What in the world do the Beatles have to do with real estate pros success? A lot, I think. We’ve all heard of Paul, George, Ringo, and John—but, does the name “George Martin” ring a bell? Maybe. Martin was the record producer who discovered and molded the Beatles, adding his classical musical background to the Beatles’ creativity to produce the Beatles’ unique and ever evolving sounds.
Martin was the ‘Magician’ Who Molded the Beatles
As a musician myself, I’ve always marveled at how the Beatles put classical musical aspects into their rock ‘n roll. Well, guess what? They didn’t do it by themselves—they melded their talents with Martin. George Martin just died at age 90, and many articles are being written about his collaboration with the Beatles. As I read these articles, I was thinking, “These life and performance lessons are absolutely applicable to us real estate professionals.” So, here are five life and performance lessons we can learn from their association:
- Keep improving your team until you are working with the best.
Martin urged Beatles’ manager Brian Epstein to replace drummer Pete Best with Ringo Starr, who he felt was a better drummer. Is your team the strongest it can be? Who’s holding you back? Who’s hindering your best performance? Who do you need to replace? I know, as an ensemble musician, you never play any better than your worst player!
- Start every listing, buyer and training presentation with an attention-getting ‘hook’.
Starting with the ‘hook’: Martin suggested Paul McCartney replace the first verse of Can’t Buy Me Love with the ‘can’t buy me love’ intro. That’s the hook, and we never forget it, do we? Do your listing/buyer and training presentations start with something attention-getting, or do you ‘ease into’ your presentation with banal comments like ‘I’ll keep this short’ or ‘we’ve got a lot to cover’. Stop being banal and get creative with your opening (we practice this in my unique Train the Trainer online/coaching series.
- Take your listing/buyer/recruiting presentation apart and rebuild it with new elements.
You know the great ballad Yesterday (see, you’re humming it in your head!). But, did you know McCartney originally sang it with just acoustic guitar accompaniment? Martin added a string quartet, and that’s how that mellow, full, ethereal sound was created. Have you gone outside your comfort zone with your presentations? Have you gotten some coaching to polish and improve?
- Think outside the box—for a change.
Martin took his classical music background and added Souza marches and a calliope to Sgt. Pepper’s. But, he didn’t just add them—he cut the tapes in pieces, turned them upside down, and switched the phrases to provide a somewhat chaotic, yet captivating music. Are you thinking outside the box? What have you done for the first time this year? What have you done differently? How are you keeping your business fresh and exciting?
- No one succeeds alone. Martin proved it.
As you can see from these examples, Martin’s genius and the Beatles’ creativity resulted in something that had never been heard before—and will never be replicated again. But, what would they have been without each other? The Beatles would have been just another English rock ‘n roll group, and Martin would have been just another successful record producer. They melded their talents and were both flexible and adventuresome in trying new approaches.
Who’s your partner in success? Real estate agents (and leaders) like to think they do it all on their own. But, studies show that virtually no one succeeds alone. Yes, someone may be the ‘front man’ (or woman), but there’s a partner behind the scenes, making everything better.
Remember to thank that partner now and then. It could be your manager, the owner, a trainer, a coach—or your family.
Now, take these five life lessons to make your real estate career even more spectacular!
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