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Roll With the Changes

By
Real Estate Agent with RE/Max Associates DE#RA-0003085 PA#RS347136

For any of my fellow Realtors® who’ve been going through MLS upgrades, website redesigns, or any other technological challenges, I can sympathize and my advice is… hang in there! Better yet, surround yourself with people in the know, take a class to upgrade your skills, and don’t be afraid of changes. In the course of adapting, you will not only build your assets, but you’ll increase the trust your clients have in you.

Though I wasn’t a Realtor® when the listings were in a book that was kept and guarded in the office, I’ve heard of “the book” and work with many Realtors® who survived that evolution in our industry. I was, however,  around for the shift from the intranet to the internet. That was pretty monumental for agents who were resistant to transitions. I remember one Realtor® who got very upset with me because I answered a phone call, and in trying to get the person to leave their name and number for him, had to give the potential client something in return. What I offered was a simple thing to deliver: an email of listings. What I didn't realize was this was way outside of the comfort level of the agent in question, so I became persona non grata to him. When I realized how much I had pushed the envelope, I offered to show him how to do what I had suggested to the client. The truce flag was accepted and we both learned something in the process.

 

Will new skills help youdo more than just manage the database? More than just help you accomplish day-to-day tasks? New skills will help you build trust. As Franklin Covey says, "trust isn't a quality you either have or you don't; it's a learnable skill." In his book, "The Speed of Trust," he highlights character traits that build trust including  adapting and working on improving your capabilities. Think about the people that you trust. They possess skills that instill confidence.

 

My best suggestion for you this week? Assess your skills and work on the areas that you think need improvement. Not sure what those areas are? Talk with your mentor. Form a mastermind group with Realtors® and/or other professionals you admire and trust. Have them help you do an assessment. Take a Realtor® that you admire for their skills out for coffee or lunch and pick their brain. The results will bring dividends. And of this, I'm sure:

"If you don't like change, you're going to like irrelevance even less."

~General Eric Shinseki, Chief of Staff, U.S. Army

 

Have an amazing week and make this your best year yet!

 

 

Comments (4)

Rose Mary Justice
Synergy Realty Pros - Dandridge, TN
Synergy Realty Pros

Changes are challenging sometimes but when we get the hang of it, usually it's for the better.   Technology is not going to go away so learn to adapt or we will be left behind.

Jan 28, 2019 07:17 PM
Monica Hill

Well said, Rose Mary!

Jan 28, 2019 07:45 PM
Dorte Engel
RE/MAX Leading Edge - Bowie, MD
ABC - Annapolis, Bowie, Crofton & rest of Maryland

Dear Monica,

Isn't the new MLS something else? I am suspecting that not all difficulties are due to my lack of learning or understanding. I have seen that they kept some of the clunky weirdness of previous systems, but completely blown up some of the good aspects that made it easy and fast to use. It has all the hallmarks of programmers, who are not Realtors and did not bother to ask any how they use the system, when the redesigned it.

Jan 28, 2019 08:38 PM
Monica Hill

Dorte, I was part of the beta group that test drove part of the changes to Bright however... we were tasked with doing things they asked us to do. In hindsight, I would have liked to have been asked what a normal task is that I accomplish in the system and then for them to watch me do it. Had that been the case, it might have come to light then that I can't find things that didn't transfer over in a search. :-)

Jan 29, 2019 01:49 PM
Kat Palmiotti
eXp Commercial, Referral Divison - Kalispell, MT
Helping your Montana dreams take root

Everything changes! A few years ago, maybe three or four, our MLS system was being replaced by a new system. There was a LOT of grumbling and complaining about how agents couldn't find data, and couldn't do reports, and couldn't do this or that. I, on the other hand, went into every single field on that new system, and clicked every report function, and tried editing every menu, and found there were a lot of really neat options that the old system didn't have. Then I was able to help when others were stuck on something, ("hey, why don't you try this?"). 

Although I am lucky that I am not afraid to click things. :-)

Jan 29, 2019 04:11 AM
Monica Hill

Kat, I'm like you in that I try things. My problem with our system change at present is that some of our old data didn't transfer over so I truly can't find things because they were wiped out. They're working on fixing that though and I trust we'll get to the point that we can just focus on what can be done instead of what can't. 

Jan 29, 2019 01:53 PM
Sheila Anderson
Referral Group Incorporated - East Brunswick, NJ
The Real Estate Whisperer Who Listens 732-715-1133

Good morning Monica. Change is harder for some of us than others. If you have been using a system or a skill you perfected for years having to change id difficult. I have learned many new electronic skills over the years because I knew I needed to to be competitive. On a side note watch your fonts. At some point you reverted to a small hard to read font.

Jan 29, 2019 07:34 AM
Monica Hill

Sheila, I don't know why it does that to my posts. I'll go back and see if I can edit it. Thanks!

Jan 29, 2019 01:55 PM