by Mark Johnson | Apr 6, 2020 | Advice, Best Practice, Checklist, Goals, Habits, JPAR, Mindset For Success, Priorities, Productivity, Real Estate, Self Check, Strategy, Taking Action, Tips, To-do List
Not sure about you, for me, it is overwhelming to see how the world has come together in this crisis. As McChensey, Covey, and Huling wrote so well in the “4 Disciplines of Execution,” when you have “singularity of focus,” the trivial gets minimized.
Yet, for me, it’s also a paradox, the dichotomy of our lives right now as we push forward in adapting to new work routines, new ways of connecting, and new ways of contributing to our communities. At the same time, we watch first responders, doctors, nurses, and even the local grocery store staff pour their hearts each day into serving others. It’s been inspiring to see the greatness in humanity.
This week at JPAR, we started a free series called the 8 AM club. The intention was to help our associates, staff, and business partners adapt to new routines, new ways of working and delivering empowering messages to help adapt during this time of transition.
On Monday, Seth Denson shared the power of a solid foundation. “Did You Build It Right?”
Tuesday, Tanya Waymire shared “How You Choose To Show Up Is Everything.”
Wednesday, Jose Ruiz shared the science of “Being Intentional.”
Thursday Germaine Gaspard shared a powerful message about: “Know This: What You Are Becoming Is What You Are Doing.”
Friday, we capped off the week with Sylvia Marusk, who shared: “Stress – the Silent Killer.” Getting Out Of The Stress Response & Getting Into Restore & Rest.
The series is just one step we are taking to ensure our JPAR associates, staff, and partners don’t just survive – they thrive.
Next week’s theme? How to deal with things when they go out of control.
If you don’t like it, change it.
If you can’t change it, change the way you think about it!
It seems we are all spending a lot more time sharing, talking, and communicating on video platforms and social media. This virus event will change us in ways we’ve never imagined. Yet here’s what I know – we are all in it together.
As I was thinking, just a few weeks ago, most of us would say, “we don’t have the time!”
Time is currency.
And now we have all the time in the world. What will you do with it?
Here are a few action items to consider:
Throw out the OLD rules
One of my favorite movies – Apollo 13 – has a scene where ground control is calling up a new procedure for the astronauts. “Aquarius this is Houston, we’d like you to rip the cover off your flight plan!”
Your 2020 business plan just changed, and I’d like you to rip the virtual cover off your plan and write a new procedure.
At JPAR, we have written a 21-question digital business review, now is the time to dig into that review and rewrite the plan.
First, make sure your database is ready to support you and your growth. My surveys show 50% still work off sticky notes and spreadsheets… now is the time to get organized.
Second, find a market that fits your selling style. Then, find an area ready for your focus. Hyperlocal expertise will never be more important. Be a specialist, not a generalist.
Third, leverage video. A bad video is better than no video. Consistency and value are key.
Fourth, social media. Be helpful. It does not need to all be about business.
Fifth now is not the time for marketing as usual.
- Leverage the free resources at KCM and NARConsider starting a FB group for your neighbors, moms’ group, guys groups.
- Host a weekly happy hour or weekly virtual meetups
- Send texts, calls, or ten handwritten notes a day – thinking of you, how about you doing, is there anything I can do to support you?
- Pause the door-knocking & flyer drop-offs
- Use FB groups as a way to be helpful not to sell yourself
- Turn off or update any automation
Build a solid ROUTINE
One size does not fit all! You’re probably tired of hearing the same old line… do these four things in the morning. The truth is my routine may or may not work for you.
There have been a lot of successful people over the centuries of human history. And if you look at just a few of them, they certainly don’t do the same things. But what they do have in common are daily routines, something that they do day in and day out, without fail.
The key is finding the routine that works for you.
In his book, “The Miracle Morning,” Hal Elrod outlines the science, system, and secrets of a powerful routine, even if you are not a morning person! One of the most powerful concepts I learned from Hal is to “set your intentions before bed!”
Build Community
You know that feeling of connection when shared goals and interests bind us together? During this time, there has never been a greater need for connection, for services, for innovative solutions.
Wants and needs are all around you. We know the problem; can you provide the solution for your sphere of influence?
One example – a JPAR agent is featuring a virtual interview each day on Facebook with a local business owner that has a drive-through, delivery of drop off services.
Rely on EXPERTS to strengthen your voice
Separating charged emotions from facts and data is an essential skill these days. One of the best ways to amplify expertise and convey calm is to leverage other voices of authority.
One of the best is my good friend Steve Harney, Founder of Keeping Current Matters and, of course, our National Association Of REALTORS®.
And of course, we can all review reliable information from national sources such as the Center for Disease Control (CDC)
PASSION OVER PERSUASION
Do you find yourself getting mired in detail of this crisis? It is not uncommon – as I recommend above – to surround ourselves with technical experts and forget the power of human nature.
Crises are not solved with reason and data alone. We must never forget we are first and foremost humans with emotions. We have families and lives outside of deeply important work. When we lead with empathy, we demonstrate dedication and compassion for those we serve.
There you have it. Time is currency. And now that we all have some extra time, what will you do with it?
Throw out the old rules; build a new solid routine; rely on the experts to strengthen your voice and remember the most: your strategy matters and your passion rules!
by Mark Johnson | Feb 29, 2020 | Action, Advice, Best Practice, JPAR, Newsletter, Real Estate, Success, Sucess Goals
There once was this criminal who had committed a crime and he was sent to the king for his punishment. The king told him he had a choice of two punishments. One, he could be hung by a rope. Or two take what’s behind the big, dark, scary, mysterious door.
The criminal quickly decided on the rope. As the noose was being slipped on him, he turned to the king and asked: “By the way, out of curiosity, what’s behind that door?”
The king laughed and said: “You know, it’s funny, I offer everyone the same choice, and nearly everyone picks the rope.”
“So,” said the criminal, “Tell me. What’s behind the door? I mean, I won’t tell anyone,” he said, pointing to the noose around his neck.
The king paused then answered: “Freedom, but it seems most people are so afraid of the unknown that they immediately take the rope.”
Is fear getting in your way?
Is fear keeping you inside your comfort zone?
Does this self-talk track sound familiar?
- What if I fail?
- What if it does not work?
What is possible with a new self-talk track?
- What if it DOES work?
- What’s the worst thing that can happen?
- What steps can I take?
You see, nothing BIG happens when you wait. Nothing BIG happens when you stay inside your comfort zone.
Are you too comfortable being comfortable?
Is it time to re-design your comfort zone?
You can never become an expert in working for sale by owners; you’ll never get better at capturing expired listings; on-line leads; geography farming or open houses by staying comfortable. To become an expert in these things you must get comfortable being uncomfortable.
Eight steps to consider in getting more comfortable being uncomfortable:
- Take nothing for granted.
- Switch up your routine.
- Move toward your fears.
- Give up control.
- Try something new until you feel comfortable.
- Ask the questions that other people won’t ask.
- Start conversations with strangers, with more people.
- Agree to something you wouldn’t normally consider.
Fear is a natural and essential part of growth. Every time we consciously choose to step outside of our comfort zone, the next uncomfortable thing becomes a little bit easier.
What will you choose today the uneasiness of uncomfortableness or the comfort of the status quo?
by Mark Johnson | Feb 16, 2020 | Action, Advice, Dream Killer, Dreams, Failure, Freedom, Goal Setting, Goals, Growth, JPAR, No Regrets, Outcome Goals, Perseverance, Real Estate, Self Check, Success, Sucess Goals, Taking Action, Tips
“If you can’t get a miracle, become one.” ~ Nick
Imagine getting through your busy day without hands or legs. Picture your life without the ability to walk, care for your basic needs, or even embrace those you love. Meet Nicholas Vujicic.
In 1982 Nick was born without arms and legs and given no medical explanation for his condition. Faced with countless challenges and obstacles, God has given Nick the strength to surmount what others might call impossible.
It was my honor to introduce Nick to our team recently, and here is a snapshot of five of the seven highlights from his message:
Everything starts with an attitude of gratitude
What was that Abraham Lincoln quote? “Most folks are as happy as they make up their minds to be.” So true, today, I am grateful for those of you that share with me how these blogs or video articles made a difference in your business.
Accept ourselves for who we are
For Nick, the early days were difficult. Throughout his childhood, Nick not only dealt with the typical challenges of school and adolescence, but he also struggled with depression and loneliness. Nick always wondered why he was different than all the other kids. He questioned the purpose of life, or if he even had a purpose.
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- Accept the reality
- Accept others for who they are
- Find your purpose
- Take action
Think like a winner… think big ACT bigger
Nick’s dad used to say: “you weren’t given arms and legs, but you were given a brain. Hire employees so that they can be your arms and legs.” Despite his disability and being bullied at school, Vujicic threw himself into being an entrepreneur at a young age. His first job, in which he earned A$1 an hour was to vacuum the floor, a skill he managed using his shoulder and chin.
“Don’t give up. And know that there is always someone out there who believes in you and who loves you just the way that you are.” ~Nick Vujicic
Motivation is temporary, inspiration and discipline has staying power
Motivation alone is unreliable. It is momentary, unpredictable, and can depart as quickly as it enters. Think about it:
When you listen to a motivational speech, there is an emotional response that is created by an understanding. However, the emotional response wears off, and we fail to revisit the agreement, which incited the emotional response and all the good things that came with it. Thus, we become “unmotivated” until we are reminded again. Sound familiar?
Do you know how to get out of it? Just do the work. It doesn’t matter how you feel at the time; just do it. Don’t wait until you feel motivated. You will build momentum, and eventually, you will get inspired. Ignore inspiration — if it’s there, great. Use it. If it’s not, act anyway.
Don’t feel like going to the gym? Just go.
If you have writer’s block, then write.
Just don’t wait.
Don’t wait for the right moment.
Don’t depend on luck.
Fear is just a challenge to overcome
There is healthy fear… don’t touch that hot stove! And there is limiting fear… in the case I’m writing about today – limiting fear is just “False Evidence Appearing Real!”
In the type of limiting fear, I’m talking about:
- Fear sees only the downside
- Fear doesn’t let you stop to think it through
- Fear tells us to avoid anything new or unknown
- Fear constricts rather than expands who we are
- Fear obscures your intuition
- Fear often keeps us from making any decision at all
I’m so grateful for Nick and his message; I’ll leave you with this exercise Nick had our team complete on the spot. Do it now, don’t wait!
A quick exercise:
- What is your goal? Financially, spiritually, physically, relationally?
- Define it specifically. X by Y date by doing these Z daily activities.
– Win the day, win the week, win the month
– Define a plan to overcome your obstacles
– Take action NOW
by Mark Johnson | Feb 9, 2020 | Action, Advice, Best Practice, Goal Setting, Real Estate, Success, Sucess Goals, Taking Action, Teamwork, Texas
Fundamentals matter… let me share a story.
It was July of 1961, and the 38 members of the Green Bay Packers football team were gathered together for the first day of training camp. The previous season had ended with a heartbreaking defeat when the Packers squandered a lead late in the 4th quarter and lost the NFL Championship to the Philadelphia Eagles.
The Green Bay players had been thinking about this brutal loss for the entire off-season, and now, finally, training camp had arrived, and it was time to get to work. The players were eager to advance their game to the next level and start working on the details that would help them win a championship.
Their coach, Vince Lombardi, had a different idea.
Lombardi took nothing for granted. He began a tradition of starting from scratch, assuming that the players were blank slates who carried over no knowledge from the year before… He began with the most elemental statement of all:
Gentlemen, this is a football!
Lombardi was coaching a group of three dozen professional athletes who, just months prior, had come within minutes of winning the biggest prize their sport could offer. And yet, he started from the very beginning.
Lombardi’s systematic coverage of the fundamentals continued throughout the training camp. Each player reviewed how to block and tackle. They opened up the playbook and started on page one. His team would become the best in the league at the tasks everyone else took for granted.
Six months later, the Green Bay Packers beat the New York Giants 37-0 to win the NFL Championship.
Is this your season to get back to basics?
Fundamental One: Pick Up Your Phone
Schedule time this month to contact your database and check-in. Find out what’s new and remind them that you are never too busy for them. Be ready to with some current market facts, how things are going in your area, any new community events or initiatives. A great source of content is available at www.jparinsights.com.
Fundamental Two: Throw a Party
The post-holiday party let down is real! There’s always a reason to get your past clients, prospects, and friends together to show them appreciation. You could host a charity event, valentine’s day event, or even a March madness party. It does not need to be complicated, just fun.
Consistency is a sales strategy… a hope and a wish are not! Are you leaving too much to chance, or are you committed to getting back to proven winning fundamentals? The football season is over, yet you can have a winning season by executing consistently on the fundamentals.
Fundamental Three: Write a Note
A lost art is writing a personal note! Writing a note establishes a more personal level of connection. Even if you just write something as easy as “Happy February!” A handwritten note will go a long way in keeping you top of mind.
Fundamental Four: Stop by With a Gift
Face-to-face is powerful with clients at any time of the year. I once worked with an agent that always had boy and girl gift baskets in the car that he dropped off anywhere he saw the “stork!” Get creative and stop by with anything of value, and you will not only build a relationship yet also stay top of mind.
A hope and a wish are NOT sales strategies… consistency is. Are you leaving too much to chance or getting consistent on the fundamentals?
The football season may be over yet that does not mean you can’t have a winning season by focusing on the fundamentals.
by Mark Johnson | Dec 19, 2019 | Action, Advice, Burn Out, Control, Exceeding Expectations, Failure, Growth, In The News, JPAR, JPAR News, Press and Media, Real Estate
JP & Associates REALTORS® (JPAR) announced a joint mortgage venture with fintech startup Avenu and its IntroLend platform.
Introlend is an app that allows the consumer to receive mortgage offers from their different sources, including a wholesale lender that works with the company. JPAR is creating its own limited liability corporation to launch its own branded platform, where agents can buy into owning a piece of the platform.
Agents make money off of the success of the company because they become owners. This means they won’t be violating the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA), according to Geoff Lewis, the president of Vesuvius Holdings, the parent company of JPAR. Agents won’t be directly steering a consumer to a specific lender in exchange for a kickback fee. They are presenting the consumer with mortgage offers from three different lenders and can even recommend lenders they have a previous relationship with for inclusion in the app.
“They’re not directly receiving dividends based on the deals they actually refer to the mortgage entity,” Lewis said. “If they have a lender they like working with, a loan officer that’s their favorite, they can invite that loan officer to participate in IntroLend.”
Participation is currently available to JPAR agents in Texas on the corporate and franchise side, but the company is working on getting licensed in more states.
Participation is open to agents that have been with JPAR for at least one year. Each unit is priced at $500 and escalates based on the length of time with JPAR. If you’ve been with JPAR for one year, you can buy-in at up to $1000, 2 years-$5000, three years-$10,000, and four years-$20,000. These levels are the maximum that can be invested.
The venture is expected to scale quickly and provide a nice return for agents.
“One of the things that we’ve said all along is that we’re a next-generation brokerage,” Lewis said. “We’re innovative, cutting edge and agent-centric with our 100 percent commission, transaction fee model.”
The launch of IntroLend is another service in addition to iBuyer, an amazing tech platform, and the agent healthcare offerings and will allow JPAR to continue the massive growth it is seeing in the space.
“This is just another innovation that shows we’re focused on being agent-centric and we believe this will be very important in recruiting and retaining agents,” Lewis added.
Allowing agents to buy into ownership of the mortgage company is the thing that makes this program unique from other IntroLend platform partners.
About JP & Associates REALTORS®
At JP & Associates REALTORS® we’ve built a company that focuses on putting agents first. Opening in 2011, JPAR is taking the real estate industry by storm and earning accolades such as Top 10 Hottest Franchise (according to Inc.), a three-time Inc. 5000 honoree (2019: #1004), and the Fastest Growing 100% Commission Brokerage and Franchise in the USA (according to Real Trends 500). Since offering franchise services in 2018, JPAR has expanded to 8 states in addition to the brokerage in Texas.
JPAR operates multiple offices across Texas, Louisiana, South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, Arizona, New Mexico, and Florida, is expanding nationwide, and offers franchising opportunities for entrepreneurial real estate professionals.
To learn more about becoming an agent or franchising visit http://www.jpar.com.
by Mark Johnson | Dec 15, 2019 | Action, Advice, Burn Out, Control, Failure, Goal Setting, Goals, Growth, JPAR, Real Estate, Sucess Goals
Our work lives have become more demanding, presenting us with more complex challenges at a relentless pace. Add in your personal needs, family needs, and other commitments, and it’s easy to feel always overwhelmed. For most of us, the typical response to growing workloads is to work harder and put in longer hours, rather than to step back and examine and find a new way of operating.
The cognitive impact of feeling overwhelmed continuously can range from mental slowness, forgetfulness, confusion, difficulty concentrating, or thinking logically, to a racing mind or an impaired ability to problem solve. When we have too many demands over an extended period of time, cognitive fatigue kicks in. The effect makes us less productive and leaves us feeling even more overwhelmed.
If you are feeling overwhelmed, here are some key strategies to try:
Have the courage to stop what you’re doing. Give yourself the time and space to slow down, so you can see the bigger picture and get a handle on things. Regather yourself. Center yourself so that you have the energy to make wiser, healthier decisions.
- Get clear on your priorities.
Taking time to contemplate your priorities is key to having focused flow. What’s most important to you right now? How do you want to run your business and live your life on a day-to-day basis? Look at the bigger picture and how you want to spend your time and energy.
Lin Yutang said, “besides the noble art of getting things done, there is the noble art of leaving things undone. The wisdom in business consists in the elimination of nonessentials.” What don’t you need to do? What can you automate, delegate, or eliminate?
Having too much to do often has to do with unrealistic goal setting and over-committing your time and energy. Are you overly ambitious? Are you not being realistic about your goals and what you can do?
People who are overwhelmed spread their energy too thinly. Often, it’s hard for them to say “no” because they fear disappointing others. When you feel scattered and pulled apart in a lot of different directions, are you willing to pull yourself back in and say “no” to others? Are you ready to get more comfortable saying no?
Be willing to focus on just a few things at a time. Put limits on certain activities that aren’t important. By limiting your time and energy for specific endeavors, and not allowing yourself to get lost in the day-to-day, you can create more time and space in your life. Limit the number of emails, FB time, talk time, any activities that consume the unproductive time in your life. The paradox is that by creating more discipline and limitation in your life, you create greater freedom.
- Re-imagine a new schedule.
Imagine a new lifestyle from scratch. If you made your business effectiveness, health, and happiness a priority, what would a perfect day look like? What would an ideal week look like?’
Being overwhelmed is not a fact — it’s a state of consciousness that limits your freedom and happiness. It requires a shift in perspective. Often, when you’re feeling overwhelmed, you’re over-thinking everything that needs to get done. You’ve lost yourself, and you’re no longer present.
Instead of seeing the things outside of you having power over you, be willing to stop and regather yourself. Bring yourself back to the present moment. Remember that you have a choice about the way you want to feel.
