A Champion realizes it's not what happens but how they react to it that counts. It's not the absence of challenges, struggles, and slumps that makes top level Agents more successful. It's how they approach them mentally and move through them that separates these Agents from the crowd.

When I speak, I often ask groups if they think that an Agent who sells 100 homes a year has more slumps, challenges, struggles, problems, and distractions. Most Agents say that the large production Agent has fewer, not more. The truth is these Agents have more of the above, not fewer. They usually have more staff, which automatically qualifies as more problems. They have more exposure to problems because they are doing more transactions. It increases the number of times they have to work with challenging co-op Agents, difficult sellers, and problem transactions.

The real secret to their success is they let it affect their performance or mindset for a shorter span of time than other Agents do. Let me share an example. You lose a listing you thought you had in the bag. How long does it affect your personal performance? Does it affect your desire and motivation to prospect and do lead follow-up? Does it make you hesitant, cautious, and a meeker closer with the next prospect? Does it wipe you out emotionally for a few days? I frequently see low performing Agents get wiped out for the rest of the day or even the rest of the week when hit by a negative occurrence like this. A Champion would not let that happen. They would be disappointed for sure. They wouldn't let that disappointment control the rest of their day, though. In fact, they wouldn't let it control the rest of their hour.

A Champion doesn't let their feelings and reactions determine whether they will be successful or not. They will execute the fundamentals even when they don't feel like doing them. That is the mark of a Champion. The reaction is more important than the situation.

"Control your reaction; you have a chance. Don't control it; you have no chance." -- Dirk Zeller.

Published: November 20, 2009

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Dirk Zeller is a sought out speaker, celebrated author and CEO of Real Estate Champions. His company trains more than 350,000 Agents worldwide each year through live events, online training, self-study programs, and newsletters. The Real Estate community has embraced and praised his six best-selling books; Your First Year in Real Estate, Success as a Real Estate Agent for Dummies®, The Champion Real Estate Agent, The Champion Real Estate Team, Telephone Sales for Dummies®, Successful Time Management for Dummies®, and over 300 articles in print. To learn more regarding this article, please visit www.realestatechampions.com.