In this series, I’m sharing some ‘whacks up the side of the head’ for managers.
Whack: The market wona��t as motivator anymore. You must provide an atmosphere to motivate.A�A�
Fear and greed are terrific short-term motivators, and the on-fire market furnished those generously. Fear of loss pushed buyers to make that buying decision or they would be left out. The market generously provided appreciation to sellers, so they could see the advantage of more money to sell now. (greed). The market provided the fear and greed motivators to agents, too. Now, the market isna��t pushing buying decisions. The market isna��t providing easy deals to agents. Guess what? The motivation finger has just been pointed to you! You must provide an atmosphere that motivates your agents to go to work. You are appreciating your agents. You are already encouraging them. If youa��re not seeing changes in their production, you are leaving out the motivator the market used so effectively: fear.A�
A different way to use a�?feara�� as a short-term motivator. Dona��t stop reading now. You dona��t have to use that stern parent/dictator style of management. You dona��t have to threaten. Instead, you must get skilled at creating, explaining, and implementing standards of production. Why? Ita��s a business. The market wona��t motivate now. Consumers expect much better performance from agents than they are getting.A�
Standards as Motivators
Standards of production (minimum expectations) let your agents know what is expected of them to have the privilege of staying with you. They also create accountability for management. You must have programs that leap agents over your standards. If you dona��t do this one, you are forever dependent on the whims of the market or the whims of your quasi-committed agents. Can you afford to let your business rely on those whims?A�
Recommendations:A�
a. Decide whether youa��re a business or a baby-sitter. (harsh words, but, remember, these are a�?whacksa��.)
A�b. Decide what is reasonable for you to expecta��production-wisea��from each of your agents (minimums).
c. Decide whether you deserve a certain level of excellence for all the hard work you do each day.
d. Implement production standards. A�
e. Look at your a�?agent development systema�� and see where the holes are. For example: When do you expect them to start lead generating? If you expect that the first week in the business, when are you engaging them in a start-up plan? When do you start your coaching with them? One of the biggest mistakes managers make is letting agents sit around waiting for something good to happen to thema��and ita��s not going to happen as an accident in a transitioning or normal market.
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