Was it A Con Job and Why the Secret is out for Estate Agents

Just over four years ago there was a young trainee plumber in Dublin.

He was skint, hated his job, drove a clapped out old banger and his career prospects were to use how own words, ‘pretty shite’.

But he had a vision (literally as it turns out) and strange things happen.

On Saturday 26 August 2017 that young man took part in the richest fight in combat sports history.

The Notorious Conor McGregor took on and ultimately lost to Floyd ‘Money’ Mayweather.

It’s said McGregor will eventually bank around $100m from the fight – and that’s a conservative guess.

A lot of people hate him. They saw the fight as a farce. A con job with the punters being treated as suckers. An ugly orgy of excess and egos.

But there’s something we can ALL learn, especially estate agents, from how McGregor has achieved his meteoric rise.

I must admit that before his tangle with Mayweather I knew very little about Mr McGregor.

I knew he was Irish and flashy but that was about it.

But I got sucked into the hype. I started reading more about McGregor and his rapid ascent to becoming a world-famous millionaire was intriguing.

If you dig deeper and look beyond the trash talk and bling McGregor is a very intelligent man, with a genius for self-promotion and branding and, say it quietly, a decent bloke by most accounts.

Here’s five reasons why I think estate agents can learn from McGregor and how he’s achieved in four years more than 99.99999999 per cent of Planet Earth’s population will ever do.

  1. The Secret is out – McGregor said that a best-selling book about positive thinking and something called the law of attraction changed his life. It was called The Secret. Now I’m not suggesting you run out and buy it (I watched the film on Amazon Prime) but it highlights one aspect of success in any field – You must believe in yourself. I’ve met plenty of agents who are negative about pretty much everything and, low and behold, are still struggling their arses off.
  2. You never lose – of course we know by now that McGregor was comprehensively beaten by one of the greatest boxers ever in Mayweather. But McGregor describes all his losses and ‘failures’ as learning. It’s a great approach to take with marketing campaigns – if it didn’t work, learn from it and do something different based on those learnings. If it did work to win instructions do more of it – but look to improve it.
  3. Obsession – He admits to being so obsessed with his fighting career that he is a little insane about it. The best agents I work with, or have worked with, are genuinely passionate about what they do. And my definition of passion is something you’d do for free because you love it so much.
  4. Hard work – since his early days McGregor training (both mental and physical) regimes have been brutal. Nothing worth achieving is ever easy. You can visualise all you want but you need to put in the shifts to be a success.
  5. Give it a go – McGregor, as mentioned in point 2 is always learning. Added to that he’s not afraid to give something new a shot as he proved with his bout against Mayweather. Too often I see agents dismiss marketing ideas out of hand without trying it or having any useful evidence to argue against other than ‘it’ll never work.’

Imagine if Mr McGregor had listened to all of those who told him a few years back that his vision ‘would never work.’

Thanks for reading and here’s to your next instruction.

 

Jerry

Jerry Lyons

You May Also Enjoy

Breaking News

Housing sales end 2024 on a high, but buyers more cautious about how much to pay for homes as mortgage rates drift higher

Buyers and sellers returned to the market over 2024 building a sales pipeline 30 per cent larger than a year ago with 283,000 homes worth £104bn progressing to a sale in 2025. This is the largest end of year total value for four years. House prices have returned to growth with the average house price…
Read More
Breaking News

£21 million to live on UK’s most expensive street

· Knightsbridge in London now the priciest UK street · The UK’s 10 most expensive streets all in the capital, with an average price tag of £16.5 million · East Road in Weybridge the most expensive address outside of London · Priciest UK properties are 60 times more than a typical home Lloyds has revealed…
Read More
Breaking News

Breaking Property News 20/12/24

Daily bite-sized proptech and property news in partnership with Proptech-X.   Why estate and letting agents must embrace innovative technology in 2025   As we step into 2025, the UK property market continues to shift, and estate agents face mounting pressure to meet the evolving expectations of buyers and sellers. The days when static images sufficed…
Read More
Breaking News

Breaking Property News 19/12/24

Daily bite-sized proptech and property news in partnership with Proptech-X.   High street Auctions’ initiative launches to revive Britain’s town centres   This month the UK Government rolls out its highly anticipated ‘High Street Auctions’ scheme, a flagship measure of the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023. This initiative grants local authorities the power to take…
Read More
Estate Agent Talk

Moving Up In The World: Finding Your Dream Home

Finding your dream home is one of life’s most exciting and transformative experiences. Whether you’re looking to upsize, relocate, or finally purchase that ideal property you’ve always envisioned, the journey is both thrilling and filled with important decisions. As you embark on this path, it’s essential to plan carefully, consider your priorities, and approach the…
Read More
new build home fronts
Breaking News

These cities are the keenest to move house in 2025

Bournemouth is the keenest area in the UK to move home, with 38,132 average monthly searches for moving-related topics per 100,000 residents. Plymouth is second, with 35,198 average monthly searches for moving, and Birmingham is third, with 35,181. Derry is the least keen area to move house, with only 3,170 average monthly searches related to…
Read More