When I first began coaching real estate agents full-time about 4 1/2 years ago I thought that I would have an incredible opportunity to work with mediocre agents and transform them into top-producing agents. After all, we both know that there are many more mediocre agents out there than there are top-producing agents. But after I began marketing myself to real estate agents and companies I noticed something quite unexpected---it was the agents who were already the top producers who were hiring me to coach them!

After I began to recognize this I stepped aside and thought about it for a moment. Why, with so much opportunity out there for them to improve their business, were the mediocre real estate agents not interested in working with a coach and yet the top producers at the same time were extremely excited about the opportunity to do so?

Then it finally hit me. For the top-producing agents to have become as successful as they are they have constantly been willing to embrace change, try new approaches, and continually reinvent themselves along their path to incredible success in their real estate sales careers.

Mediocre agents, on the other hand, have fallen into a certain predictable routine in their real estate business and they are simply not very motivated to make changes to that routine. Yes, they would love to make big money---who wouldn't love to make big money? But in the end when all is said and done the mediocre agents would rather have the comfort of the day-to-day routine that they have established in their business than embrace change and try something new. That's why they continue to be mediocre.

In real estate sales, the top-producing agents are where they are because they want it more. They are simply much hungrier than the mediocre agents are for success in their career. Now of course the mediocre agents would love to achieve the same success as the top-producing agents, but they insist on doing so completely on their own terms. They don't need any help, guidance or new ideas. They'll figure it out on their own, thank you. And in their own mind, they know exactly what they are doing and always think that they are just a few months away from turning their entire career around.

What they don't recognize is that you can't turn your career around while working the same game plan that has always produced mediocre results. And trying to work harder at the same game plan is not going to do it either.

Whether you're a top-producing agent, a mediocre agent, or somewhere in-between recognize that the sum total of everything you know about success in real estate has gotten you to exactly where you are right now in your career. If you really knew what it took to become more successful you'd have already done it by now. It takes new learning and a new game plan to achieve the next level of success that you want.

When you're truly ready to become more successful in your real estate career, don't go it alone. This is one of the biggest traps that real estate agents fall into. When you're ready to take your production to the next level find someone who will guide you and show you the way to get there fast.

Recently I heard business consultant and motivational speaker Brian Tracy say that the best way to achieve the success that you want is to find someone who knows how to get you there and follow their direction.

Anything other than this will be more aggravating, painstaking, and will definitely take you much more time.

Published: May 19, 2003

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Jim Gillespie, Ph.D., is America's Premier Real Estate Coach℠. He has over 20 years of experience in real estate sales and is a past president of three different real estate companies. His FREE real estate E-newsletter with tips and creative ideas to help agents make more money is now read by over 35,000 agents nationwide. You can subscribe to his FREE E-newsletter by visiting RealEstateSalesCoach.com or contact him at Jim@RealEstateSalesCoach.com.