Todd Sumney – Why

Why Mentorship Matters for a New Agent’s Growth

Commentary by Todd Sumney

Starting out in the world of real estate is an exciting venture for anyone looking to be their own boss and make their mark as an entrepreneur. But even if newer agents feel they are ready to take the world by storm, having an experienced mentor in their corner will often boost their earnings and increase their trajectory of success more quickly due to the mentorship they are absorbing while building a name for themselves.

There are many reasons why newer agents who align with a mentor find themselves on a path to success faster and with better, long-term results than those who try to blaze a path alone.

Unparalleled Expertise Green agents can glean meaningful wisdom from a tenured agent’s years of experience. One-on-one mentoring sessions over coffee or lunch provide mentees the opportunity to gain insight and ask questions while building out long-term and short-term professional goals. After all, you want the advice of those with a proven track record of success and constructive failure in order to understand the big picture. The Power of Networking Networking is a driving force behind our industry. A trusted mentor can help connect their mentee with other real estate experts, as well as dependable affiliates. A great real estate mentor will also coach agents on how to network effectively, vouch for their work with new clients and introduce mentees to past clients who become potential leads, thus boosting a newer agent’s sphere of influence.

Learning Through Experience Instead of Mistakes Mentors can spare new agents from making mistakes before they happen without the agent wasting days, weeks and months of time learning the same lessons the hard way. This includes everything from marketing, operational and transaction mistakes to client and agent communication mistakes.

One of the most successful agents I know attributes his high-volume career success to all that he learned during a five-year mentorship under another top agent. He could have left the mentorship after a year, but he said that experience helped him “to slow down, to run faster later.”

Mentorship is one of the most fundamental elements in real estate; a mentor provides a valuable perspective on their industry and craft. Those being mentored can find distinctive guidance to build out a long-term plan for their career, helping them envision a lifetime of achievements and opportunities for growth. RE

One-on-one mentoring sessions over coffee or lunch provide mentees the opportunity to gain insight and ask questions while building out longterm and short-term professional goals.

Todd Sumney is the chief industry officer for HomeSmart International. For more information about joining HomeSmart as an agent, please visit HomeSmart.com/join, or visit HomeSmart.com/ franchising for franchise opportunities.