Stuck In A Cul De Sac Of In-deccission? Try This Sure Fire Way To Get You Going Again
It happened to me this week with some clients. We were going round and round and not really getting where they wanted to be. I could feel the frustration building on both sides and I was starting to take things personally. Part of the reason things were getting so goofy is because I did not lay out a clear path in the very beginning about how the process works and the importance of doing various steps in a specific order. (Note to self: This is the tough love portion where you have to look at your part in why things are not going the right way. Don’t beat yourself up about it, but it is the key to getting out of your cul de sac.)
It’s easy to take things personally at times, but here’s another harsh reality. They didn’t hire you to be their friend. They hired you to be the professional that can help them accomplish their goal. If you end up being friends in the end, fantastic, but right here, right now, you are the professional.
Which leads me to the question I always ask myself when I am stuck and unsure of what to do next:
“What is the professional thing to do?”
The answer is always very simple and clear cut. For me it was to lay it all out for my clients of this is the next step that we have to take before we can move forward with anything else. They may or may not like it, but it is essential to them achieving their goal. When I am focused on being professional I am also able to communicate more clearly and take out the personal (read wishy washy and insecure) verbiage.
This questions applies to every aspect of your business.
Is business slow? What is the professional thing to do? Try calling some clients you haven’t talked to in a while to reconnect or follow up on that lead that you let fall through the cracks.
Feeling unsure about how your skills stack up? What is the professional thing to do? Get out there and research your market. Enroll in a class
Asking yourself what the professional thing to do is in any given situation is a fantastic filter question that will instantly snap you back to action mode. Give it a try today.
1 Comments
Leave a Comment
Signup to receive Nicole's blog posts via email weekly:
Other Posts
What If Everything is An Experiment?
I’ll admit it, I’m not great at asking for help. Even when I know I need it. There are a variety of reason I struggle with asking: I’m busy and taking a step back to asses what I can outsource feels like one more task I don’t have time for. The task is something I’m…
Read More
Don’t Believe The Hype
Does the market make you want to hide out? I’ve had SEVERAL calls from agents recently with clients that are putting them through the wringer. Whether it’s sellers not accepting offers, buyers taking forever to make decisions, or clients doing the exact opposite of what you thought they were going to do – managing your…
Read More
The #1 Reason Clients Don’t Choose You
Don Miguel Ruiz said it best in his book – The 4 Agreements: Don’t Make Assumptions Find the courage to ask questions Communicate with others as clearly as you can This one agreement can completely transform your life Beautifully said. Assumptions are the #1 reason your clients don’t choose you. As agents we assume many…
Read More
Letter to My Younger Self
Today is my birthday. For me, birthdays are a beautiful mix of celebration, anticipation and reflection. This post is dedicated to reflections. Things I wish I could tell my younger self. Imposter syndrome is normal! You’ve spent so much time doubting yourself. Feeling like everyone else knows what they are doing while you’re still trying…
Read More
Managing the Adrenaline / Emotional Roller Coaster of Real Estate
Closings, getting mutual on a contract, receiving a referral – there are lots of wins in real estate. Each one brings a shot of adrenaline that feels amazing. However, those moments are often short lived, with a lot of space in between. If you aren’t careful that space can fill with self doubt, insecurity or…
Read More
Why Proving Yourself Is A Bad Idea
I competed on a listing this week that I didn’t get. It was a great one too – awesome house, great clients. It was one I really wanted. When I got done pouting I took a few minutes to ask myself, ‘where did it go wrong’? Our first appointment was amazing! The second one, not…
Read More
The Secret To Success: How Awareness Transforms Everything
‘The first step towards change is awareness. The second step is acceptance. Let us not look back in anger, nor forward in fear, but around in awareness.’ – Source Unknown Last week focused on letting go of the need to play catch up. The only thing that matters is focusing on the present moment. The…
Read More
Don’t Try To Catch Up – Just Start Where You Are
I’ve spent the last few days in Virginia at my favorite real estate conference, Genuine Hustle, where I had the honor of presenting a session on asking powerful questions. It’s the most authentic, vulnerable, supportive and all around amazing group of agents that I’ve ever spent time with. They haven’t released the location or dates…
Read More
This Phone Call Brings In The Most Referrals
Can calls really translate into referrals? Are some more effective than others? When we work with clients it’s easy to go into ‘get it done’ mode. We focus on getting from contract to closing as quickly and smoothly as possible. And to be fair, that’s a big part of what our clients hire us to…
Read More
What if EVERYTHING is Working Out For You?
What happens when you have a ‘set back’ ? Does it send you into a tail spin of fear and insecurity? Do you brush it off and move on? Or – Do you view it as confirmation that you ARE on the right path, realize it wasn’t the right opportunity or situation for you, and…
Read More
This is so true in our business too. We are noticing that we are only sometimes over- the- top- amazing and other times simply just amazing. We started trouble shooting this issue. We first started by trying to blame the weather. That may be true but there’s more. We tried blaming the other professionals involved then the individual clients. Yes, these outside sources can be roadblocks to our success but now we realize it’s us. WE need to take charge and guide the client to get exactly what we need to rock the client experience instead of being friends with them too.
It’s good to hear other people are learning these same lessons as us. We deserve gold stars for this. Maybe I’ll go for a new pair of shoes instead. I’ll call them my “take charge” shoes (kinda like big boy pants but way more mature. 😉