In case you missed it, I go live on the Realty Partners Facebook page every Wednesday at 12 pm to go over the latest topic that’s hot in real estate. On 12/12 at 12 pm (heh), I went over the top 3 reasons why agents fail in real estate.

They arrive out of school with starry eyes and without a notion of a clue as to what they signed up for – and that, in turn, causes them to fail. The real deal is that failure stems from three major points:

1. Unrealistic expectation
2. Fear of rejection
3. Fear of success

Which leads us to wonder what can you do to overcome all this?

Get yourself grounded and have some real expectations

The experienced agents out there have seen it time and time again. A new agent walks onto the scene with a somewhat misguided point of view that real estate is easy money and going to be like any job that they have previously had. It will only be a matter of time before they are bathing in cash. In reality, however, up to 95% of new agents drop out within 2-5 years of the start of their career after school. Most real estate schools fail to inform their students about the actual work the career requires. And the realization can be tough when most newbies realize a few things:

1. This is not a normal 9-5 job. There is not much that’s normal or resembles previous work in real estate. Agents do work late and on weekends to make sure they take care of their clients in whichever way they see fit.
2. No one else but you is responsible for you and your actions. There’s no one hovering over you trying to discipline you and make sure the guidelines are met – most of the time unless you’re currently with one of those brokerages.
3. Nothing is going to be handed out freely. Agents must take control of their lives and drive themselves forward if they want to succeed in the business.

And it can be difficult for new real estate agents to come to terms with the fact that this is not easy. It may be simple at times, but it is not easy most of the time. That can lead these new agents to take shortcuts or take the easy way out in order to close that sale. Panic sets in. Greed has taken root. And it’s that which drives their actions to do something unethical. What they don’t consider is their long game. Without taking all that into consideration, that’s where agents can mess up – and end up in front of the Disciplinary Committee where they have their license revoked.

So what can they do to ensure that this doesn’t happen?

If you’re yet to get your license:

• Talk to everyone involved in the industry. Know what a day in the life is like. Be afraid not to know and do all the work without the research. One REALTOR mentioned walking into any brokerage and asking to speak to their top producer to ask them questions about how they got there.

If you just got the license:

• Throw all those expectations of making money quickly. Go ahead and just throw it all out there and into the wind.
• Come up with both a business plan and a marketing plan
  • Here’s NAR’s Business Plan
  • Here’s a template for a Marketing Plan
• Understand that cash flow is everything! You must know who you’re going to owe in every transaction
• Invest in your own education. Take all the classes. It’s investing in yourself to be the best you can be. You’re worth it J. But remember to work smarter, not harder. One will result in burnout and becoming a statistic.
• Need to be organized!
• NETWORK LIKE CRAZY!
  • Go to every single free event that’s related to your industry so people get to know you and your face.

If you’re an experienced agent (i.e. survived in the game for 5+ years):

• Pay it forward and help out your fellow newbie REALTOR. Offer to take one of them out for coffee just for a short conversation.
• If you’re really looking to get involved, look into volunteering for local entrepreneur nonprofits and mentoring other agents. Your knowledge is indispensable to new agents and will be looking for people like you much like how someone helped you out. Even experienced agents can learn something new from newbs.

Make it your mission to get rejected. All. The. Time.

We have all experienced rejection at some point in our lives. Maybe that cute person said they didn’t want to date you. Maybe your aunt told you after a few cocktails that you should never go on American Idol or becoming an NBA star after 40 is impossible, and there is no way you’re ever becoming a unicorn. It has happened to everyone (and if they tell you it hasn’t, they are lying). Nevertheless, it still leaves a mark that reminds us of that painful experience and reliving that is not something we try to seek out.

So, I propose that you go to rejection therapy.

Listen to this guy here first:

I will be testing out his beta app. Join me, and we can share how we’re getting rejected!

Work your Sphere of influence!

• There are so many people that are forgotten that it’s saddening when they get ignored. Keep in touch with everyone you’ve met (as much as you personally can) and follow up with everyone. Ever.

Have a plan

• Half the time, those rejections come from being ill prepared. So, arm yourself and get something together. Practicing scripts can be quite useful here. Get a partner and start practicing those rejections!

Go ahead and be successful. Really, it’s okay.

You know, it’s really okay to be more successful than those around you. It may feel like it’s isolating for a moment, but then you’ll be moving forward in life instead of being surrounded by the same misery.

Things will change, and for many people change is scary, especially when it’s to a mindset that is set on people pleasing. I’m not a psychologist, but I think it’s psychological, where all these “what-ifs” come into their mind: what if people expect more of me that I can’t deliver? What if I set myself up so high only to fail? What if I try my best at this, and I still don’t succeed? Well, let me ask you this: what if you never even try? Wouldn’t it be better than wondering for the rest of your life what could have happened?

So here’s what you can do about that:

• After you have your plan set up, take little steps to take little wins.
• Let people celebrate success with you. If they turn jealous, then you don’t need them in your life.
• This goes hand in hand with the rejection therapy. You succeed when you get rejected. It’s odd, really, I’m aware. But slowly those changes will come into your mind. Rejection then won’t bother you that much. Without that roadblock, it’s like driving down the Audubon on a good day.

In the end, if you don’t succeed, then maybe real estate’s not for you. And that’s okay. Your talents lie elsewhere, and no one is a savant at everything. Maybe you’re supposed to be involved with it in some capacity, so keep searching. It could be your brokerage…. Just saying.

What do you think? Why do agents fail, in your opinion? Let us know in the comments!