On several occasions I have had this dialogue or very similar with new coaching clients:
Client: I’d like to grow my purchase business by developing more worthwhile Realtor relationships.
Coach: Great goal! What are you willing to do to make this happen?
Client: I’m willing to do anything! I’m just not sure what I should do.
Coach : Ok, are you open to some suggestions?
Client: Yes.
Coach: How about looking up listings of top producing Realtors in your area and popping in on their open houses to introduce yourself?
Client:Hmmm, I don’t know. It didn’t work for me in the past and I really don’t want to spend a Sunday going into open houses when the Realtors don’t want me there, anyway.
Coach:Ok. How about scheduling yourself to attend some Realtor Association events or Chamber mixers?
Client: No, because there are always other loan officers around trying to get the attention of the Realtors. Too much competition.
Coach: Well, what if you partnered up with your Title Rep. and put together a presentation on recent changes in the industry and resources that Realtors should be aware of to help them stay abreast of these changes?
Client: I just don’t think that will work. Every loan officer out there is trying to get into Realtor offices and most of them aren’t even interested in what’s going on. All they care about is whether you can give them a referral or not.
Notice any patterns here?
Now if you’re wondering, if I, as a Business Coach, would simply force them to do these things anyway, the answer is HECK NO!
Regardless if something has worked for others, and that could be hundreds of others, asking someone to do something that they have a negative attitude about, will NOT bring about the desired results. In fact, it will create a self-fulfilling prophecy, i.e. “It won’t work.” “They won’t talk to me.” “Nobody will care.”
The good news is that after some attitude re-tooling (yes, attitude is a tool) ANYONE can create new opportunities and successes for themselves, even out of what once was seen as a bag of old tricks.
Brian Tracy, entrepreneur, sales guru and motivational coach says this about attitude:
This attitude of looking for the good in every situation, of looking for the advantage or benefit in any problem or difficulty, is the way that the most successful people think most of the time. Superior people, leaders in all areas, face the inevitable ups and downs of daily life on the way to their destinations by taking complete control of their thinking and their emotions. They do this by choosing the words they use to describe a situation, their tone of voice, and their behavior in dealing with problems.
So, what’s YOUR attitude about getting out there and creating new business for yourself?
Tips to Re-tooling Your Attitude
Here are 3 re-tooling techniques that can adjust your attitude and help you succeed!
A Morning Dose of Positivity –How long has it been since you listened to a motivational series on the drive into work? Download your favorite positivity guru and use your commute, whether it’s 10 minutes or an hour, to accelerate your attitude.
Check Your Attitude at the Door-Every day, before going home from work, take two minutes to complete the following sentence in your journal or notebook: “Because of my positive and willing attitude, today I was able to………”
Partner-up with a Positivity Pal-Ask a teammate or peer to engage in 30 consecutive days of positivity with you. Agree to send each other one email each day where you communicate one positive experience from your day and a specific wish of positivity to your partner. It could look something like this:
Dear Daniel: Today I made it a point to get out of my office. I had a very productive lunch with a Realtor partner of mine. It was well worth my time and effort and so much more pleasant than I thought it was going to be. I wish that you have a surprise encounter with someone tomorrow that leaves you feeling GREAT!
Remember, everything starts from the inside – out. Giving yourself the gift of a positive attitude today will directly influence whether opportunity knocks once, twice, three times or ever knocks at all.