Staying motivated in a tough market

When you feel like all the cards are stacked against you, it can be hard to find the motivation to keep going.

In a tough market, it's easy to get to a point where you feel like:

All your listings are overpriced
Every buyer wants an unreasonable bargain
All your listings have issues which are making them hard to sell (missing consents, tricky titles, water-ingress, unrealistic owners)
Even when you do get a deal together, there's a high chance the offer will crash

Faced with all this negativity, how do you find the strength to stay positive?

Deep down we all know real estate sales is an energy industry. You have to be up for the challenge, and motivated to succeed. It takes serious effort to earn big commission paydays. Nothing comes easy, especially in this kind of market environment.

In this guide, I'll run you through specific steps you can take to fight through the negative noise and keep your business on track. My goal is to show you why this market is actually the best market to work in, and how you can use this opportunity to not just maintain your income, but grow your business and increase it.

Ready? Let's rock and roll.

Step 1. What's your why?

I think I just heard you grunt a little. This topic is so frustrating, right? Everyone wants to talk about 'finding your why' but what if you don't have a good answer? Does that mean you are failing somehow? The answer is no. Your 'why' doesn't have to be some epic flowery affirmation, it just needs to be specific to you. It can be as simple as:

"I want to be financially independent", or "I'm doing this to create a better future for my children" or "I want to be mortgage-free by 50..."

The goal is simply to understand why you are in a job which is both challenging, but extremely rewarding when it goes well. Knowing your why helps you pick yourself up when setbacks inevitably occur.

The gift of real estate is that at any point in time, you can engage in a series of actions (connecting with potential clients) that can generate a huge amount of income in the not-to-distant future (3-9 months). There are few people who can increase their income in a short period of time the way you can in this industry.

Step 2. Avoid negative Nancy's

Negativity is contagious. As the market gets tougher, the negativity will spread throughout your office, and every other agent wants to make you feel the way they do (even if somewhat unintentionally) because if you join them in their negative world, it makes them feel safe and reassured.

It's always tempting to fall into glass-half-full mode. It's easy to be a complainer.

On the other hand, it takes courage to see the bright side and find the opportunity in every situation, but I assure you in the long run, it's way more fun and pays a lot better!

Avoid spending time with negative colleagues, even if it means upsetting some of your friends. Find a positive buddy you can trust and focus on solutions, not problems.

Step 3. Find your mantra

What is the truth about this market that the negative Nancy's aren't seeing? What opportunity have you uncovered that others can't recognise because their downcast mindset is clouding their thinking?

Why is this market better than any other market to work in?

Here are some ideas:

The agents who survive this tough market will absolutely thrive when conditions change. The negative Nigels will lose hope and quit the industry, leaving more opportunities for the rest of you when things get easier.
Working with one buyer on each listing (rather than 10+ offers) allows you to build relationships and create clients for life.
It's rewarding to work in a balanced market where greed is not the dominating emotion.
Owners need you and your specific skill set in this market. Without your help, they could sit on the market for an eternity, or get royally screwed over and under-sell their property.
You get to be creative in this market. Houses don't just sell themselves anymore. You need to design marketing campaigns that get the phone ringing. A little effort in your adverts goes a long way, and it's so much fun when it works!
It's far easier to grow your market share. There are more listings available than we have seen in over a decade. You can build a massive local profile by controlling a large amount of stock, creating a local brand that will allow you to earn a huge income for years.

This is the market where you lay the foundation for future dominance. This is the market where the changing of the guard happens, where you become the go-to local real estate expert.

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Step 4. Set realistic goals

You can't control whether your offers fall over, whether buyers make offers in the first place, or whether tricky owners will see sense and lower their asking price, but you can control your activity.

Numbers can control:

How many vendor review meetings you undertake each week. Note: These must be in person! And ideally in your office. Target: Every 2 weeks for every listing as a minimum.
How often you send your email newsletter using Agent Monday content. Target: every week.
How many calls you make each day to motivated buyers who have made offers. Target: 5 per day.
How many calls you make each day to potential sellers. Target: 5 each day.
The number of foreign listings you visit each week. Target: 10 per week.
How often you refresh your current listings, including changing the main photo, advert headline and pricing strategy. Target: Every 2-3 weeks and use our listing refresh checklist for ideas.

Focus on what you can control. Judge your day and your week by whether you achieve the activity goals you set for yourself. Use a weekly checklist. If you get your activity level right, the sales (and income growth) will come.

Step 5. Ask questions that unlock commissions

Stick this phrase where you can see it every day:

Every single home would sell tomorrow at a certain price.

While we get flustered by consenting issues, title discrepancies, earthquake claims, builders reports and asbestos questions, the only thing that really matters at the end of the day is the price.

Every single listing on the market would sell tomorrow at some price. Now obviously, our job is to maximise the sale price for our owners, but it's important to keep this overarching truth in mind because it helps you avoid getting lost in the noise and it helps you make sales.

When your buyers are complaining about everything that's wrong with a property, ask:

"Bearing all that in mind, what price would this home need to be for you to buy it?"

When owners are complaining about the market, the buyer feedback, or the lack of viewings, ask:

"If we were sitting here today with an unconditional offer, what would you accept?"

Pause and wait for the answer, no matter how long it takes. Use these questions at all your buyer viewings and vendor review meetings and your business will thrive.

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