Do You Know Who Your Competition Is? The Answer Might Surprise You

By Sarah Michelle Bliss

Last year, the National Association of REALTORS® reported more than one and a half million licensed agents in the United States—the largest number of associates to ever be active at one time. That is a lot of options for consumers, and one could argue that it is your competition. But is it?

As a master coach for Workman Success Systems, I use a tool called the SWOT Analysis, which stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. This analysis allows us to define what an agent is good at, where they can improve, what opportunities they are missing and what threats could drive them out of business. What I have found when working with agents on their SWOT Analysis is that their defined threats are actually cleverly disguised opportunities, and that their weaknesses are often not external, but rather, personal. As the market returns to prepandemic activity, some agents will see this as a threat, while others will thrive because they lean into the new opportunities that a more balanced market presents. Successful agents share one thing in common—they know who their competition really is, and it’s not all the other agents in your marketplace.

Your competition is the person who looks back at you in the mirror every morning. The question I would be asking is not what my competition is doing, but rather, what am I doing to compete with myself?

Consistency is vital for success and that includes constantly improving yourself, your skill and your mindset. In “The Greatest Salesman in the World,” Og Mandino writes, “Weak is he who permits his thoughts to control his actions; strong is he who forces his actions to control his thoughts.” You are the competition that determines whether you will have a thriving real estate practice (or not). You are the one who controls your mental outlook on the market conditions. Your attitude dictates your behavior, and as we know, success requires action—daily, consistent, deliberate action focused on the right activities.

At Workman Success Systems, we use another concept called the 3-21 to help agents lead with revenue daily. The concept is implemented by contacting three people in your database, adding two new contacts and learning one new thing. Simple, but effective, yet most agents focus their attention on fake work that keeps them busy rather than activities that are actually dollar-productive. The good news is that’s what your competition is doing, too. If you don’t like what you see in the mirror, I would challenge you to commit to the 3-21 concept for the next 30 days and see how these simple actions change your business. RE

Consistency is vital for success and that includes constantly improving yourself, your skill and your mindset.

Sarah Michelle Bliss has been serving the Valley of the Sun in real estate since 1997. She is an original founder of RE/MAX Professionals as well as their director of education, an international bestselling author of “8 Ways to Dominate Any Real Estate Market,” and a master coach with Workman Success Systems. Visit https://pages.workmansuccess.com/rismediaresources/ to access tools and resources.