It’s very common, in real estate or any other industry, to want to tell everyone about all the great resources and tools you have to help them fill their need, whether it’s to get out from under a bad mortgage, sell a house in probate or maybe start having their money make money itself in your flips. We get excited about our business – hey, why not? Life should be exciting, right?
But often excitement can overshadow the true nature of a relationship — helping all parties get ahead. If we fail to LISTEN first, then we’ve already failed because we speak and act on the presumption that we know what the other party wants and/or needs. Assuming a seller wants to sell their house quickly because they can’t afford the big mortgage payments might blind us to their true motivation, which may be moving on from a house that has unpleasant personal memories or that they’re being relocated to Philadelphia (go Flyers!).
By TALKING LESS AND LISTENING MORE, we can build trust with others and both come away from the transaction and relationship happy and smiling! This holds true whether we’re talking with home sellers, those looking to buy houses or potential investors who want a safe and profitable place to park their capital. After all, while the focus of real estate is often houses, we can’t forget that we really are in the people business when all is said and done. People drive this industry, not 4-bed single family houses or oceanfront condos. Tempering excitement, opening our ears and truly understanding the person sitting across from us allows us to use the right tools and resources to make all of us winners.
Once again, thanks to my friends and real estate mentors at FortuneBuilders!
Aloha,
Mike