As an experienced real estate broker, you
already understand that the agents that make up your team are not truly your
employees. However, they do look to you as their broker and many will look to
you the captain of the ship. After all, you are the one in charge of recruiting
new members, guiding your brand, keeping everyone in compliance with the law
and basically make the rules for the brokerage. Still, if you want to empower
your team to achieve optimal success, you need to influence their performance more
as a leader than a boss. The experts at Weichert recognize that these five
characteristics are what make the type of leader that achieves the most
success.
- Leaders Motivate, Not Intimidate
One of the most distinguishing differences
between and leader and boss is how they achieve performance results from their
team. While a boss may resort to scare tactics and confrontation to compel a
team to meet benchmarks, a leader will take the time to discover what motivates
each person and deploy appropriate methods to keep them motivated. If you are
determined to build a positive culture within your brokerage and continuously
elevate performance, you would be better off behaving like a leader that
motivates your agents on multiple levels. For example, you can establish
financial, emotional, and professional motivators like bonuses, awards for
performance, and promotions within your team.
- Leaders Focus On Sustainable Solutions
Anyone can throw together a lackluster
short-term solution for problems that arise within their brokerage. However, a
true leader takes the long-term future of their agents and their brokerage
seriously and avoids applying the proverbial band-aids on bullet holes. If you
plan to lead your agents rather than boss them around, you should include
contingency plans within your annual business plans. The more that you plan
ahead for things that could go wrong, the better you will be at leading your
team to success with ease throughout those challenges.
- Leaders Listen, Support and Share the “Why”
Nobody enjoys working with or for someone
that runs their business like a dictatorship. In fact, brokers that don’t
listen to their agents will experience a higher rate of costly agent turnover
and issues.
If you are the type of broker that strives for the best for their entire team,
it would be in your best interest to keep your eyes, ears, and mind as open as
possible. Not only could you open the floor to your agents during team meetings
to allow for free expression of ideas, but make one-on-one appointments
to check in with agents on their progress, guide them through challenges, and
allow them to share their opinions or ideas with you. These are the perfect
opportunities to show every agent in your brokerage that you care about them
and are happy to support them in their career as their leader rather than their
boss. And if there are specific practices you need agents to engage in,
make sure you are not just “ordering” it to happen. Make sure you are giving
them the context of “why” it is vital for them to engage in it.
- Leaders Strive For The Successes Of Others
Another noticeable difference between brokers
that behave like a leader vs. a boss is their desire to see each and every
member of their team succeed for more than their own personal gain. They put
the goals of their agents above their own. Obviously, when your agents make
money, you do too, but the more you invest in helping each agent achieve their
personal and professional goals, the more success you will all achieve. It’s a
feel-good way to approach your business and a win-win for you and your agent.
Agents that know that their broker truly cares and helps them, are far more
driven to produce results.
- Leaders Build Confidence
As you probably remember, starting a career
as a real estate agent can seem a bit overwhelming at times. It can be
difficult to build up the necessary confidence to run a profitable real estate
business in the face of all the rejection that inevitably confronts agents. You
can define yourself as a leader by instilling your
team with the confidence they need to approach leads, negotiate contracts,
and navigate unexpected issues that arise. You can remind them that failure is
ok; it happens to everyone, and the key is to let it go and move forward. The
more you invest in training, educating, and supporting your agents through
every stage of their growth, the better they will be able to perform with
confidence.
Be The Leader you Always Imagined
Ironically, it can be challenging to build up
your own confidence as a real estate broker and leader, especially if you are
trying to navigate these waters on your own. One of the main reasons that many
brokers choose to join a franchise like Weichert, is that they can get their
own support as a broker and a leader, as well as the educational tools they
need to empower their agents.
For more information about how joining
Weichert can help you grow as a leader, please visit www.weichertfranchise.com.
Original content posted on https://www.weichertfranchise.com/blog/5-characteristics-that-make-you-a-leader-instead-of-a-boss/
