Okay, let's get one thing out and on the table now. I am a real estate educator and have a vested interest in ongoing training or real estate professionals. That's the way I pay those nasty Visa bills that keep showing up in my mailbox, Wow, I feel better already having made that searing confession. So, now that I am "outed," perhaps you will be able to read this article and not be wondering what my motives are.

I am as selfish about training as one given my chosen profession can be. And, to make matters worse, I am a teacher by degree. In case you've missed the point, I believe in education and would believe in it even if I decided to never train another real estate agent as long as I lived.

That's what is prompting me to write this article. Agents are in danger of losing their advantages in their marketplace. Plain and simple. Lately, in terms of difficulty, next to getting Bill Gates to part with any of his money, getting agents in for skill-improvement training is second to none. Oh sure, I have heard all the excuses imaginable. Here are just a few of the most common:

• "Are you crazy? I am so busy I have no time for anything else."
• "Talk to me about training when the market slows down."
• "My broker says he/she is not doing training at this time. We're all too busy to come to any meetings."
• "I can't get my agents to attend training sessions. They don't feel they need it."

I could probably go on and on. The message is the same everywhere. We're too busy. On the surface that may seem like a plausible excuse. After all, the market has been good. Some folks are making great money, and all is well in the world of real estate. Or is it? Let's look at a few facts.

If you were to go out and get a real estate license today, join a company and begin doing business, the sad probability is that about 65% of you would be out of the business within one year. Another chunk would be gone the next year. Why? Lack of skills. The skills to handle objections, overcome stalls and develop new business opportunities - three things no real estate school in the land teaches you.

There is another group of folks out there who have been in the business for perhaps up to five years. While they have five years under their belts, many have been doing the same first year five times over; never getting to the next level. Why? They are not effective at overcoming objections and stalls and prospecting for new business.

See a pattern here? It's not rocket science. It's sales. The two are vastly different, yet share one thing in common -the need to hone one's skills to stay current and vital.

Another rather shocking truth - ninety-seven percent of every dollar earned in real estate today is earned by three percent of the agents. That's both the good news and the bad news. The good part is that there is a lot of money to go around. The bad news is that it is not going to go around unless agents wake up and smell the transactions.

The definition of insanity is doing things the same way day in and day out and expecting a different result. If you are working very hard, have no balance, and are feeling like this can't possibly be your actual life, you need to change the way you are doing business.

See, I believe that if you only want to earn $30,000 a year in real estate, then get really good at doing business, earn the $30,000 in the first quarter and take the rest of the year off! The only way you can do that is to learn things you obviously don't know. That means enhancing your skills through, you guessed it, training.

There is an old adage that I believe says it all. If you don't prospect when you're busy, you won't be. The same goes for training. While you are sitting around lamenting that there just aren't enough hours in the day to get it all done, someone else is out there doing it.

For the real estate professional that someone else may be a something else. You guessed it, the Internet. The savvy shopper of the millennium knows that the Net is a great source of information and that one can virtually purchase a home on line, or so they think. Without training on how to use the Net to your advantage, the agent who is too busy to learn new technology skills will undoubtedly have lots of time on their hands, in due time.

The woodchopper who doesn't sharpen his axe occasionally will have little wood. The doctor who stops learning new techniques for curing illnesses will have few patients. And the agent who is too busy to enhance their skills and learn to handle the challenges of the savvy listers and sellers of today, will be listless (not to mention broke!)

Training is not a one-time thing. It's an ongoing process that should never be interrupted. I think fondly of every top producer that I have ever had the good fortune to train. They have one thing in common where training is concerned. They take class after class, and all say that if they learn just one new great thing in each class, it's worth it. That's the attitude that breeds success. Never stop learning.

Here's what I would recommend to anyone reading this who wants to stay in this business and thrive. When a training class comes along, regardless if it's CE approved, paid by the broker or an hour drive from home, TAKE IT. You will gain from every experience and that is what it needed to make it in this business.

Maybe you'll earn one extra commission as a result of the training or make one connection with another agent that will bear fruit in the future. Who knows? However, anything works and nothing doesn't. Keep learning, keep growing, keep prospering and have a better life as a result.

Published: July 6, 1999

Use of this article without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws.

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

Marylyn B. Schwartz, CSP, is a noted expert in real estate and corporate sales training, team development, customer care and diversity issues. She is president of TEAMWEAVERS and a trainer for Leader's Choice, the number one real estate sales training program in North America. Marylyn is also an author and Business/Life Coach. Contact her at , or visit her website at teamweavers.com.