Adam Hergenrother is the founder and CEO of Livian. He believes that business is nothing but a conduit for personal growth and embraces the company’s vision to Love How You Live. When he’s not leading and growing his organizations, you can find Adam either in the mountains or out in nature with his wife and three children.
We recently had hundreds of Livian team members come together in Vermont for our annual company Advance. We enjoyed three packed days of leadership training, axe throwing, real estate industry updates, an ’80s dance party, fireside chats with military heroes, panels about sales strategies, social media, and personal growth, and of course, we talked about the downturn, and how to persevere.
So, I figured I would share with you what I shared with our real estate agents, employees and leaders from around the country.
If we want to thrive, and not just survive, over the next few months or even years, then we have to face the fact that the market we experienced for the past two or so years is not something that many of us will see again in our careers.
And that’s OK. Remember, the market doesn’t determine your outcome; it only determines your strategy.
Sure, your strategy will have to change as we experience a downturn, but that can open up a whole new set of opportunities, growth, and a new way of doing business that will help you succeed long-term, no matter what the market does.
The path is in the math
When faced with uncertainty, get clear on what you can control. For real estate professionals, the path is in the math. Let’s look at the numbers.
Let’s say that you work 48 weeks out of the year (assuming you take four weeks of vacation or personal time). If you conduct two appointments per week, that’s 96 appointments per year.
At a 75 percent conversion rate, you’re looking at 72 buyer or seller agreements. If you convert 70 percent of those, that is 50 pendings per year.
Assuming a 90 percent close rate, you’re doing 45 deals a year (and far outpacing the average real estate agent). If your average sales price is $330,000, at 45 deals, you’re looking at $15 million in sales volume or $225,000 in your pocket.
Know your numbers:
- What are your conversion rates?
- What is your average sales price?
- Are you doing more or less appointments per week?
Do the math and you will have the exact path to follow to achieve success.
Yes, it may be harder than before. You’re likely going to need a different level of activity. But the numbers don’t lie.
Direct yourself toward a different level of activity to get a different result
The market is different. You’re probably not getting 30 offers on every home at $100,000 over asking price. The days on market are creeping up. Sellers are deciding to stay put. And that’s fine.
Right now, you are going to direct yourself toward a different level of activity to get results. Instead of making five phone calls, you may need to make 50.
Instead of holding one open house and getting an offer that day, you may be holding an open house three or more weekends in a row for the same property.
Instead of working with new homebuyers, who are within your comfort zone, you may need to branch out and start mastering the art of working with institutional buyers.
If you want a different result (heck, if you even want the same result as you had in years past), then right now, you’re going to need a different level of activity.
Make peace with it. Understand that there will be more discipline and focus required of you right now. Get clear on the activities you know will pay off, and then get to work.
The future of work is personal leadership
If you want to thrive in today’s and tomorrow’s real estate market, then it will be all about focusing on your personal leadership. Yes, this means personal growth, emotional intelligence and a purposeful morning routine are always part of the equation of personal leadership.
But, I want to talk about a few other concepts that will be imperative during the downturn:
Resilience
Resilience is the ability to bounce “back” and beyond when faced with adversity. Buyers backed out of their contact at the last minute? Sellers decided to wait until after the holidays? A co-listing agent told your client the wrong information?
You need resilience to bounce forward from each of these potential setbacks. Start developing your resilience muscles now, and it will be that much easier when the time comes to use them.
Growth mindset
People with a growth mindset believe that their skills and intelligence can be improved with effort and persistence. They embrace challenges, persist through obstacles, learn from criticism, and seek out inspiration in others’ success.
Real estate professionals must be learning-based and growth-minded to be able to keep up in today’s world. Never stop learning and improving your real estate skills.
Mental agility and cognitive flexibility
Mental agility and cognitive flexibility go hand-in-hand. Mental agility is the ability to be flexible when responding to events and being able to move quickly between two different ideas.
Cognitive flexibility is the ability to think about multiple concepts simultaneously.
Both of these are a must for real estate professionals. As a problem-solver, you are constantly weighing the pros and cons of various scenarios, always seeking to make the best decision for your clients. And because we’re in the business of people, developing a flexible mindset is key.
The bottom line, being able to lead yourself first before you work on leading your clients, employees, or colleagues will keep you one step ahead.
Do you want to persevere through the downtown? Focus on what you can control: your personal leadership, the level of activities you do each day, and the model or formula you follow.
If you steer clear of distractions, you will come out on the other side of the downturn in an even better position than you were before.
Adam Hergenrother is the founder and CEO of Livian, the author of The Founder & The Force Multiplier, and the host of the podcast, Business Meets Spirituality. Learn more about Adam’s companies and culture here.
