What I Learned As a Realtor from Steve Jobs
The death of Steve Jobs has dominated the news the last 12 hours, and his life and death have effected us all in different ways.
Besides the obvious inventions and contributions he made to society, it was his character and purpose that has effected me the most. Steve was the consummate entrepreneur and business man we know that. But, what was the driving forces in his life, that we can learn from as REALTORS ?
This morning I was reading a post by Walt Mossberg from the WSJ online reflected on his time with Steve. I then went back and read his famous speech from 2005 at he gave the graduating seniors at Stanford University. Throughout my years as a REALTOR I have watched the YouTube video and read his speech, and I have always come away inspired and encouraged to be all I can be.
Here are a few of my take ways from Steve Jobs life that I believe with all my heart are critical to our success or failure as REALTORS.
Characters for Realtors/TEAM Leaders
- He hired and fired
- He inspired
- He took risks
- He insisted on quality
- He set goals
- He ran around walls, under walls but didn’t let the walls stop him.
- He lived his passion
- He connected the dots
- He lived every day as if it was his last.
- He was rejected.
- He failed and got back up and continued to pursue the thing he loved.
- He didn’t waste time living someone else’s life.
Perhaps the most profound thing I have heard Steve say, in his Stanford graduation speech was,
“Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don’t lose faith. I’m convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You’ve got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don’t settle.”
When death invades our life by the loss of love ones, or those we admire from afar it causes us to reflect on our own life and what is important to us.
Questions to ask yourself?
- Do I love what I do, or am I just gritting it out in a tough market?
- Am I going for quality in serving my buyers and sellers or just going for the deal?
- Am I taking the risks necessary to grow my business or just hanging on for “better days ahead?”
- When you fail at a transaction or with a certain listing or buyer are you getting back up?
- Are you hiring the right people or are if not are you afraid to fire them and move on to someone who better fits your vision?
- When you come to a wall in negotiating are you beating your head against it or finding a way through it, or around it?
- Are you living someone else’s passion or your own?
Death is the common denominator we all face, and even though our life here on earth is limited. It is our life for a few short years, and we must live it with a passion for what we do and the relationships we have and make. That still small voice that is inside of all of us beckons us to live our passion and calling and live it to the fullest.
Steve, you will be missed by many for the gadgets you invented and the tools you provided to make our life as REALTORS easier; but most of all because you lived your life with passion and conviction and left us with the courage to live ours to the fullest.
To infinity and beyond, rest in peace Steve Jobs!
Whitney Pannell
October 7, 2011 at 12:30 pm
Sharing this on G+ now Missy! In order to be a Realtor you have truly got to love it! You can't just love houses , because it's not about houses , it's about people.
Jeff Brown
October 8, 2011 at 11:19 am
Well said, Missy.