The concept of “three feet from gold,” which was made famous by the book, Think and Grow Rich, and later a book of its own, can be summed up in the real estate space as this: If you’re going to be working your butt off or spending your resources (time, money, etc.) on one particular tactic, you ought to see it through.
This does not just refer to quitting the business or throwing in the towel. I’m referring to giving up on a lead source, a marketing technique or even a skill before you see the results.
My philosophy before I enter into any agreement to buy advertising or spend money on leads or time on a new resource is simple: I’m committing to this no matter what the result for the next six to nine months is.
That’s right — I set aside the time, the money or whatever resource it takes to be able to take advantage of whatever it is for at least six months. If I don’t have six months’ worth of money or six months of time before I commit, I don’t move forward with the task.
Too many agents today are spreading their resources way too thin or not giving plans they committed to enough time.
Stop buying what everyone is trying to sell you. Pick one or two arenas, and commit to six to nine months, and don’t quit, even if you don’t see a single result in that timeframe because you could just be three feet from gold.
Of course, given the above, the No. 1 question becomes, “Then how do you know what to commit to?” Here’s my process for determining if and when I should pull the trigger on a new expense or resource for our team.
- I look first at what the concept, strategy or idea is.
- I look at how I could implement it and how it fits with the way I do business.
- I look at who has succeeded with it by asking for references and scheduling calls with them.
- I look at the expense for the first six to nine months, and I make sure I currently have enough to cover it.
- I look at the potential return and when I should break even with it. I also look at what my return could be after year one, two, three and so on.
- I look at how else I could maximize the spend with this particular resource, sometimes outside of how it’s currently being used.
- Finally, I look at what else is available to me as far as resources available go that I’ll be saying “no” to for the next six to nine months since I’ll be tied up with this particular new strategy.
- I pull the trigger but only after negotiating a discount for committing to six to 12 months because I know I’m not going to shift gears during that time anyway. Some say “yes,” some say “no,” but it never hurts to try.
Next time you get a call from someone trying to sell you something to “better your business,” I encourage you to follow the eight steps above.
Of course, and I think you already know this, the best investment is always going to be coaching and personal or professional development, and I encourage you to put any organization, including ours, through the test above.
Jeff Glover is a Realtor with Jeff Glover & Associates in Michigan.
