By Bob Corcoran
“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” Aristotle
How would others describe you as a real estate agent? Good, pretty good, average? How would you describe yourself? Good, pretty good, average? If you’re okay with any of those words, please stop reading and move on to something else.
Now, for those still with me, thank you for sticking around. You deserve a gold star! I love (and mean really love) people who are always seeking to be better – people who detest the word average. It’s one of the reasons I started Corcoran Coaching and Consulting in the first place: to help people rise so far above average they eliminate the word from their vocabulary.
I’m happy to have one those people help me with this article. His name is Verl Workman, a speaker, a coach, a business consultant and the president of the Top 5 in Real Estate Network®, a company he started to help agents achieve excellence.
I had a conversation with him recently about what makes some agents exceptional while others remain average. One of the first things he told me was this: “Exceptional agents have a sincere belief that if they do the right thing, and at the same time are motivated by helping their clients, that their clients will have a first-class experience. They care deeply about their clients as people – they understand the weighty responsibility of helping someone buy and sell homes. It’s always about them doing the right thing for their clients.”
Another interesting tidbit: he likes to see agents who are so great, so exceptional, that it’s practically “an unfair advantage” to other agents in their market. Imagine that. Being so good, it’s unfair to the others. Wouldn’t it be nice to achieve that status?
Here are some more tips he shares:
- Work to be a true expert in real estate. Always be open to professional development, training, getting coached and learning everything you can from your real-life experiences as an agent.
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Improve your negotiating skills. Top producers are simply the best at negotiating, and they have an uncanny ability to make all parties feel as if they’re being treated fairly and professionally at all times. Non-exceptional agents often end up mired in controversial situations.
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Know how to brand yourself. Something you’ll see among all top performers in real estate is that all of their marketing pieces are consistent in their branding and brand messages. Professionals look professional – from their clothes to their brochures to their ads.
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Get at least one other perspective of your business. Verl says that every top agent he knows has a coach. They have actively sought out someone else who could offer another vantage point. The best realize early on that they don’t know it all. They still have confidence in their abilities but remain hungry to get better.
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Surround yourself with others who are exceptional. The best got to be the best by learning from the best around them. Get involved in the same organizations and community events that other great agents take part in, and be a sponge when you’re near them.
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Put processes and systems in place so you can have a life. Finally, Verl talks about being efficient as an agent. That’s something I focus on a lot with my clients: putting systems in place so that their businesses operate on auto-pilot.
Let me hear from you. Do you believe you have room for improvement? What specifically is keeping you from improving and being a better real estate agent? Do you believe that if you improved, your clients would consider you an exceptional agent? Please send any comments or questions you have to Article@CorcoranCoaching.com or http://www.facebook.com/CorcoranCoaching.
Bob Corcoran is a nationally recognized speaker and author who is founder and president of Corcoran Consulting Inc. (CorcoranCoaching.com, 800-957-8353), an international consulting and coaching company that specializes in performance coaching and the implementation of sound business systems into the residential or commercial broker or agent’s existing practice.
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