I have been watching the History Channel’s series on the 7 Deadly Sins, and it got me to thinking about real estate. (I am pretty good at linking just about anything to real estate…) I realized that there are many ways that these 7 deadly sins creep into MY life, and I am sure there are times that they creep into ALL of our lives.
Also, I’m sure there are about 10 more real estate-specific deadly sins, but today I’m just touching on the traditional 7.
1. Pride
Real Estate pride the overtly excessive belief in one’s own abilities (or refusal to notice weaknesses) that leads to the interference of the agent’s own business and eventually to the harm of their clients.
Avoid real estate pride, by:
- Asking for help when you need it
- Not taking listings outside of your expertise (commercial, out-of-area, short sales, etc. …)
- Not representing Buyers who have needs that you cannot meet (investors, if you are not investor-savvy, relocating clients, if you do not understand the relocation process…)
In a real estate market that is shifting, it may be tempting to take on real estate deals that you have no right to take on. Please do not put your business nor your clients’ at risk because of real estate pride.
2. Greed
Real Estate greed is the intense desire for material gain at any cost. Real Estate greed is what helped us edge into the mortgage mess that we are now in. Some lenders made impossible loans. Some real estate agents pushed expensive homes. Some home home buyers CHOSE these homes and loans irregardless of the reality of their situations.
Real estate greed (or any kind of professional greed) is also what causes disruptions in our family and personal lives.
Avoid real estate greed, by always putting the best interests of your clients FIRST and remembering that you are a wife/husband/mom/dad/sister/brother/daughter/son/friend BEFORE you are a real estate agent. Remember – Relationships are Key to Success.
3. Gluttony
Real Estate gluttony is a lot like real estate greed, but is what happens when we are immersed in the spoils of our greed. We continually upgrade our lives past the point of usefulness. Gluttony is what has caused hundreds (if not thousands) of real estate agents and companies to go belly-up when the economy shifted.
Avoid real estate gluttony, by living within your means. Personally, Derek and I are subscribers to the Dave Ramsey school of thought and live to have our personal and business lives completely debt-free. This is one of the largest contributors to our success regardless of the economy. This may not be YOUR idea of living within your means, but finding a financial role model is one of the best ways to be glutton-free.
4. Lust
Real Estate lust is when we put the the pleasures of real estate above the business of real estate. I love social media as much as the next guy, but we CANNOT fool ourselves into believing that social media will resurrect a failing business.
“If you have a crappy business, a blog isn’t going to help.” – Linda Davis
No amount of Twitter updates or sheep throwing will revive a dying business no matter HOW witty you are.
Avoid real estate lust by GOING OUT AND BEING A REAL ESTATE AGENT IRL.
5. Envy
Real Estate envy runs rampant in the real estate world. We see it when agents make snide, unfounded stabs at other (more successful) agents around the copy machine. We see it when real estate agents go out of their way to destroy another (more successful) agent’s online livelihood by going after their online reputation.
Avoid real estate envy by finding what it is you admire about successful agents and planting those seeds in your OWN life … making yourself a better person.
6. Sloth
Real Estate sloth is the avoidance of the actual WORK that it takes to be a successful real estate agent in this (or any other) market. Real estate sloth is seen by the agents who are constantly complaining, but refuse to do anything different or better … or anything at all, for that matter to make their businesses grow and prosper.
Avoid real estate sloth by making yourself uncomfortable. What you are “used to” is no longer working. Reconsider how your effectively website/blog is laid out. Pay for traffic to your website if you can’t rank organically. CALL the people who register on your website and ask how you can help them narrow down their search (gasp!). Knock on the doors of the homes in the neighborhood that you want to work and offer them something valuable – your area expertise (double gasp!). Lead generate for 3 hours every morning – no exceptions (gasp! gasp! faint …).
7. Wrath
Real Estate wrath is when real estate agents opt for anger instead of understanding. We yell at the commenter who disagrees with us on our blog. We yell at the other agent for bringing a “low ball” offer. We yell at the inspector for killing the deal. We yell at the lender for changing the loan program last minute…
This economy can bring out the worst in all of us, but filling your business with anger will make you a difficult person to work with AND a difficult person to be around, in general.
Avoid real estate wrath by making a concerted effort to be the calming and understanding force behind your business. You will be surprised at how much power your “understanding” can yeild over even the hardest situations.
Of course, some of these apply (and do not apply) in different facets and strengths in our businesses. Avoiding the 7 deadly sins of real estate will both better our businesses AND better ourselves.
Debra Sinick
January 9, 2009 at 12:16 pm
Marian,
I laughed out loud when you said you could relate anything to real estate. I’ve said the very same thing. My brother sent me an article from The New York Times about the Seattle Mariners and suggested I post something about it on my blog. I told him it was no problem for me to develop the connection between the Mariners and real estate. (Easy, unfortunately, because both are having problems.)
Regarding your comment that Realtors need to get out of their comfort zone, I couldn’t agree more. I see a lot of great Realtors who are digging their heads in the sand and waiting. Waiting for what? They’re not willing to do things differently because they’re afraid of change. It’s sad, but this type of Realtor may go the way of the dinosaur. I think Realtors needs to realize real estate is not the only industry that’s changing. Change is everywhere and many people and industries are affected. It’s life and we all need to deal with it.
Marvin Jensen
January 9, 2009 at 12:32 pm
Mariana,
All good ideas for a successful business.
Mariana
January 9, 2009 at 12:33 pm
Debra – I remember when people would say, “Technology will replace real estate agents.” That is wrong. “Real Estate Agents who use Technology will replace real estate agents.”
Embracing the changes that we need to make will make us ALL more successful.
Debra Sinick
January 9, 2009 at 12:33 pm
Oops, I left the “a” off your name. Sorry
Mariana
January 9, 2009 at 12:35 pm
Marvin – Thank you. I am sure there are about a dozen-hundreds of other ideas that could be widely applied …
Missy Caulk
January 9, 2009 at 12:42 pm
Great analogy, Mariana.
I think if people applied these 7 deadly sins with their business it would improve.
I loved Linda’s quote, the best of the conference.
Chris Shouse
January 9, 2009 at 2:06 pm
Excellent post as usual Mariana andso very true. I keep hoping I can keep up with all of the technology so I can stay on top of my game.
Mana Tulberg
January 9, 2009 at 11:21 pm
Mariana, I’ve been watching the same series and enjoying them tremendously. However, I have to say I really enjoyed your version of the 7 deadly sins.
Esko
January 10, 2009 at 12:13 am
Mariana,
It’s a while since I last saw this list, but it’s a good reminder. Controlling pride today is rather important as the real estate and mortgage markets continually adjust, sometimes very abruptly. It’s better to admit that you don’t know something than give wrong advise.
Chris Howard
January 11, 2009 at 5:21 pm
Mariana
I thought this post was right on point. As realtors we need to stay focused on the job at hand. Worrying about what others are doing is a way of avoiding the work we need to do.
Where does the QR Code lead me? I don’t have the software in my phone.
Mariana
January 12, 2009 at 8:43 pm
Missy – Linda had the best quote!
Chris – Thanks!
Mana – It is a cool series…
Esko – Pride can be worse than everything.
Chris – FOCUS! I always need more of that.
Paula Henry
January 14, 2009 at 5:04 am
Mariana – Applicable to every area of our lives!
At least a few good reasons to stay out of the office and away from the gossip. In our current market, at least one of these have been the death of a real estate agent.
Pride is remarkably high on the list; agents so sure they can keep doing the same things they always have and get the same results, because their pride won’t let them change. I can’t tell you the number of people who are languishng in this business and will not join a team because they have to give up their name.