Empathy and vulnerability go a long way in when it comes to solving problems and building trust.

A high level of emotional intelligence is a superpower in relationship-based work like real estate, says David R. Caruso, Ph.D., a psychologist who co-authored the Mayer, Salovey and Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test and co-founded the Emotional Intelligence Skills Group. Although this form of intelligence is important for agents because of their work with clients and partners, it’s equally, if not more, critical for brokers. “Managing emotions—your own and others’—allows you to help your staff with challenges and to create an environment where people can thrive,” he says.

Emotional intelligence is an essential component to effective leadership, especially in an industry that’s constantly changing. Here’s the lowdown on EI, including what it is, why it’s so beneficial, and how to lead in a more emotionally intelligent fashion.

What is EI?

Think of emotions as information or data, Caruso says. Emotions are expressed by people in one of two ways: verbal signals like words or tone of voice and nonverbal signals such as facial expressions, body language and eye contact.

EI is a person’s capacity to accurately perceive, understand and manage their emotions and those of others, says John “Jack” D. Mayer, Ph.D, professor of psychology at the University of New Hampshire.

The Harvard Business Review defines the four components of EI as:

• Self-awareness, an understanding of yourself—your strengths, weaknesses and your own emotions—and how those components affect those around you.
• Self-management, or competency in managing your own emotions and impulses and asking for help in areas that are not your strong suit.
• Social awareness, which is essentially being able to “read the room.” Those with social awareness have the “ability to recognize others’ emotions and the dynamics in play within [their] organization.”
• Relationship management, or how well a leader can help ease and solve conflict. Relationship management has everything to do with mentorship and respect.

The better leaders are at perceiving emotions, the more likely they are to adeptly diffuse conflict and navigate highly emotional siuations.

Why EI is Key for Brokers

In volatile, uncertain or complex environments like the real estate profession, competency in EI is important, Caruso says. “People in these environments are experiencing a lot of different emotions, at high levels, and these emotions impact performance. The question is whether people will address them in a smart way.”

Brokers are managing emotions from all directions: their agents, their agents’ clients, their own clients, managers, office staff, business partners and more. Brokers also have to effectively manage their own emotions so that they can come to the office regulated and ready. That’s why practicing the four components of EI is essential for a broker to maintain equilibrium within themselves and their offices.

Serve as a Role Model

By aptly navigating their own feelings, brokers set an example of self-regulation. They possess the emotional resources to help their agents and to persevere. “Think of a leader controlling their own anxiety during a crisis to present a calm, ‘in charge’ persona to those they lead out of that crisis,” says Ronald E. Riggio, Ph.D., professor of leadership and organizational psychology at Claremont McKenna College in Claremont, Calif. Through their example and conflict resolution skills, they help others regulate their emotions as well, such as when a fellow employee or client becomes distraught, he says.

Lead Strategically

“A critical part of a leader’s EI is being able to ‘read’ other people: understanding their likes and dislikes, needs, feelings and motivations,” says Riggio. “Brokers higher in EI are savvier with their communication and can use different approaches depending on which one will be most effective with each person,” adds Traci Cipriano, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist, consultant, speaker and coach.

For instance, public recognition might appeal to one agent, but it could be undesirable for another, Caruso says. Since agents want and need different things, brokers have to adapt to different communication styles to help their agents reach goals.

Earn Trust and Boost Motivation

“One role of leaders is to motivate and inspire followers, and much of this inspiration is communicated emotionally,” says Riggio. To build positive leader-follower relationships and inspire loyalty, leaders need to be responsive to the needs and feelings of those they lead, he adds.

That means that dismissing agent concerns, worries or fears won’t work. EI is intrinsically linked to culture and, as many brokers know, culture is one of the main components necessary for agent retention.

Provide Expert Guidance

One reason EI is essential among real estate leaders is because the profession itself is highly emotional.

“Buying and selling is emotional,” says Karen Briscoe, creator and author of the “5 Minute Success” series and concepts and principal at HBC Real Estate Group-KW. “Often, people’s greatest asset is their home and there’s a lot of emotional attachment to it. It’s an agent’s opportunity to serve their clients, and a broker’s opportunity to equip their agents with the ability to help their clients move towards a solution.”

Model Resilience

EI helps brokers navigate the changes that come with running a business, explains Briscoe. While one agent might approach a lost deal with a growth mindset, another could react negatively and flail, she adds. Many leave the industry because they lack EI and consequently have difficulty coping with the inevitable market shifts.

When a broker has a higher capacity for resilience, they’re able to weather market changes and help their agents do the same.

How to Lead with EI

Although some aspects of emotional intelligence are innate, skills in emotional communication can be developed, Riggio says. To improve in this area, Mayer adds, brokers can work on identifying, describing and moderating emotions in yourself and others. Because that’s a tall order, though, Caruso suggests using some of these compensatory strategies in the meantime:

• Spend Time With Your Emotions. When it comes to yourself, work on responding to your emotions with intention, says Debbie Sorensen, Ph.D. a psychologist and the co-author of, ACT Daily Journal: Get Unstuck and Live Fully with Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. Pause and notice how you feel. Then think through the best way to move forward. “Sometimes, it’s helpful to follow emotions—there can be some wisdom in them,” she says. “But other times, it’s not so helpful.” Ask yourself if your emotions require outside help—talking to a friend or loved one, enlisting the help of a mentor, or speaking with a therapist could help. Sometimes though, it’s just a matter of acknowledging your feelings and moving forward.
• Listen to Hear, Not to Respond. With other people, truly listen, Cipriano says. As they talk, pay attention to your own internal responses. It’s important to acknowledge someone’s feelings before responding. After you’ve done so, consider what you will say before replying. When you’re ready to respond, do so with empathy, being mindful of your tone. Try to avoid the common temptation of rushing in with fixes, adds Sorensen. Sometimes, just sitting with someone and talking about their feelings is enough.
• Practice Vulnerability. For many, vulnerability feels like a weakness, but much of today’s conversation around the topic speaks to the opposite—that being vulnerable with others breeds trust and actually makes leaders more powerful. Sorensen encourages leaders to admit when a day or situation was tough and check in if one of your agents seems to be struggling. When people feel psychologically safe, they’ll be more comfortable sharing their challenges, she adds.

For a helpful shortcut, try Briscoe’s “feel, felt, found” script. When an agent tells you about a situation, first say you understand how they’re feeling. Then, say that others have felt that way before, and relate a helpful finding (“what we found was…”). By sharing an action or perspective they can take, you’re helping them move forward rather than wallowing or spiraling. Plus, you’re showing empathy and validating their feelings.

National Association of REALTORS®
Reprinted with permission

If you want to know whether your agents are filling up your company’s pipeline enough, learn how to make projections based on appropriate data.

It’s impossible to check the pulse of your business if you don’t have a clear view of what’s happening with your pipeline. You must have an accurate sales forecast to anticipate what’s next for your business, jump on market opportunities, and avoid potentially costly mistakes. If you do it right, you’ll be able to close more deals in the process. You can make smarter moves and close more deals if you use sales forecasts to:

• Make smarter hiring decisions. Brokers can learn the right time to recruit new agents and avoid hiring too many or too few salespeople with an accurate sales forecast, according to author and business consultant Michael Soon Lee. Knowing what’s in your pipeline can help you avoid being in the position of having too many agents and not enough leads or vice versa.
• Motivate your team. Sales forecasting also helps you see which team members are leading the pack and which may be in need of additional training or support. You could create a daily sales forecast for agents who need extra motivation to meet their goals and a quarterly forecast to see whether your entire team is hitting its target.
• Stay ahead of the market. How long do your listings stay on the market? A sales forecast can give you an idea of the average time it takes your team to sell property, which is important information you can pass on to future clients so they are better prepared for the transaction.

No matter what metrics you use to track your performance, sales forecasting can help you set, monitor, and evolve those metrics based on what’s happening in your unique market. You’ll be able to solve problems before they arise, all while making better decisions for your team and budget. Here are some helpful tips for how to design effective sales forecasts for your real estate business.

1. Analyze industry data. Too often, real estate pros base their sales forecasts on a gut feeling or wishful thinking. But data is a powerful tool. If you’ve adjusted your forecast for a predicted drop in sales, don’t make new hires a business priority unless you’re already grappling with a staffing shortage. Instead, focus your marketing efforts on potential home buyers who, despite any downward trends, are likely to move ahead with a purchase, such as millennials with growing families or leads looking to relocate for work.
2. Carefully track how and when leads enter your CRM. Real estate deals can take weeks, months, or even years to close. Use your sales forecast to estimate the average length of a sales cycle based on property type, agent, and past trends. If you keep your eyes on your CRM, you’ll have no problem adjusting your strategy to do more of what’s working and boost conversion rates where you can. As a major bonus, your team also will have a more accurate idea of the commissions they’ll be making over the course of a quarter or year.
3. Monitor agent performance. You’ve probably heard this before in your office: “I’m confident they’ll buy within 10 days, and the deal will be worth a kajillion dollars.” It’s not a bad thing for agents to be optimistic about their ability to close, but these rich estimates don’t always come to fruition. The only sure way to guarantee that your expected revenue becomes actual cash flow for your business is to monitor your agents’ progress. A smart CRM will make it easy to track agent performance and assess follow-ups on a monthly, weekly, or even daily basis.

Make no mistake: Excessive optimism and a lack of accurate data will only bring disappointment down the road. Though you can’t use a crystal ball to predict the future, you can build accurate sales forecasts to increase your chances of future success.

National Association of REALTORS®
Reprinted with permission

Use these tips to enhance your profile and engage with your connections to market yourself and your brand on the professional social media platform.

Before embarking on a career in real estate, Marie Presti worked as the vice president of marketing for an internet company based in Cambridge, Mass. The company had developed a platform—much like current-day LinkedIn—but they ceased operations after 9/11. At that time, Presti, who is now broker-owner of The Presti Group in Newton, Mass., turned her sights to real estate. Not long after, a California-based company reached out to Presti. They’d learned about her as a result of her decade in the tech field, and they had a new product they wanted her to beta test. That product was LinkedIn.

“At first, I was like, they stole our product!” she laughed. “I started using it right away, though,” she says, “because I really wanted to keep in contact with the connections I’d made in the tech industry.”

Today, LinkedIn serves as an invaluable tool for Presti’s business. The professional social media platform is a hub for building relationships within the industry, making connections with potential clients, and sharing her knowledge of the field.

Presti has more than 2,400 connections and 2,300 followers on the site. She’s used LinkedIn as a master networking tool and is now sharing her best practices so that others can take advantage of the platform’s potential.

Capitalize on LinkedIn’s Functionality

One of Presti’s favorite features of the platform is that LinkedIn will automatically suggest connections based on the information you input into your profile page. “It has some great functionality in that it can look at my email address book and suggest connections based on the people I’ve emailed who also have LinkedIn profiles.”

Likewise, LinkedIn makes connection suggestions based on where an individual worked in the past or attended school. Some people advise that a LinkedIn profile should only include experience relevant to one’s current goals, but Presti disagrees. “Fill out the profile as completely as possible,” she says. “That way, LinkedIn can look at the information you’ve input and suggest connections.”

Doing so gives agents and brokers a wider web of potential contacts. Though an agent might not work in a particular industry anymore, he or she might still want to connect with people from that industry. After all, Presti says, “one never knows who might be looking for a house.” She has included all her education background from high school on, and every job she’s held. This technique works in her favor time and again. “I’ve had people from my days in high tech reach out to me to help them with their real estate needs,” Presti says. “I’ve had people from high school connect with me.”

Building a comprehensive profile on the professional network can also bring job opportunities. For instance, a California-based real estate agency looking to expand to the East Coast reached out to Presti to head its first Massachusetts-based office. At the time, Presti wanted to move up in the industry, and the proposal was a good fit. “They came to me because of my LinkedIn profile, and it turned out to be a great opportunity for me at the time.” Presti helped the company build its first New England office from the ground up, and she was instrumental in the company’s East Coast success.

Building a Network of Business Partners

Presti knows most of her 2,400-plus connections personally or professionally. “At first, I was really selective with who I accepted as a connection,” she says. Her strategy is a little more relaxed now, but she still wants to ensure the connections she accepts are either in the industry, acquaintances, or people she knows well.

A great way to build connections within the industry is to add a personalized note, Presti advises. Write a short message about why you want to connect—whether you have a referral or want to ask some questions. “I’ve had many business partners do this,” she says, “and it makes me more likely to accept their connection request.”

Plus, business partners are not limited to other real estate agents or brokers, Presti says. “Mortgage officers, real estate attorneys, insurance companies, movers, painters, contractors—they’re all important connections to have,” Presti explains. And LinkedIn fosters the perfect environment for building such a network.

Job history and education aren’t the only important components in a profile. Volunteer experience is also vital to a well-rounded LinkedIn page, says Presti, especially if it’s industry-related. Her volunteer work as the president of the Greater Boston Association of REALTORS®️ lands her regular invitations to industry events, which gives her the opportunity to make face-to-face connections as a result.

Tips to Get Started or Enhance Your LinkedIn Experience

Creating a LinkedIn profile and adding all pertinent information is a great start, but it isn’t enough. “You need to be active on the platform,” Presti says. She recommends posting status updates one or two times a week. “I also look at the alerts on a daily basis.” LinkedIn will send notifications when a connection has a work anniversary or birthday, and Presti makes a point to send a note.

Another important aspect of the LinkedIn profile is the title or headline. “You want to convey to your audience that you’re an expert, but not in a sales-y way,” Presti says. In her own headline, Presti wants to communicate that she’s an expert in her field and a business owner. As a result, hers says, “Greater Boston REALTOR® of the Year/President, Greater Boston Association of REALTORS®/Owner, The Presti Group.” This title tells the LinkedIn community where she’s located, what she does, and that she’s good at her job. But she cautions against using industry jargon that can confuse people visiting your profile. “A lot of firms offer gold or platinum awards for meeting certain sales goals, but to the general population, none of that jargon makes sense, so I don’t recommend putting it in a headline.”

An updated, comprehensive summary is equally important to differentiate oneself from other agents or brokers. Presti advises that if agents and brokers have experience outside the real estate realm, adding it into the summary section can make a difference. “I have advanced degrees and experience in tech and math. I think that’s an important differentiator because it might tell a potential client that I’m good with numbers or logically inclined,” she says.

Posting in blogs on the site is another great way to position yourself as an expert, Presti says. She’s also an advocate for updating a LinkedIn profile on a regular basis. “Every time I change offices or move, I make sure that’s reflected on my profile because all my connections get an update when something changes with me.” This is a great way to keep your business in front of people.

Ultimately though, Presti says LinkedIn is meant to be a tool and should be treated as such. It is easy to become overwhelmed and get sucked into creating a perfect profile, but the purpose of LinkedIn is to get you in front of others. “Social media can suck people in, so it’s important to make sure there’s a balance between how much time is spent on these platforms and how much time is spent in the field,” Presti says. “When LinkedIn is used as a tool and not a primary communication technique, it can be really valuable.”

National Association of REALTORS®
Reprinted with permission

There’s never a wrong time to remind agents about staying safe and protecting themselves from digital or physical harm.

Several years ago, Lisa Hill, President of the Orlando Regional REALTOR® Association (ORRA) and Broker Associate at Keller Williams Realty at the Parks, received a call from a man asking her to show him a rural property at dusk. Feeling suspicious, she told him she’d let him know when she was on her way. She did—adding that her business partner was with her. The prospect never showed up. When she tried phoning him to check in, the call did not go through. “I tell agents to trust their gut because if something doesn’t feel or sound right, it probably isn’t,” she says, relieved she followed her intuition.

Safety is a top issue for agents and brokers. In today’s market, digital and physical threats exist, which is why it’s important to keep agents up to date on what’s affecting safety in the profession. Likewise, make sure they have the latest information on safety tips and technology, as well as time-tested tactics that are still effective.

Vet New Contacts

To avoid wasting time and risking danger, Andrew Bell, broker-owner at NextHome Assurance Realty in Jacksonville, Fla, urges vigilance when working with strangers. Before meeting with prospects, his agents ask for images of their driver’s licenses. After meetings are scheduled, they’re shared with fellow agents at the brokerage. Agents also circulate pertinent information about the prospect.

Anthony G. Askowitz, broker-owner at RE/MAX All Keys Real Estate in Key Largo, Fla., recommends integrating tech as well. “The old method of requiring a meeting in the office and making copies of ID to be left in the office with a showing itinerary is the minimum,” he says. Today, his agents use the TruthFinder app for background checks and try to make sure buyers have been pre-approved for a mortgage.

With his team, Cole Slate, broker-owner at Slate Real Estate in Northeast, Fla., instructs researching prospects via the FOREWARN app, which provides unofficial background checks. “In a business where we rely on referrals and new relationships, this app is a huge help when it comes to establishing safety and peace of mind out in the field,” he says.

Meet in a Public Place

When Robin Kencel, an associate broker with Robin Kencel Team at COMPASS, receives a request to see a property from someone she doesn’t know, she requires them to first come to the office to fill out paperwork. “If you don’t have a personal relationship with someone and it’s not a personal referral, put on your due diligence hat,” she says.

Similarly, Steve Snider, managing broker at One Sotheby’s International Realty in Aventura, Fla., suggests meeting new clients ahead of time at the office or a local coffee shop—not at a listing. “In a public place, everyone has seen you with that person, and there are a lot more eyes on the situation,” says Bell.

Share Your Location With Colleagues

“We tell our team never to go to a property if no one knows where they’ll be,” says Hill, who shares when she’s hosting open houses and conducting showings in real time on social media. For added safety, Joy Kim Metalios, managing director and broker at The Metalios Team at Houlihan Lawrence in Greenwich, Conn., urges setting up alert security measures on apps. For instance, tapping an “alert” button on the Supra Systems eKEY app will notify specific contacts if you’re in an unsafe situation and tell them your location. For iPhone users, consider sharing your location with team members via the iPhone “Find My” app.

Pair Up

“We have buddies on our team,” says Metalios, who supplies her agents with the Birdie Personal Safety Alarm. “We share our location with our buddy and notify them when we are on an appointment with a new client. We also team up with another agent for open houses and showings.” For open houses, Hill recommends asking mortgage lenders to attend and pre-qualify prospects.

Use Vigilance

To allow for enough time to scope out properties (including unlocking back doors and opening closets), Hill urges arriving early to showing appointments. Once at a property, Askowitz’s agents know to park on the street where they cannot be blocked in, keep their keys and cell phones on them, and follow customers around (not entering small rooms). Along with leaving the front door slightly ajar, Metalios counsels her team to remain near the exit and to tell clients their managers might be stopping by.

Create Code Words

In his brokerage’s policies and procedures manual, Bell lays out how to use specific code words. If an agent is meeting someone new, a team member can call them a few minutes into the appointment. On the call, the agent can ask the team member to grab them a green (for safe), yellow (for on alert), or red (for unsafe) folder, depending on how they feel. If they say red, the team member should immediately call the police. If yellow, the person who is not at the meeting should ask whether the agent needs an excuse to leave. If yes, the caller can pretend to be a family member, tell them they need to come home at once and stay on the phone with them.

Protect Listings

Keeping a property safe means not allowing large groups to congregate in the space, says Askowitz. “If you expect hordes of attendees [at an open house], bring a second or even third agent to maintain order and keep an eye on the seller’s possessions. Recommend that the seller remove medications from bathroom cabinets, and secure small valuables, such as jewelry and collectables.”

He also recommends that listing agents use electronic lockboxes, which can be programmed to only allow access during certain times and provide reports on who accessed the property and when.

National Association of REALTORS®
Reprinted with permission

Florida broker Ben G. Schachter uses innovation and resilience to make a comeback after losing everything in the 2008 market crash.

Ben G. Schachter, GRI, is no stranger to the roller coaster that is the real estate profession. After joining the industry in 2000, Schachter made millions—and then lost it all in the crash of 2008. His resilience and innovation paid off, though, and today he’s found success not with one business but with two. The Florida-based broker and president of The Signature Real Estate Companies is also the co-founder and head of sales at TotalBrokerage, a software company for real estate brokerages, and he credits his resilience in the industry to learning from his setbacks, following his intuition, and pursuing out-of-the-box approaches.

A Teenager Looking for Spending Money

Unofficially, Schachter began his real estate career at age 15. Angling for cash to take girls on dates but not old enough to secure a traditional job in Florida, he had to get creative. He lucked out on finding a real estate agent who needed assistance making cold calls and who’d pay him cash. The agent paid him $5 per hour plus $20 per appointment. “It was ironic because this job ended up shaping the trajectory of my future career,” he says. “Had I not tried to get a job at 15 and instead waited until I was 16, I probably would have been like everybody else and worked in a grocery store or at the mall.”

A few years later, while a freshman at the University of Florida, he started his second job in the field, at an apartment leasing firm. He cleaned and loaded the fax machine and later answered the phones and completed paperwork. Eventually, he became a leasing consultant at $10.50 per hour.

When Schachter graduated from college in 2000, he turned down the company’s sales manager offer to earn his real estate and mortgage broker licenses. Then, while living at his parents’ home in Boca Raton, he began working as an agent under a broker whom he’d met in college. At the same time, he started his mortgage broker business.

Capitalizing on South Florida’s new-construction boom, he earned $146,000 in his first year and purchased a two-bedroom apartment. He often played dual roles for his clients as their agent and their mortgage broker.

Earning Millions and Losing it All

In 2002, Schachter recognized he could capitalize on earnings by having agents work under him, so he started his own company, Florida International Real

Estate, and a real estate team under the broker he’d met while in college. Thanks to the continued surge in new construction, he was netting a seven-figure income by 2006. To catapult his earnings further yet, he decided to invest in flipping new construction.

The market crash of 2008 stopped Schachter in his tracks, though, halting his upward trajectory. He realized he needed to borrow $4.5 million to close on the homes he’d committed to buying and flipping. In the end, he sold his own home, car and even wristwatch to raise the funds to close them. The homes he’d hoped to flip at a profit were sold at a considerable loss. “Things got so rough, I had to sell my blender—and I had a really nice blender,” he recalls.

To regroup, Schachter moved back in with his parents, and at that time, all his possessions fit into two duffel bags.

Despite his losses, Schachter was intent on remaining in the real estate profession. His earlier successes made him confident in his ability to bounce back, and he looked at the effects of the market crash as a learning opportunity. “I figured this was a good time to earn my broker’s license, so I could hire other agents and mentor them,” he says. “I could teach other people what to do to be successful and, equally important, what not to do so they wouldn’t make the same mistakes I did.”

So he could pay for real estate school, his father loaned him $500, with the stipulation that he finish the course, pass the state test and move out within 90 days.

Becoming a CEO

Soon after Schachter earned his broker’s license, he rented his own home and began working at Boca Raton–based Quad Realty Investments Inc. Its co-owners, Mark Levy and Schachter’s former neighbor Jack Jaiven, asked him to be their broker. When the two offered him a specific salary, he told them to cut it by 50%. “I said I wanted to earn equity in the company if I was going to build it,” Schachter says. “I was concerned that in five years, they’d bring in a business consultant who’d ask why they were paying me so much.”

To achieve the goal of partnership, he asked Jaiven and Levy to set specific sales goals. The goals were lofty, and to the co-owners’ surprise, Schachter succeeded in meeting them. By age 31, he was broker and president as well as a partner of the company.

Expanding the Business

After joining the company in 2006, Schachter not only beat his sales goals but also started making changes: First, he changed the name of the company to The Signature Real Estate Companies; then, he joined the local MLS and REALTOR® association and bought computers for all the employees.

Realizing the effectiveness of hyperlocal branding, he set up brokerages in multiple communities and branded them according to the community’s unique aesthetic and needs. For each of these companies, he used the name of the community. Each has its own branding and location, but all were run by one management team and back office.

Schachter interviews each potential hire or agent himself to ensure they’re a good fit for the brokerage and commits to offering them all of the amenities needed to do the job well. Though margins have thinned, he still believes in offering tools, technology, training and support in abundance.

To compensate for those thinning margins—a result of rising costs and inflation—he saw the need for additional revenue streams. He’s set up several successful affiliated real estate–related businesses, including a real estate school and a mortgage brokerage.

In 2015, Schachter had grown frustrated with existing real estate software and asked a software engineer friend from college to build a cloud-based, end-to-end transaction management solution. As partners, they created TotalBrokerage, a software company that brings all aspects of the back end of a brokerage together in one package. After beta testing the product at his own brokerage, he added the software to his suite of income streams, and the two began selling it to the public five years ago. The subscription-based software is used by about 200 brokerages.

Today, Schachter, who lives with his wife and three children in Boynton Beach, Fla., works 20 hours per week at TotalBrokerage and 50 hours per week at The Signature Real Estate Companies. Boasting a 40-person management team and nearly 1,500 agents, the brokerage is projected to close about 6,000 transactions totaling nearly $2 billion by the end of 2023, with the affiliate companies bringing in another $1 billion.

National Association of REALTORS®
Reprinted with permission

Burnout is a serious issue that affects more than performance at work. Know the signs and how to help your agents get through it.

Before Paula Davis founded the Stress & Resilience Institute in Milwaukee and wrote the book Beating Burnout at Work, she spent several years as a commercial real estate practitioner. The inkling that she was experiencing burnout sparked when she realized she was procrastinating on certain tasks.

“I’m rarely a procrastinator. I began going to work later. As a lawyer, I didn’t have a start time. I started [showing up] 20 minutes later, then 30 minutes. I pushed the boundary,” she says.

She began waking up every day not wanting to go to work, and she found that she became sick more frequently.

“That’s the way stress impacts us physically. I would get a stomachache and then headaches; then it began happening every time I would close a deal,” she adds.

She felt that every curve ball in every deal was a major crisis. At home, when a family member would ask a question or need something, she found that she’d unnecessarily become upset or lack the capacity to help with what were normally easy tasks. Her eye-opener moment came when she got upset with her mom, who had asked her to pick up something from the store.

“I wasn’t having any fun, not at parties or with anything,” Davis says. “There should be some sort of happiness, joy and positive emotions sprinkled into what you do on some days. That used to be present, but it was eroding for me.”

Job burnout is more than having a bad week or feeling exhausted at the end of each day.

“Burnout is a sense of chronic cynicism or frustration,” Davis says, and it can lead to poor quality of life, poor performance, and depression.

What Burnout Is and How It Manifests

Nearly five years ago, the World Health Organization recognized work burnout as an occupational phenomenon. Symptoms are characterized by three components:

• Constant feelings of exhaustion
• Intensified mental distance from your job or feelings of cynicism or negativity toward one’s occupation
• Reduced effectiveness at one’s work

To a real estate professional, burnout can present itself as a constant annoyance with clients and their needs, for instance. Agents might even start questioning whether its really necessary or not to answer another client question or show yet another home. Agents aren’t doing so because they don’t want to provide the best level of service, but rather because their mental and emotional resources are depleted.

Another example of how burnout manifests is ambivalence, Davis says. For instance, an agent facing burnout might feel victimized by the market and resort to the thought that they can’t change anything—there’s no point in trying. Rather than a feeling of acceptance, which is healthy, Davis says, in cases of burnout, disconnection from the work is what surfaces.

Why Be Concerned About Workplace Burnout

For a broker, it’s important to know the signs of burnout and the tools available to agents. An agent in burnout is an agent in need, and if the issue is left unaddressed, consequences could stack up for the agent and the brokerage.

Health care provider the Mayo Clinic asserts that ignored or unaddressed job burnout can cause some major health problems including fatigue, alcohol or substance abuse, heart disease, high blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes and vulnerability to other illnesses. Sufferers also feel drained, have fewer coping skills and possible anger or irritation.

“As the market is changing with inventory so tight and higher interest rates, industry practitioners find themselves taking on more than they would before,” says Rebecca Thomson, regional vice president for Coldwell Banker Realty in Chicago. She supervises more than 2,000 agents in 19 offices across Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana and Michigan.

Thomson says real estate professionals burn themselves out because they have so much to deal with, adding that it’s especially true for women.

“They are delegating personal and business responsibilities. The pandemic put more on them, such as when kids had to be homeschooled or taking care of elderly family members,” she adds.

She says agents must take care of themselves but, much of the time, they don’t realize they’re overworked or in burnout until it’s caused major issues. Brokers are in a unique position to help agents navigate burnout and even prevent it from occurring in the first place.

Five Ways to Help Agents Avoid Burnout—And Work Through It

Schedule time between agents and managers. “Our management team are trained coaches,” Thomson explains. “Our offices are focused on culture collaboration instead of cutthroat culture.” Having leaders checking in with agents on a regular basis can give them the community and care they might need. With new agents, Thomson gives them a journal to write down all the things happening, what they are learning, and what they are feeling. Davis says that leaders need to ask how people are. “We need to ask what is stressing them out. How are they really?”

Offer recognition regularly. One of the main reasons workplace burnout happens is because an employee or agent doesn’t feel appreciated for their contributions to the business, Davis says. “Even a cursory thank you can help. But encourage and push leaders to move beyond that. Identify the specific behavior that made the good outcome,” she adds. It’s easy to recognize top performers, but it’s also important to make sure to recognize each agent for their strengths and what they bring to the brokerage.

Present resources to ease the workload. Make sure agents have enough training and knowledge to use all the systems and processes available so they can save time, Thomson says. Understand what you as a leader can help them automate to reclaim their time. Find other ways to free them up so they can spend more time with family, friends and on hobbies.

Teach them to say no. Thomson realized that her Type A personality was pushing her toward burnout. “I began to realize that I couldn’t say yes to everything. I then began to understand that we can’t expect ourselves [to perform at] 100% all the time. Sometimes, 80 to 90% is OK.” Helping agents realize this is important to their mental health. An email doesn’t have to be worded perfectly, for example. It just needs to be professional, kind and timely.

Get educated about burnout. “There’s a ton of education missing at the leader level about burnout,” Davis says, and one of the best ways you can help your agents is by understanding what burnout is and what resources are available. She also feels that leaders need to understand what makes people light up when it comes to their work. “When you are excited about what you are doing, the time is flying by.”

A study from the Mayo Clinic discovered a few years ago that physicians who spend 20% of their time doing “work they find most meaningful are at dramatically lower risk for burnout.” For real estate agents, that translates to figuring out what makes them light up in their careers and doing more of it. A couple of tweaks might be all that’s needed.

National Association of REALTORS®
Reprinted with permission