Success or Failure... Is it really the Training?

Many times I am made aware of agents leaving brokerages and when I ask "why", I am given the same reason… "They don't provide the training I need". As such, I feel compelled to ask the following questions…

• Is the training that different vs what you anticipated prior to joining? How so?
• What type of training are you looking for?
• How did you vet the new brokerage you're moving to to insure they DO provide this training?
• How much training did you attend? How much training did you request?
• What kind of accountability did you seek?

Lastly, and this is the big one…Do you really want training or are you mostly looking for an "easy button"? It's unfortunate, but most agents want to be handed a fish rather than learn to fish.

Success in sales is really hard work and Real Estate is sales. Unfortunately, many agents who get into this business don't have sales and/or marketing backgrounds and are shocked to learn that this career is far less about opening doors, showing pretty homes and collecting a paycheck than it is a daily grind. Said another way, they watched way too much DIY, HGTV or Magnolia Network.

Real Estate is about prospecting, picking up the phone, being rejected, making connections and having conversations… a LOT of them. It is 90 "No" responses to every 10 "Yes" responses assuming you are dang good. It's business acumen, negotiation, contracts, frustration and being available almost any time on any day. It's making mistakes (sometimes costly ones), picking yourself off the ground and doing it all over again.

There is a reason 85% of agents leave the business within 2 years and it is NOT training.

How can I make that statement? Simple, there is all kinds of free training catering to any type of learning style on YouTube alone. If an agent really wanted training, it's a smorgasbord of information and most of it is legit. So here is the problem… this knowledge means an individual would need to look in the mirror instead of blame a brokerage for their lack of success.

I offer live training every week to my agents. I've been told it's actually decent training, yet only a third of my agents ever attend. We also offer recorded, online training… of the last month's worth of recorded sessions they have amassed a whopping 2 views amongst all of them. We offer free CE classes, a complete knowledgebase of information and yet the results are still the same… Agents don't typically use them and in time they will fail, leave or both unless they come to understand that success is up to them... I am nothing more than a catalyst, coach, mentor, accountability partner and cheerleader. Thankfully the vast majority of my agents understand this and the dynamic is amazing.

So I ask you… what type of agent are you? Are you a business owner who understands this is 85% you and 15% your brokerage or are you still looking for that Easy Button?