Do You Have What It Takes?

By Regina P. Brown

Are you ready to be a real estate agent? You passed the test, the exam, HOORAY! Your contact list database is ready. You got your marketing materials and business cards designed. You even saved up capital funds to pay your startup costs.

However, do you have the personality it takes? That’s right, very few people actually have the perfect personality to stick to a self-disciplined daily schedule, ride out the emotional fatigue from a barrage of rejection, and weather the ups and downs of an uncertain sales cycle. The last thing you want is to have to hang up your license instead of paying for the next renewal.

The career of a real estate agent requires a taut balance of both people skills and tasks skills. If you’re a people-person and you love talking to people, that is great! You’ll make a fine salesperson. But without detailed task skills, you’ll never succeed in this paperwork-laden business.  The good news is that top producing agents who enjoy building relationships can always hire an assistant to stay on top of the documents and ensure legal compliance.

Other people are task oriented. If you are introverted and don’t like talking to people, you’ll be great at paperwork — but you won’t have any paperwork because you won’t be able to talk to people and make sales. I’ve seen this pattern repeat countless times with my overly-organized agents. Communication and relationship-building are key skills required, and you must be assertive in reaching out to contact people.

 

What other personality traits are required? Some real estate brokerages encourage their agents to take a personality test, such as the DISC. I prefer the Briggs Myers typology test which you can take free here: www.truity.com/test/type-finder-research-edition . 
For people who are not already familiar with their strengths and weaknesses, a personality test is an excellent method to uncover your skills and determine if this career suits you. Once completed, review the profiles of the 16 personality types from Briggs Myers: www.truity.com/view/types

How can a simple 5-minute personality test help you succeed as a real estate agent? By identifying your natural comfort zone, you can plan to leverage your strengths and escape your weaknesses. You also determine how to best work with others — whether clients, vendors, coop agents, or teams. Best of all, you learn to look for prospects’ preferred communication style — embrace their style and decide how best to approach them. After all, real estate sales is a relationship business, and those who focus on building relationships will win in the end!