Entering LUFKIN, TEXAS

I have been in the title business, in Dallas, Texas for the past twenty-eight years. As anyone in the Real Estate industry knows, the title business is very stressful. What I didn't realize is that a lot of that stress is self-induced and not really necessary or even desirable. It is simply the way we choose to live and conduct our businesses.

That was the lesson I learned when I expanded my Dallas business to include part ownership of a small title company in Lufkin, Texas. I knew there would probably be some differences in the way business had been run and the way it would be run once I began making regular visits. At a time when many people of my age and experience are slowing down, I started to travel 370 miles a week, going from one town to another.

Lufkin, Texas is a small community located in the piney woods of East Texas. Lufkin has a population of about 50,000 people. Dallas, of course, is in the millions. The contrast was great.

I was curious when I first started this adventure in small town transactions how the real estate agents work. I wondered if they were like the Dallas agents I work with - competitive and aggressive. What I found surprised me, although it shouldn't have. I found that the Lufkin agents are very laid back compared to the big city. They have found a way to be competitive without being back stabbers. I found a real sense of caring about their clients, and not just an interest in bringing home a commission check. They spend so much more time with the customers than we do in Dallas. They form a friendship with them. They are dealing in smaller transactions, and yet, they seem to take the time to try and educate their buyers and sellers. And, this has impressed me most - they retain a relationship with the customer after the transaction has closed.

I noticed a difference in the way the closers are treated, too. The agents and closers and the closers' administrative assistants become friends. When a transaction is completed, the agents send the title company flowers, etc. to say thank you. That is unheard of in Dallas. The whole transaction is relaxed, and no one feels they are rushed or inconvenienced in any way. It's just really a different pace in a small town.

Customers leave the title company feeling they have found a new friend. The closer has spent enough time with the buyers and sellers and agents, and they feel comfortable in what they have just signed. They are laughing, relaxed, excited. They leave with a really good feeling.

By contrast, the Dallas agents are so aggressive. Half the time they have had words with the other agents on the transaction. The buyer hates the seller and the agents hate each other. It is a charged atmosphere that you could cut with a knife.

In Dallas we are always in such a hurry, we just get the people in and out. They leave most of the time wondering: "What on earth did I just sign?" Most of the time they don't even remember their closer's name.

I kept thinking, if we would just slow down, and start remembering how we felt when we bought our first home... What were we afraid of? What would have eased our fears? We needed then what clients need now - someone to take the time to explain things to us.

As I made these observations, my goals changed. No longer was I interested in how to change the Lufkin office. I started thinking about how I could apply their principals in the larger and faster city of Dallas.

In Dallas, we routinely live with stress, not only in how we make money, but with trying to manage our time. We sometimes forget the importance of our jobs. I know at times in closings, I forget how excited, scared, and nervous the buyers and sellers are. I know that I don't always take the time to explain everything. I rationalize that people buy and sell property every day and that the documents are all alike. It's a piece of cake - but for me, not for the buyers and sellers.

If I were to apply the East Texas principles to my job, I would spend more time with the buyers and sellers. I would be more enthusiastic and try to make them feel more at ease. I would make them feel important. If I did that, do you think they would remember me? Maybe I could make a difference....

All of these thoughts come back to me each week as I travel back and forth between Dallas and Lufkin. Then it dawned on me - I went to Lufkin to teach them all the big city ways which included the fast pace to which I was accustomed. The big surprise was what they taught me. They taught me to care more, to slow down. To really stop and smell the roses along life's path and to make a difference. I love the people, the way they do business, the way they care and the slower pace they walk. I have learned so much from them.

I am truly grateful for my experience, because now, I get up in the mornings wanting to go to work. I want to make a difference in someone's life, and I want people to remember me as someone who really cares.

I am lucky. I get rejuvenated each week, as I travel back and forth, observing the kinder, gentler behavior that goes on in the Lufkin office. The benefits have been many. I feel more successful, but not just in my title or in the money in my bank account. I feel more successful because I feel I am making a difference.

And, I feel less stress.

Published: June 4, 1999

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Editor's Note: This article reflects the opinions of Sally B. Ross only and not necessarily the views of this or any other publication, organization or Website owner.