Don’t Wait for Things to Happen, Make Them Happen

Whether it’s going to a charity event in the evening--even when you're dead tired--or unflipping the phone and going through your address book, the principal is the same. You’ve gotta go out there and create business. This approach is what separates the successful from the mediocre.

Act Right Away

Last Wednesday a client and I were walking through a home. She’s a dear friend, and someone who I worked with for years. I could tell that she liked the listing. Experience has taught me to provide valuable information about the homes clients have seen. They often look at many properties in one day, and it’s a challenge to keep track.

“Do you want a copy of the floor plan?” I asked.

“That’d be great,” she said. Earlier in the day the seller’s broker had provided me a copy of the plan and it was on my on my desk in my office.

As we were leaving the listing, I told her, “The floor plan will be waiting for you when you get home.”

“What do you mean?” she asked me.

She wondered how I could have taken care of her request already. We had been together during the listing appointment, after all.

Impress Clients by Seizing the Moment

Once she told me that she wanted a copy of the floor plan I took action. While she was in one part of the house, I was in another. I unflipped my phone and called my office. I asked my assistant to grab the floor plan that sat on my desk make a copy of it. She then sent it to my client’s house. The floor plan was waiting for her at her home, and we hadn’t even left the appointment yet.

It was late afternoon when she and I met. At that point, I could have told myself, “It’s a quarter to 5:00, why not just wait till tomorrow?”

There’d be nothing wrong with waiting until the next day. But why delay something when you could do it right away?

My client was amazed and thankful for my take-charge approach.

“I wanted you to have the floor plan while the house is still fresh in my mind,” I told my client. And I meant it.

Always think of what you can do to provide the best service to your clients as possible…then do more.

Mom, You’re Not Getting Out of the Chair!

My kids know me too well. When we’re sharing a meal together they know what I’m thinking: Has everybody eaten enough? Does anyone need anything else? Is there something else I could do?

My son will see me preparing to get up--hands flattening on the tabletop ready to make my move. “Mom, stay put, we’re all OK,” he'll say.

A jumping jellybean they called me as a child. Active, energetic, and always ready to take on the world.

It's a quality that has lead to success...and exhaustion. Today, my workday will end at 8:15 p.m. I have a 6:00 p.m. meeting in downtown LA with a client. I have another at 7:30 p.m.

After work yesterday, I attended a charity event in Beverly Hills. I returned home pretty tired, three hours later, but I had to be at the fundraiser to show support for my community, give back, and touch base with those I haven’t seen in awhile—It’s all part of staying at the top. Get lazy, and be prepared to lose business.

A clairvoyant recently told me, "Myra you know that you're never going to stop working."

"Really?" I said. "Sometimes I think that it's just too much and feel like slowing down."

"You can't hold back because you love what you do. You may complain once in awhile, but it's your passion--you'll never slow down."

I'm reminded of the story of the tortoise and the hare. In my version the tortoise continues to push the envelope--slow and steady.

Meanwhile, the rabbit takes it easy. She says, "I can relax. I know how to do this. No one else can do what I do." And as soon as she knows it, she's fallen behind everyone else.