Many of my friends and Realtor colleagues have asked why I left the big box real estate franchise and started my own independent brokerage in the middle of a sagging economy. It's a great question that is certainly worth answering. And here it is... FEAR!
In 2005, I experienced my best year in real estate, $17 Million dollars in sales, in a somewhat obscure little Pacific Northwest mountain town in Grants Pass, Oregon. I had a fleeting thought of starting my own real estate brokerage then, but I was gripped by the fearful notion of leaving a fine-oiled machine for the extreme risky business of creating something new and independent. Fast forward to 2007.
I started seeing MAJOR big box real estate franchises closing their doors, and/or downsizing all over the west coast, with little to no notice given to their agents. I started analyzing where my business was coming from, and realized that the majority of my success could be attributed to my Internet marketing, personal branding and referrals. I quickly realized that very little of my professional success was a result of being associated with a big box real estate franchise.
As the economic tremors continued to unveil in 2008, I started to see my friends, relatives, clients and colleagues being gripped by FEAR, and in some cases, becoming paralyzed by it. I started to think about how to prepare for the "big one" (those of you who have lived in earthquake country can relate to this). I realized that if this economic crisis was going to continue, I needed to be in a financial position to weather the biggest economic earthquake our country has ever felt since the Great Depression.
Enter Warren Buffett. I listened to a statement Warren Buffett made; "When people are fearful, be greedy. And, when people are greedy, be fearful." His few short words had a profound effect on my thinking. I paid little attention to the greed part (except for pondering how the big box real estate franchises were increasing their fees in a downward spiraling economy. Hhhhmmmm. Perhaps Mr. Buffett was preaching directly to the real estate franchise choir regarding their greed). What did catch my immediate attention was the word FEAR. After reflecting on the havoc this little word has reaped in my own life, I decided to wage a battle against it head on. I could choose to let FEAR paralyze me or MOTIVATE me. In light of the current economic crisis, I had a major decision to make.
Having learned what motivates me, I could no longer, in good conscience, continue to pay enormous franchise fees for over-promised services that under-delivered. Nor could I continue to afford to pay a hefty price for my personal happiness, sanity, well-being, and joy (or lack of). The answer was clear, I had to go. As painful as it was to leave my real estate colleagues and friends at the big box real estate franchise, I have to say, not a day has gone by since, where I have felt a single ounce of regret in making the decision to leave.
At Real Estate Cafe LLC, I'm surrounded by positive, upbeat, out-of-the-box thinking professionals, where the quality of life doesn't depend on how many real estate plaques you have on the wall, or where your name stands in the sales rankings. These things are not what define us. What does matter is the depth and scope of our ability to challenge each other to be the best that we can be in a business that is quite possibly becoming extinct before our very eyes. We must stay relevant, and to do so, we must not think like everyone else. We must ask new questions, and we must seek new answers. And where there are no answers, we must be willing to take risks and pave a new path to create new realities. The worst that could happen is we fail. But, what is so bad about failing? Some of our most exceptional inventors and Presidents failed several times before realizing their greatest potential.
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Disclaimer: The comments above were thoughtfully made in light of the fact that some of my closest and most respected real estate colleagues continue to work for big box real estate franchises and are continuing to thrive and be successful in that environment. Kudos to you. "Should I Go Now" is not for everyone :)
