The Wisdom from An American Hero
Let's take a moment and take off our "Stuffy Boring Hat" and have a little brain aerobics, shall we?
I love keeping my mind active, and I love GREAT movies! After watching one of the greatest of all time the other day, Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark, I thought, "Man, that has a lot of real estate principles in it. I caught the others on TV the other day with this idea in mind and here's what I pulled out from his his whip-cracking adventures:
Use Simple Weapons
Isn't it fun to watch those guys tout all the new fancy weapons in real estate and often they don't even know how to use them? They are frantically swinging their Facebook / Twitter / YouTube / QR Code jargon all around and then BANG! … Indy just pulls out that trusty gun and pops that poser between the eyes.
On the other hand, remember what happened later when another crazy guy came face-to-face with Indy… he reached for his gun but it wasn't there. He RAN! Sometimes even people can have effect on you with inferior weapons if you come into the fight unarmed.
Don't get me wrong, I LOVE all the above mentioned New Media weapons, and they can be deadly if used properly, but sometimes ya just need a good phone call to a warm body with a friendly manner and it will pop them right between the eyes.
Dress for Success
Wouldn't Indy look better in a nice three-button Gucci suit with some gold cuff links and a snappy top hat? OF COURSE HE WOULD, but those bad guys would just sneak up on him and slit his throat because our poor hear couldn't reach his gun through all of those fine textiles!
Indy has a job and he has optimized his wardrobe to allow him to do the best job possible. It's him. He's trademarked his style. Remember that scene when you see the shadow of him in the hat? Classic. Do you have a style or are you just trying to dress up because you're supposed to? (Hey, didn't I just blog about this?...) Is that preventing you from accessing your weapons and being fully mobile?
Point A to Point BI love the image of the airplane flying across the map as Indy travels to the next adventure. You can tell he's on a mission and it's a great visual reminder to have a GOAL and chart a path to get there.
Sure, it's OK to have a few stops along the way to change planes and refuel, but after that BRIEF stop, get back on task and make some red marks on that map en route to that designation!
Deliver the Line
One of my favorite scenes is on the Nazi airship. Indy throws the bad guy out the window after his cover has been blown, and turning to the passengers, Indy says, "No ticket." Wow. Nailed that one, buddy.
Do you say what needs to be said or do you let that moment pass? Indy can deliver a line (and so can his father in "The Last Crusade," right Sean Connery?) Don't let those moments pass you by and it's OK to be witty and entertaining to your clients from time to time. Just don't throw any out the window of your car after they STILL don't like that house because of the number of steps to get to the front porch….
Get Some Help
In "The Temple of Doom" Indy has an annoying little boy that is always chomping at his heels to help out. Because Indy has been doing this so long, he doesn't need this kid's help so he just keeps telling him to BEAT IT! Later, we see how the kid can do things that wise, experienced ol' Indy can't do. Lesson learned.
I've been fortunate to have some great mentors to help me along the way, rather than telling me to BEAT IT. I love learning from people wiser than me and it puts a feeling of thankfulness and gratefulness in me, topped with a desire to help them out with the knowledge I have. Are you mentoring someone right now? Better yet, are YOU BEING mentored from someone other than your broker?
I've been fortunate to have some great mentors to help me along the way, rather than telling me to BEAT IT. I love learning from people wiser than me and it puts a feeling of thankfulness and gratefulness in me, topped with a desire to help them out with the knowledge I have. Are you mentoring someone right now? Better yet, are YOU BEING mentored from someone other than your broker?
Have a Theme Song
Do you get pumped up for that Listing Presentation? Do you crank up the volume on that Mellancamp song as you're on your way there? Do you pretend to walk in slow-motion as you walk up the driveway, with Chariots of Fire playing in your head?
If not, you may not be at the top of your game. The moment I hear that cadence from the Indiana Jones films, I get a rush of emotions. I know what to expect and memories and love fill me up. When your song(s) come on, it will put you in that space so you can knock it out of the park!
Bad Guys Will Lose
Do what is right and you'll prevail in the end. Bad guys are going to want to rip out your heart or burn your books, or shoot down your plane, but in the end they are going to fall in the bottomless chasm or get a nice spear right through the heart. Indy would never take that detour off the road of a hero and we shouldn't either.
Only the Penitent Man Will Pass
"Get on your knees before the power of God." Are we humble, willing to bow down and be taught? Do we submit to a higher authority, other than the guy writing you a check? Power and guidance will be given to whomever asks for it, as long as your intentions are good (James 4:3).
Be NUTS Sometimes!
"He no crazy, HE NUTS!" Do you ever do that spontaneous thing for you client / partner / broker / vendor just to do it? Try a new way to advertise that property, and go ALL IN. (It's OK to FAIL BIG, but that's another blog post…) Knock on doors (wow, that's a little nuts!), make 20 calls a day, every day.
Everything is nutty until everyone starts doing it, then it's Standard Practice (right, Twitter?) Put yourself out there and be ready to move to the next nutty thing to keep them guessing.
Step Where He Steps
Sometimes running into a new and untested boobytrap (market) is not the best way to do it. Do you have a map/clue (broker/partner) who can guide you? Ask them. Then step exactly where they tell you to step until you get across to the other side. They have been there before, marked the path and will guide you if you ask them.
Focus On Your Prize
What are you racing toward? Indy sure knew what he was going after. The best part is when you find it! Remember when he was staring at that golden idol, measuring the weight of the sand as he prepared to make the switch? What focus. His efforts brought him to this point and he won't mess it up now. Focus.
But we know what happens to him, even during that intense focus session, sometimes it just falls apart around you, but he had his prize and is now ready to go after then next one.
Do you get pumped up for that Listing Presentation? Do you crank up the volume on that Mellancamp song as you're on your way there? Do you pretend to walk in slow-motion as you walk up the driveway, with Chariots of Fire playing in your head?
If not, you may not be at the top of your game. The moment I hear that cadence from the Indiana Jones films, I get a rush of emotions. I know what to expect and memories and love fill me up. When your song(s) come on, it will put you in that space so you can knock it out of the park!
Bad Guys Will Lose
Do what is right and you'll prevail in the end. Bad guys are going to want to rip out your heart or burn your books, or shoot down your plane, but in the end they are going to fall in the bottomless chasm or get a nice spear right through the heart. Indy would never take that detour off the road of a hero and we shouldn't either.
Only the Penitent Man Will Pass
"Get on your knees before the power of God." Are we humble, willing to bow down and be taught? Do we submit to a higher authority, other than the guy writing you a check? Power and guidance will be given to whomever asks for it, as long as your intentions are good (James 4:3).
Be NUTS Sometimes!
"He no crazy, HE NUTS!" Do you ever do that spontaneous thing for you client / partner / broker / vendor just to do it? Try a new way to advertise that property, and go ALL IN. (It's OK to FAIL BIG, but that's another blog post…) Knock on doors (wow, that's a little nuts!), make 20 calls a day, every day.
Everything is nutty until everyone starts doing it, then it's Standard Practice (right, Twitter?) Put yourself out there and be ready to move to the next nutty thing to keep them guessing.
Step Where He Steps
Sometimes running into a new and untested boobytrap (market) is not the best way to do it. Do you have a map/clue (broker/partner) who can guide you? Ask them. Then step exactly where they tell you to step until you get across to the other side. They have been there before, marked the path and will guide you if you ask them.
Focus On Your Prize
What are you racing toward? Indy sure knew what he was going after. The best part is when you find it! Remember when he was staring at that golden idol, measuring the weight of the sand as he prepared to make the switch? What focus. His efforts brought him to this point and he won't mess it up now. Focus.
But we know what happens to him, even during that intense focus session, sometimes it just falls apart around you, but he had his prize and is now ready to go after then next one.
That's about it. Who knew Indy had so much to offer? I sure didn't until I started looking at things through a different lens. Have YOU revisited anything lately and simply looked at it from a different angle? Old ideas will become NEW!
Go ahead and give it a try. I'd love to hear how you're using (or will use) some of Indy's wisdom this year!
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