I am about 8 weeks away from celebrating my 13th year in real estate.
When I got into this, a lot of agents thought I was crazy and that I would never make it in this industry. Why? I didn’t want to do all the tasks that we were told we had to do to attract business. I didn’t want to mail out basketball schedules, calendars, packets of seed with a card that said “Help me grow my business.” I wanted to be out and about doing things that kept me on top of the market. Things that would benefit my clients. I got into real estate because I love the market and houses, not because I loved mailing people stuff.
Other agents also thought I was crazy because I wore shorts and sandals all the time. Ok, they may have been right about that one.
I was told that if I didn’t do all those things, people wouldn’t remember me. I said that if somebody used me as their agent and forgot about me, I didn’t deserve to be remembered.
I was excited to view every house I could because the more houses I was in, the better I knew the market and neighborhoods.
As the market went sour, I gained momentum. The agents who use to laugh at me began asking me what I was doing to get so much work.
It grew and grew until it peaked in 2014. I was in the top 1.5% of all the agents in my area. 2015, 2016 and 2017 were all good years. I did less work, but I enjoyed it much more and had more time to focus on each client.
I’ve pretty much achieved all the goals I made 13 years ago. It’s been a wild and fun ride. Sort of like surfing and riding a bucking bronco at the same time. What a rush.
So what do I want out of 2018? I mean me personally…..sure my goal has always been to be the best realtor I can for my clients and always will be. The fact that almost all my work is repeat clients and referrals from past clients shows that is happening. But what do I want to say to myself on January 1st in 2019?
I want to look back and say “Man, that was fun.”
That is it. No setting goals for how many houses I want to sell. No setting goals for how much money I want to make. No comparing myself to other agents. I’m past all that. I just want to be the best version of me I can so I can be the best realtor I can be…..and I want to enjoy every single day.