The longer I am in the real estate business, the more I am convinced that teams are the future of real estate. We know the benefits of a successful team model: greater stability and success year over year, improved work-life balance, and a more satisfactory client experience. But getting a team off the ground is a process most agents aren’t prepared for. That’s why it’s critical that new teams have proven principles of success to guide them forward.
This short series is going to address the key considerations you need to make if you want to lead a successful real estate team. The first of these is your purpose — as a business owner, a team leader, an individual, and a pillar of your community.
To unpack the importance of purpose, let’s make use of a scene from Lewis Carrol’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. You’ll recall that Alice gets lost in Wonderland, at one point finding herself at a crossroads with many paths open to her. There she has the following exchange with the Cheshire Cat:
“Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?”
“That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,” said the Cat.
“I don’t much care where—” said Alice.
“Then it doesn’t matter which way you go,” said the Cat.
The message: if you don’t know where you want to end up, it doesn’t really matter which way you go. As it is with Alice, so it is with your real estate team. If you have no unifying vision based on a focused purpose, it doesn’t really matter what you do to advance the business.
This isn’t to say that you won’t find success — perhaps you will. It does mean you won’t be in control of that success and you’ll be waiting for a good accident to happen. Whether you are just starting a team or have led one for many years, ask yourself to find the point of it all. What is your purpose in the business?
Why are you in real estate to begin with? More importantly, why are you looking for success in the field of real estate? This can be a demanding field, with long hours and more than its share of uncertainty. What is the thing that will bring you back to work tomorrow when today doesn’t go the way you want?
Your “big why” should dig deeper than financial goals. There are plenty of other fields where you can make the kind of money you hope to in real estate. This isn’t to say you shouldn’t have an income goal; but think about what that goal represents for you. Does it mean retiring at 45, living debt-free, providing security for your family…buying Jeff Bezos’ yacht? What is it specifically that financial security will bring you?
Now, think about why you have chosen to try to accomplish this goal by selling homes to people. What about the job really excites you. This question might be easier to answer if you are new to the profession than if you are an old hand, but you can still identify that one thing that hooks you.
Finally, identify the reason why you want to form a team. Is it just because you think it will help you make more money? Again, there are other fields that yield high incomes. Or is it because you have a particular vision for what a team could do, both for its members and for the community you serve? Your “big why” is often the thing that you and your team members can fall back on when you encounter roadblocks to success or feel discouraged.
Having an established purpose doesn’t only mean you have an idea of where you’re going — it means you can start building concrete systems that work for you and further your purpose. Take the time to determine your purpose and success will come as a direct result of your focus.
Verl Workman is the founder and CEO of Workman Success Systems, a real estate consulting company that specializes in performance coaching and building highly effective teams. Contact wssm@workmansuccess.com for more information and free downloadable resources.
