At the Compass annual retreat last week (and everywhere else), there was one big question on everyone’s minds… What exactly will these legal battles around real estate commissions mean for agents, in practical terms? Don’t stick your head in the sand, {{ first_name }}. Don’t act like nothing is going to change. Change is coming. The question is, will this change be an obstacle or an opportunity? There are 3 things you can count on… 1. There WILL be downward pressure on commissions. Your value as a real estate professional will be called into question, and people won’t pay you unless they belie ..read more

A particular quote has been on my mind a lot recently. Marianne Williamson said: “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure." This IS reality. We are actually—not in theory—actually powerful beyond measure. Human beings are capable of incredible things, every single one of us. But embracing and using that power is hard. It takes effort. And if you truly believe you're powerful beyond measure, you know you're wasting your power if you don't put in that effort. It's much easier not to believe. It's easier to compare yourself to others ..read more

As everyone in the industry knows, there’s a lot going on with commissions right now. Last week, a court ruling came down that could completely change the way buyer’s agents get paid. There will be appeals, so it may take years for a final decision to come through, but the bottom line is this… If you’re not paying attention, you will end up taking a pay cut. These lawsuits are creating urgency around this issue, but I’ve been talking about it for years. Most agents never bother to sign an exclusive representation agreement with the buyer. They just do the work and hope the buyer chooses one of ..read more

You and I both know that every agent shares one goal: to increase their business. That’s what you work so hard for. It’s what you take courses and spend money and get coaching for. And yet, virtually every single agent resists doing the ONE THING thing that will grow their business more than anything else… Picking up the phone and calling everyone they know every 90 days. Not texting. Not emailing. Just having a simple, quick, human-to-human conversation, 4 times a year, with every past client and every person in your sphere of influence. It’s not a sales call. You’re not asking for or expecti ..read more

If you've been following Performance Coaching for any length of time, you've already heard a lot about Tactical Empathy.  You've heard it's the art and science of making people feel understood, without necessarily agreeing with them. You've heard it's the key to becoming the trusted advisor your clients want and need. You've heard it's essential for breaking free from the endless, exhausting cycle of chasing deals. But if you haven't seen it in practice, you might be wondering what it looks like. Well, this Pixar scene absolutely NAILS IT. Let's break this down, because it perfectly illus ..read more

by Steve Shull, Founder & Head Coach   A few months ago, a man named Roland Abante auditioned on America’s Got Talent. The judges were skeptical from the moment he walked on stage. He was a fisherman and motorcycle delivery man from the Philippines who barely spoke any English, and he was visibly nervous. Then the music started, and something magical happened. He stopped being all those things, and he became an ARTIST. He dropped his guard, opened his heart, and left everything on the stage, and the crowd went WILD. Not only that, but he got a “yes” from all four judges. That’s w ..read more

by Steve Shull, Founder & Head Coach   Last week I had my first session with a brand new coaching client who has been in real estate for 20 years and does over $3M per year in GCI. When I asked what he wanted to get out of coaching, he said one thing: accountability. Good answer. Most agents, whether they realize it or not, are massively held back by a lack of accountability. They get into this business to have freedom and flexibility, but what they don’t realize is that without accountability, those things are impossible. Here’s why. As you know, this is a 24/7/365 business. You have ..read more

 by Susie Adamson, Operations & Systems Coach   Sometimes, the real estate business feels like a high-speed racecourse. This is not one of those times. For once, you’re in low gear, or maybe even parked. That may seem like a bad thing…but it’s actually a HUGE opportunity to level-up your business. Let me explain. I don’t know about you, but I’ve been obsessed with The Bear, the FX series about a fine dining chef, Carmy, who returns to Chicago to take over his late brother’s sandwich shop. His brother’s way of doing things was basically just chaos, and as a result, the business wa ..read more

by Steve Shull, Founder & Head Coach   I’ll be honest: it is not the easiest time to be a Full Fee Agent. With inventory this low, competition for listings is at its highest. Any potential seller who calls you is almost certainly talking to other agents, and most of those agents are discounting their fees. The pressure to follow suit is real. If you don’t discount, you have to answer the uncomfortable question: why are you worth more than the others? To be clear, this is ALWAYS the crux of the commission conversation. Regardless of market conditions, there will ALWAYS be discount agen ..read more

by Steve Shull, Founder & Head Coach   If you’ve been reading this blog or listening to my coaching for any length of time, you’ve heard me mention the 6 Building Blocks. Maybe you’ve been around for long enough that those 6 things are already burned into your brain… But maybe not. Maybe you have no idea what I’m talking about. Maybe you’ve heard of the 6 Building Blocks but are fuzzy on the details.  Maybe you’ve learned about them before but could use a refresher. Here’s the big idea: To build a sustainable, scalable, stress-free real estate business, there are only 6 things yo ..read more