Are you ready?
I was in our Growth Committee meeting yesterday and we were talking about the pace at which new agents are joining the real estate business. Our job is to try and help them get plugged into the complex work they have chosen and make sure they have the opportunity to learn what they need to know.
We take agents with zero experience as well as seasoned agents that know how to run a business already helping folks buy and sell. It’s a wide range but it is what keeps our office healthy. In some ways it’s like the old one room school house. The older kids helped the younger ones and as a result learned the material they were teaching better.
We have to keep in mind that our job is not to produce equal outcome but to create equal opportunity. The truth is 85% of the new agents that get in this business today will be gone in 3 years. We offer classes in all sorts of areas but the main focus has to be on how to generate business for yourself so you can stay in business to help buyers and sellers.
We do that with a couple of core areas called Bootcamp and Ignite. We were talking about readiness and came to the conclusion that a new agent needs to take Bootcamp first (4 days of basic training) and then it would be helpful to get a little experience and coaching before they take Ignite (16 days of intense training) so they are ready to absorb the information that will be coming at them.
It all got me thinking about how we learn. Our ability to absorb information and acquire new skills and habits is limited at any given time. I do think we have the ability to learn without end but we can only do so much at one time. We have a limit on our attention and skills.
I ride a motorcycle and I remember the first few times getting back on the bike after a long break. It was harder than I remembered at first but now I’m much more comfortable. Think of it like having $10 worth of attention. When you start out you have to spend about all of the attention you have (maybe $9.50) just to keep the bike moving, balanced and watch out for traffic. Shifting and braking take a lot of skill and attention and you have little left over for the sights and smells you could enjoy on a ride.
As you practice you get more comfortable and begin to see things you did not notice before. Shifting and braking become habit again. It’s almost unconscious in how we ride. The old skills of low speed handling and watching for traffic a couple of blocks ahead become second nature again and you all of a sudden notice the honeysuckle smell in the air. You begin to spend a lot less of your attention ($3 seems about right) and the remainder is available to you for other things.
You can get comfortable in your level of skill but I think that is a mistake too. You need to be learning all the time. I am in classes all the time, both teaching and learning. It keeps me focused and I expand my knowledge and ability. I can do my job better.
I saw this class online last night about an advanced rider course I think I might take. I have been riding for about 45 years and I know there are things I can do better. Especially after watching this video.
My skill level today allows me to do more and learn more than I could when I first started. That is just how it works in business or things we do for fun. What are you ready to take on so you can get better at what you do?
Thanks for listening,
Jerry Robertson
678-231-1578 Cell
