One of the realities of life is impermanence. And yet, people act as if their current state of circumstances will never change, when of course, they inevitably do.
Sadly, you can find stories of suicide in any local paper – people overwhelmed by their current set of financial circumstances…or bullying at school….or their loss of love. But as we all know, financial fortunes can change seemingly overnight, high school bullies fade into a memory, and you meet your love in a coffee shop on a normal random morning.
The Economic Change
As our economy changed over the last couple of years, many of us have struggled with this reality of impermanence. Our burgeoning home equity, our expanding 401k’s, our profitable and growing business felt so good. And while we know intellectually that all economies have a curve, and that we were likely at the top of that curve, many of us believed that it would be the ‘soft landing’ that was mentioned by economists at CAR, the financial world, and even leading government.
I’m not speaking for everyone. Some moved their investments to commodities or cash. Some sold their real estate investments and rented. Some planned for the downturn in their real estate practices. But from what I’m seeing locally – that’s unfortunately a significant minority of the population.
Lessons From My Youth
One of the early lessons of impermanence came from my father via his after dinner lectures. He used to say to me that nothing was guaranteed in a marriage. One might divorce, one might be an early widow and it was my responsibility to own some ability to care for myself. Hence, my real estate career.
Fortunately, I married a man I adore. And yet, my father was right in some ways; you never know when circumstances may change. I did anticipate a downturn in my residential real estate business. What I didn’t plan for was the news we got last January – my husband, in commercial development and construction, was laid off. The check that simply appeared in our bank account every two weeks over the past 6 years felt…well….permanent. My real estate business immediately took on an entirely new level of importance in our home.
Let’s Look at Your Business
My reason for bringing this to your attention is that while circumstances do change, we often do not change our desire for a sense of permanence. Many of us simply go into another set of circumstances believing THIS is the new forever. So let’s examine how this in your business.
Your Business Before The Changing Market
- Did you find that you were too heavily focused on one sector of the market – FSBO’s, first time buyers, or ‘B’ paper loans – that diminished or simply went away?
- Did you find that you have been too reliant on one form of marketing – newspaper ads, real estate magazines, expensive farming methods – that were no longer as effective?
- Did you create enough of a safety net for a shift in economic conditions?
What Have You Learned
The bigger questions are really about what you have learned. Are you allowing yourself to believe that THIS set of circumstances is permanent OR are you making the long term plan for the next change?
- Do you have systems that are diverse? If you are having success as an REO agent, an ‘expired listing specialist’, or a ‘short sale specialist’, are you still working your other systems?
- Have you thought about the areas of expansion that you can capitalize on when the market begins to recover, such as FSBO’s or farming?
- Most importantly, if one of your most profitable systems went away tomorrow – could you still sustain your business and your life?
The Sphere of Influence Caution
If you are thinking, ‘Most of my business is from my sphere of influence; I don’t have to worry,’ – be careful. I’ve seen it with colleagues – the dissolution of a marriage, a disagreement with a friend that is a ‘connector’, can change a social situation overnight. Again, even a business heavy with sphere of influence revenue, should not be considered ‘permanent’.
The Moral
I wonder if we fool ourselves into believing our current state is permanent – if only to believe that WE are permanent. At it’s core, it’s a denial of our mortality….but I realize I’m getting a bit too deep here.
The Moral – just check your damn systems people! Be diverse. Be flexible. Live in the now – just don’t be married to it.
LesleyLambert
June 9, 2009 at 11:52 am
I learned these lessons from my mother who was my first broker. If you are going to stay in this business more than “one season” you need to learn how to diversify and roll with the changing tides!
Matt Stigliano
June 9, 2009 at 11:59 am
Linsey – This is a great reminder for anyone – real estate or otherwise. I too thought magical things happened when my bank account always expanded every few months thanks to ever increasing record sales. I was making a bigger fortune each and every year. In that time, we began thinking about a new record. Then the lawsuits started to pile up. They were all frivolous, but they were all serious. We had to fight them. We won some, we lost some. Insurance carrier dropped us. We couldn’t find new insurance. When we finally did it came at a price and with so many restrictions that we had to change our entire stage show – what made us famous in the first place. All that took its toll as we got around to recording.
The process began to drag on and we wound up taking nearly five years to finish the record and get it released. Not all of those five years were spent recording and mixing though, most of it was spent fighting for copyrights, lawsuits, mistakes made by record companies (forgetting to get clearance for two samples on the record forced the destruction of over 100,000 records and a redesign of all the artwork). It was a lot of coincidences piled up on top of each other.
Five years passed and the paychecks got smaller and smaller. When we finally got back out on the road, we were starting from scratch. We had played arenas, but now were playing skate parks. We had to build a new.
Those paychecks getting smaller changed everything. I had to sell my home in California and adapt my habits to match my new income. I didn’t pay enough attention fast enough and watched as my reserves kept dwindling. By the time I moved back to PA with my wife, we had little to show for the good times.
I had mentioned to Lani the topic of my next article and after writing this comment, you’ll soon see why I’m excited to write it.
Thanks for the reminder Linsey – it can happen to anyone in any situation, but you can prevent a lot of the fallout with consistent planning.
Eric Stegemann
June 9, 2009 at 12:04 pm
What a great post. Being on the younger side, I too often speak to brokers and agents that feel like they can just do what they’ve been doing for the past 15 years and it will keep working. They’ll still get calls off their newspaper ads, they still think they can put an open house in there alone and people will show up. They feel that all they need to do is cold call, or knock on doors, or do whatever they did when they started.
Let’s face it:
* MLS Books are gone
* Having to go to the listing brokers office to get a key is gone
* Showing potential clients just your listings is gone
Would you have it any other way?
Why have agents embraced these changes (for the most part, Commercial Realtors I’m shaking my finger at you!)? But why can’t Realtors face the new realities of marketing and technology. It’s clear that an effective blogging strategy can work. It’s clear that online advertising can work. It’s clear that using Twitter, Facebook, etc can work. The problem that so many agents have with them is that they don’t dive into it the same way they used to with their SOIs and their door knocking and whatever other strategies they had. Why? Fear. It’s new, it’s different, it’s a big shift.
Why fear it? Embrace it! Jump into it with open arms. The buyers that demand it will love you for it, and the others will appreciate your desire to keep them in front of new and better ways to buy and sell.
Life and Business need change – without it consider how boring things would be….
Matthew Rathbun
June 9, 2009 at 12:04 pm
Linsey,
This is very insightful. The altering marketing and culture has really sent many agents into a tailspin. I’ve had times in my life where I was sure the “bad times” would never end and yet eventually (as you pointed out) you surround yourself with enough good people, that the few bad ones are just a memory.
Time heals a great deal.
However, as much change as we’re seeing; I’ve still noted that experienced and well grounded agents who have great people skills are doing well in this market – better than some of my tech-savvy friends. Some folks do have a gift for consistency in their lives. I often envy those who have steadiness in their lives…
Linsey Planeta
June 9, 2009 at 12:44 pm
Matthew – I think you’re right. There are agents that seem to ride through these things with consistency and grace. They seem to be those that are diverse and willing to analyze ROI and make the changes. Unfortunately, too many do not.
Eric – I agree that too many agents have their head in the sand about technology and major industry changes. Techies have to be careful too so that they don’t become married to a technology. No question – we all know how that can change.
Matt – I’ll be watching for your next piece!! 🙂
Lesley – Amen.
Benn Rosales
June 9, 2009 at 1:11 pm
Linsey, I’m glad you’re seeing the brighter side and helping others who are in the same mess we’re all in, the economy has rocked many businesses around the world.
It’s tough- I love your forward thinking!
Ken Brand
June 9, 2009 at 1:34 pm
The only certain thing is change. As you shared, sometime good, sometime not so much. I’ve been in the biz for 30 years, some of the ups and downs have been violent, we always see how we could have seen it coming…when we look in the rear view. You’re right, it’s a wise idea to sit and think; what to change, what to be grateful for and what next.
Thanks.
Joe Loomer
June 9, 2009 at 6:10 pm
Your Sphere comment hit home for me – I’m retired Navy and relied heavily on my past shipmates and their referrals for business.
Problem now is, even my past clients who purchased since 2004 bought VA – guess what – NO EQUITY.
Good thing I know what an “Absentee Owner” is or we’d be in the tank.
Gary Keller/Jay Papasan/Dave Jenks book – SHIFT – read it.
Navy Chief, Navy Pride
Paula Henry
June 9, 2009 at 8:05 pm
Linsey – This is a great reminder to not rest on our laurels and seek to find business in all areas we are qualified to work. Time changes all things and what we have been through the last few years will prepare us more adequately for the good times.
Looking forward while also looking backward will show us the lessons we need to learn today!
Bill Lublin
June 10, 2009 at 1:46 pm
Linsey – wonderful post – and I was oging to make a really simple yet deep comment – only to find that Ken Brand had already done it – The only constant is life is change – and if we embrace change without discarding things that work, we benefit from those changes.
Great post – when are we doing breakfast again?
Linsey Planeta
June 10, 2009 at 1:51 pm
Bill – thank you my friend. I do believe I saw your name on the list for REBarCampOC which is my neck of the woods. Definitely in for breakfast again if you’ve got the time while you are here. 🙂
Missy Caulk
June 11, 2009 at 9:18 pm
Lindsey, nothing like experience speaking in a post. My husband was pinked slipped this year too. He was hired back for next year. He teaches high school.
Change does force us to look at ourselves, our business and re-evaluate.