As a Realtor, you have the power to set your schedule.
Full-time or part-time, you choose what works for you.
You'll have unlimited income potential.
Best of all, you are your own boss.
It’s the perfect career.
At least that’s what they tell you in real estate school.
The problem with real estate school is they don't teach you how to build a real estate business.
At least not in my state.
Real estate school teaches you how to pass the real estate exam and obtain a real estate license.
I remember my first day in real estate school when the instructor introduced himself to the class and immediately began bragging about the high percentage of students from his school who went on to “pass the test.”
He wanted us to know that of all the real estate schools we had to choose from, his school had the highest pass/fail ratio of students who took the license exam.
I guess (maybe) that’s important.
The question I had was how many of their students are making a 6-figure-plus living in the real estate business 3 years later?
He didn't want to talk about that.
Probably because that number would be too scary to admit.
Who wants to hear that only 2 out of 10 people in the room that day will renew their license 24 months later, and only 1 out of 10 will take home more than the national income average of a real estate agent...a whopping $43,000?
Actually, I wanted to hear.
I am one of the 10% who made it through those first 2-3 years and will soon begin my 22nd year.
Over the years, I have won (and lost) thousands of real estate transaction battles -- and have the scars to prove it.
But I made it. I survived.
Call me a 10-per-center. Call me a lucky dog. Call me fortunate, blessed, or in the right place at the right time.
Whatever label you want to put on me, I made it to the other side and have enough transactions and real estate lessons in my rearview mirror to more than justify a little cockiness whenever I am asked what it takes to make it in “the biz.”
Recently I read the average person has a walking stride length of about 2.25ft. That means it takes over 2,300 footsteps for the average person to walk a mile.
Passing the real estate exam is like the first step of a mile-long walk toward real estate mastery. Somewhere around the quarter-mile mark, things will begin to make sense. and hopefully, by the half-mile marker, you will start to feel comfortable with what you are doing.
That’s how it was for me.
Are real estate schools important? Of course they are. You can't get a real estate license without them. But what's more important is the education you receive after you go to school. It's the postgraduate education, the on-the-job training, and street smarts that will make you a R.A.R.E. Agent.
Every client you meet...every home you show...every contract you negotiate...every vendor you call for repair quotes...every attorney and title company and every escrow you close...will provide you with education.
As your knowledge increases, so will your ability to handle the challenges this business presents.
There are no shortcuts.
