CEO Message: What NAR’s D.A.N.G.E.R. Report Reminded Us About

WHAT NAR’S D.A.N.G.E.R. REPORT REMINDED US ABOUT

FROM THE CEO

At the CAR Spring Summit, it was refreshing to hear so many members and professional staff thinking and speculating about how the industry will shift and what we must do to remain relevant and engage in organized real estate. Revisiting the 2015 NAR D.A.N.G.E.R. Report during the Strategic Think Tank Forum was a stark reminder that there are many threats out there that can derail us in the organized real estate business. It’s also important to know that sometimes our industry inflicts its own distractions, and there will always be new challenges to face. To turn these challenges into opportunities for our members and to remain relevant beyond the MLS, it is going to take a concerted effort between volunteer leaders, staff, and our industry partners. The good thing is, it is in our collective hands to ensure the D.A.N.G.E.R. Report is just a report and not the reality of what’s to come. The other good news across the spectrum is that our members believe CAR is heading in the right direction, giving the Association a B+, according to a member survey we conducted in November of 2021. However, we know we cannot rest on our laurels, and in fact, the survey also showed us that we have room for improvement as an association. There are a couple of CAR programs that hovered around the C+ range that we need to work on with regard to both awareness and legitimacy. Membership and Broker/Owner outreach must continue to be a consistent part of what we do to ensure members understand what CAR does to help them be more successful in their business. It is tempting to simply press ahead with new initiatives and give little thought to where we’ve been. There could be a significant impact on the average member who currently

lies dormant within our Associations and that could eventuTyrone Adams ally hurt our relevancy. CEO of the Colorado Association of REALTORS® Imagine if every REALTOR® Association and industry partner realized even half of their potential. What could we achieve alone and together? Some of the steps we follow at CAR to try and reach our potential are: • Start with our strengths. • Identify our weaknesses. • Know what resources are available. NAR has a ton of untapped resources • Connect What, Why, and Who- What industry challenges are we trying to solve, why, and who can we align ourselves with? • Prepare for a range of reactions- Not everyone will agree on everything and that is ok, different perspectives brought to the table are a good thing overall. • Embrace all results of facts and opinions- We must remember that leadership is not about what you know, but about what you want to discover. From this vantage point, it becomes all the clearer why we need to broaden our perspective and encourage those we lead to help us challenge and question our own assumptions. • Remove obstacles and allow your professional staff to do their jobs. I am a part of many different organizations and collaborate with many other association professionals, and this is one of the main challenges they face- micromanaging staff. Trust must be established with the volunteers and staff, and they should be growing together and evolving together in the Association for it to stay focused on meeting the members’ needs. • Look for opportunities to learn, and not just to succeed. Our opportunities and solutions today and in the future lie within the seeds we planted yesterday and today.