Loyalty or Latté

As we move forward into 2009, the question comes to mind – are you loyal to the business, your clients, your training, your efforts, yourself and your company or are you just here for a cup of latté?

With the business, are you focused on your plan and goals? Are you working your Daily Accountability Sheets to accomplish your action plan to reach your goals? Are you holding your team and yourself accountable to do what it takes to be successful in the business or are you putting out fires and being reactive? Until you put your activities on paper and prioritize them – you will do what is put in front of you or react to the call you have received. We all have the same amount of time in the day – it is how we use it that differentiates the successful people from those who just hold a license. Be loyal to your business.

How do you treat your clients? Are you listening to what they are saying so you can give them the right advice when buying or selling real estate, to save them time and to be able to represent them to the best of your ability? In the past, agents were able to sit back and take orders for homes and didn’t take the time to listen or give the right advice – just do this to get the house. People’s production has dropped in proportion to their inability to take orders, listen and give the right advice. Where is your loyalty? Are you here for a latté or will you change your philosophy and become loyal to your clients? Be loyal to your clients.

In order to move up the ladder of success with your business you need to understand the market, the processes, trends, and hear what the buzz is in the business. In order to do this, get out of your home offices and hit the streets, the office, seminars, real estate exchanges, and come to trainings. Your commitment to your education is critical to your business and the referrals that follow. Be loyal to your education!

Are your efforts focused and efficient? Are you making the most of your time and efforts or are you waiting for things to happen? Develop systems to increase your efficiency and to accomplish more. Make to do lists and prioritize the items so you can achieve more as well as give yourself more direction to your business. Be loyal your efforts.

Are you playing the blame game? If you are, stop. You are responsible for your business – not the office, not the broker, not the market, not the economy, it’s you. There is business happening – you’ve got to put the thought and effort into making it happen for you. Develop your niche or find ones that are working and fold them into your business plan. Are you positive and upbeat? If not, choose to change your attitude. To paraphrase what Zig Ziglar says, “There is no place in our office for stinking thinking!” Are you intentional about your personal development? Read, listen to tapes, journal – do something to better yourself. Are you leading a balanced life? Schedule time for all areas of your life and stick to it to recharge your “battery”. Are you rewarding yourself for your efforts and achievements? You have to have a reward system for yourself to keep yourself motivated and to stay focused. Get planning for yourself development and start seeing results. Be loyal to yourself.

Are you giving back to your company? If not, why not? Do you believe in your company’s philosophy and direction? If not, why not? Do you participate in company functions? If not, why not? Do you attend trainings and suggest new ones? If not, why not? Do you help recruit top agents to the office? If not, why not? Are you loyal to your company or are you blaming your company for your level of production? My suggestion is to get engaged with your company. Don’t sit back and complain. Get involved and help make things happen. We are looking to you for your help. We are asking you to pass the name and number of one good agent you encounter a month to us to help us grow – the right way. We want to improve our systems – if you are encountering issues with the company, let us know so we can address them. If we don’t know something is wrong – we can’t resolve them for you. We are looking for your feedback to help us all grow. As you know, we are loyal to you and your business – be loyal to us and give back. It will pay dividends, I assure you.

It is time to wake up and smell the latté and realize the more loyal you become to what was written above, the more you will attain the result you are looking for in this business otherwise go pour yourself a latté at another company. Get it? Got it? Good!