When it all goes wrong
We all have bad days; here are a few thoughts to help you keep smiling
I met with an agent client recently, in Darlington. She was late to our meeting, eventually turning up in floods of tears. She had had one of those days. She’d lost an instruction to a competitor; her viewing rep had overslept and missed his first two viewings; she had had a row with her husband over her ever increasing reliance on him for childcare, and to top it all, someone had driven into the back of her car whilst waiting at traffic lights, on her way to meet me.
That’s what I call a bad day.
We’ve all had them haven’t we? None of us are immune to the gremlins that cause us to lose keys down drains, have our car stolen, bumped or scratched, be betrayed by an employee, wake up with a crick in our neck, spill coffee down our shirt on the way to an important market appraisal; the list goes on. One poor agent I know even ran over his clients’ cat on their driveway. Try recovering from that and still win the instruction (he didn’t).
“The best way out is always through”.
Robert Frost
Here are a few reminders to motivate you when it seems life is against you:
Being an estate agent is HARD
You’re the one in the firing line; the one that always gets blamed for everything, from the down-valued survey to that one missing window key. It’s really not easy balancing egos and expectations, and that’s just within your team. Don’t be too hard on yourself but remember….
You chose to be an estate agent
I don’t want to bang on about beds and lying on them, but you do have to take the rough with the smooth. Estate agency is exciting, stimulating and often (though not always) well-paid. The downside is a trade-off, and you have to ask yourself if it’s one worth making.
This too will pass
Today’s misery is tomorrow’s story you can tell in the pub and raise a giggle. Nothing lasts forever, especially not that red face you got when you were caught nicking the boss’s biscuits.
Your thoughts create your reality
Bit deep this one, but very true. The way you view a situation will shape the reality of that situation. If you choose to see the funny side, it will become funny. If you choose to see it as doom and gloom, and something you can’t recover from, then guess what? You’ll struggle to get through it.
Something worse has happened to someone else
A client and good friend of mine has had a bit of a rubbish year. His brand new office was ram-raided, and all his lovely new iMacs nicked, data included. Despite this and a ton more challenges and problems thrown at him by life in general, he is upbeat and positive about the road ahead. His remarkable tenacity – and bloody mindedness – will ensure he will succeed when his competitors would have given up. And to top that, he’s a lovely guy and an excellent agent. That’s not a coincidence.
You can’t climb a smooth mountain
This is one of my favourites; if you don’t get challenged, how will you know you can meet it when it happens? Difficulties and problems are part of life, and the ‘no pain, no gain’ gym-talk is just as relevant in an agency. Each challenge helps you grow as an agent, and as a person, learning and developing new skills with each issue.
Que sera, sera
I’m not suggesting you should give up when it all gets too much, but sometimes it helps to remember that most of the time, things work out for the best. Just think back say ten years, to your biggest worry then. I was trying to decide whether to move halfway across the country with my young children, as a single mum. I did it, it was great, I made a load of wonderful friends, and I’ve never regretted my decision. Despite the fact the decision kept me awake, night after night, I have faith that even had I not gone, life would have turned out alright for me in the long run.
So when it all gets a bit much, remember Churchill’s mantra:
“When you’re going through hell, keep going”
and go watch an episode of Eastenders: your life will never be that bad.
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