By Kelle Sparta
RISMEDIA, April 17, 2007-Recently it seems that everyone is doing their own personal life review. They are looking back in time and seeing whether they are where they want to be personally and professionally. For many agents, the downturn in the marketplace has caused them to question whether they are going to stay in real estate or not. Here's some advice I would offer.
Make a Choice
Don't sit and "wibble." If you are staying in the business then stay in and get committed again. Tell yourself that you're in for at least the next two years and then start acting like it. Get your advertising out. Call your past clients for referrals. Buy the next ream of stationery or box of business cards. If you are getting out – get out. Don't say, "well I'll wait and see what happens," or "if things don't pick up by the end of the year, I'll get out." And for heaven's sake, don't start looking in the want ads to see if "something better" might be out there.
Programming Your Subconscious Mind
When I speak to new agents, I often take a poll of the room. I ask them how many people in the room have a plan for what they are going to do if real estate doesn't work out. Then I ask how many people don't have a backup plan – how many have to make real estate work? When those hands go up, I tell the others to look around. The people with their hands up are the ones that are going to make it. Why? Because they have to. They have told their subconscious minds that failure is not an option. And when you program your mind that way, it can't help but come through for you.
What Are You Saying to Your Subconscious Mind?
Are you telling your subconscious that this dip in the market is a momentary thing? Or are you preparing it for a change of career. Whatever you give your subconscious, it will run with. If you're waiting to see what happens at the end of the year, you might as well get out now because your subconscious is already done.
Contemplate, Then Act
I'm not saying that it's not smart to take a lay of the land every now and again. I do it on a regular basis. But once you have the landscape mapped out, there's nothing more to do. You can't predict tomorrow, so you need to make your decisions based on today. Take careful stock and then make your move. Nothing was ever accomplished in the world by someone stuck in "what if."
This may sound harsh, but the fact is that you can waste your entire life in "what if." Nothing gets fun and exciting until you make a choice and then start to walk down the path. Which way are you going?
Kelle Sparta is the author of "The Consultative Real Estate Agent – Building Relationships that Create Loyal Clients," "Get More Referrals, and Increase Your Sales," as well as being a speaker and trainer specializing in the real estate industry. Sparta is the founder of Sparta Success Systems, a real estate training company that provides tools, products, and training to empower agents and brokers to create lives and businesses they can love. For more information, visit her Web site at www.spartasuccess.com. © 2007, Kelle Sparta. Used by permission.
