Top 5 Things New Agents Need to Succeed Early

Generally speaking, the attrition rate or failure rate for new real estate agents has alarmingly approached the 90th percentile during their first 2 years of real estate.  With such alarming failure rates, one might think it has something to do with the licensing schools; however they are doing a good job teaching the licensing portion and helping people become licensed under the Department of Commerce licensing criteria.  Clearly 90 hours of licensing training isn't going to promise any success in the real estate industry, it only makes the agent qualified under the state's criteria.

Here are the top 5 things new agents need to succeed early on in their career:

1. Mindset of Success - From day 1, agents absolutely must establish a success oriented mindset.  In order to master their craft they must prepare their mind to learn and prospect everyday.  This simple step cannot be over looked as many agents approach this career with rose colored glasses.  It is recommended that mindset training be implemented early on in anyone's career.
2. Routine - Success stories start when a new agent aligns themselves with a good mentor who outlines an effective daily routine that also leverages the agents strengths.  Many of the larger big box firms put all their candidates into a box and provide a uniform curriculum or book for guidance.  That's probably not the best plan since all individuals have unique strengths.
3. Tool Kit - Agents need to be guided via a mentor as to which technology are the most practical set of tools for their early success.  More importantly, the should not deviate away  from those tools until they can successfully add more to their workload.  Too many agents get sucked into the social media marketing trap and become slaves to the internet when they should be out in the field delivery services to customers.
4. Accountability Partner - One of the main reasons so many agents fail in their early years is because they either fell into a large corporate firm directing them to fit into their corporate training box or platform or they are completely dependent on a rain maker for leads.  That's not a career; that's a JOB.  Having a great mentor/accountability partner who actually trains good habits and holds the agent accountable is a key to success in the early years and beyond.
5. Targeted Niche - New agents typically need direction in this area and their mentor/accountability partner can better serve in helping new agents with their targeted niche market.  Typically, most agents are directed to their niche being their friends and family first because of their close proximity.  However, a niche market beyond friends and family must also be determined early on in their first year.  Agents who struggle in deciding which areas they should focus upon should start with the geographic areas they live in and the geographic area of their first listings.
6. COMMUNITY - Yes, the headline said; the top 5 things agents need to succeed early, however community is probably  the most important element of success.  Who you work with really matters.  Recently, there has been an exponential growth of virtual real estate brands offering avatar/virtual training for their people.  This creates the 'Lone Wolf' syndrone in this industry.  Who you work and learn from really matters and I cannot stress the importance of having a good mentor/trainer/leader who will better serve your career needs.  See more on this here...