I had the fortunate opportunity to begin my career when interest rates were hovering at 12% and there was a regional economic recession. In all the years since then, I’ve learned that the economic pendulum swings back and forth and will eventually correct to equilibrium.
Not much can happen without a positive attitude
I describe my early years as a fortunate opportunity because the challenges forced me to learn some valuable lessons early on. The first thing I learned is that it’s essential to choose a positive attitude. I don’t want to candy coat the challenges, and I know it’s not easy, but staying positive and keeping a healthy historical perspective can help you find innovative ways to meet your clients’ current needs.
Innovative ideas = Outside the box
Remember to consider innovative lending solutions that your clients may not know about. Educate them about buydowns, down-payment assistance programs, and adjustable-rate programs when appropriate. Challenging economic times also require giving our buyers and sellers time to adapt. Believe it or not, current interest rates are still on par with what historic averages have been (when you look at the average range over the last several decades). Ultimately, homeowners begin to adjust financially, families grow, people downsize, people relocate and must buy and sell homes despite these challenges.
Practice the Four Disciplines
There are four key areas of discipline to practice as you pursue sales success. The four disciplines are like the four legs of a stool. All are equally important for achieving balance in your career. The goal is to periodically do a personal inventory and assessment of these disciplines, continuing to build upon them throughout the life of your career.
Professional Disciplines
These include the ongoing study of peer-related sales material, presentation and communication skills, reading books, studying good business management techniques, developing time management ideas, maintaining brand awareness, and a variety of ongoing training or coaching programs that are available to us in the real estate industry.
Personal Disciplines
I like to refer to these as the outward manifestations of the mind, body, and soul. Countless resources on this topic show how important it is to prioritize your personal well-being, keep balance in your life, and choose a healthy mindset to survive and thrive in a sales environment.
Technological Disciplines
There are many technological advancements in real estate. Your ability to embrace the ever-changing technology is critical to your success.
Scalable Business Disciplines
Give some thought to the different variables and the people who influence your operations and your ability to scale your business. In real estate, it’s primarily about personnel — your sales assistants, supervisors and others who help you do your job.
To whatever extent you can, work with people dedicated to success who collaborate as a team to help grow your business.
So now, as 2023 will soon be in our rearview mirror, I encourage you to keep training, stay positive and look for ways to partner with any of our innovative mortgage loan officers here at Arvest Bank to find solutions for your customers. Now more than ever, we can’t remain siloed in our professions. We need to support and encourage each other in all things we do. Ultimately, the real winners will be our customers! Together we will get through this!
Carter Maxey: Business coach and 37-year veteran of real estate and mortgage sales