, after time!  One of those often-asked questions is "How do I know what brokerage to choose when I get my license?"

I've written my own recommendations in the Q&A section on numerous occasions but, thought I would share the rest of the story in a post!  When you really think about it, why DO we choose the brokerage we do?  Anyone who has been in the business long enough to know, culture and bottom line (money) seem to be the two main reasons.  

It's certainly not the lure of promised leads or the love for the brokerage's sign color or design!  I have seen agents change brokerages several times within a 3-5 year period and wonder if they are convincing themselves that the grass is greener on the other side.

Yes, culture and money are important to us as business owners - after all, each and every one of us OWN OUR OWN BUSINESSES.  If you simply cannot tolerate the culture of a brokerage, that is most definitely a reason to check out the green grass somewhere else!  The splits are important too - if you're a successful agent and know that you can net more annually with a move, then yes, go for it!

However, those that I see making frequent moves aren't about the culture or the money - they're in search of their own success.  Those struggling to get their own businesses up and running (and successful) often get caught up in the 'grass is greener' lure from companies who actually pay personnel to drive warm bodies to their brokerages.  

Folks, it's not about someone else offering you greener grass - it's about what YOU use to fertilize it! As the song goes, "Looking for love in all the wrong places," so do those real estate agents with herd mentality!  

Don't make a move just because you think it's a cure-all for your success - work on your own business first.

It's not up to someone else (your broker or brokerage) to generate leads for you - it's up to YOU. In a nutshell, this business is about relationships and if you're not a people-person, this business truly may not be right for you.  If you do enjoy working with others, here are some very basic tips to get you going in the right direction:

• Putting together a business plan would be your first call-to-action as a business owner.
  
  
• Create a list of at LEAST 100 people with whom you would consider your sphere and each out to those people.
  
  
• Get involved locally with networking and volunteer groups.  
  
  
• Add a dose of farming - your neighborhood is a great place to begin.  
  
  
• Take as many classes as you can - education is incredibly important in this business.
  
  
• Last but, certainly not least, blog here in the Rain to your heart's content!  It works!
  
  

Shaping your own business is key to becoming a successful real estate agent.  No brokerage in the WORLD is going to make YOU a success.  Are some brokerages more supportive than others?  Of course but, what you use to fertilize your own grass is going to determine how green it becomes!  You are in control of your own destiny as a real estate business owner...you and only you.

So, get out there and go to work - this is about YOU, not a broker or a brokerage!

© Debe Maxwell | The Maxwell House Group | CharlotteBroker@icloud.com | The Color of the Grass is What You Use to Fertilize It!