90 Day Challange – Day 28 – Thoughts to Work By- NAR Convention

I went to my first NAR Convention in 1994.  It just happened that 1994 was a pivotal year for our industry.  IDX was the topic of the convention.  Bill Chee, the NAR President at the time gave the opening speech termed “The Lions at the Gate”. Here is the video…(sorry I can’t get the embed code to work – so you have to click on the link)

http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1681730251/bctid1681717758

The energy at that meeting was electric.  The hallways were abuzz with discussion… IDX was born, Board of Choice was born and technology became a mandate for all real estate professionals.  The trade show was the biggest I had ever seen.  It took a full 8 hours just to walk the floor. Some 60,000 people attended the convention. I came back to Miami revitalized and filled with plans to incorporate technology into our daily business.

Fast forward to 2008 and the most recent NAR convention.  I was expecting the same kind of leadership as we are most certainly in challenging times in our industry.  I was surprised to see very little leadership.  The meetings were tired, the trade show sparsely attended and the attendance of the convention down to about 20,000.

So what have I learned in 15 years?  Real Estate practitioners need leadership, direction and a fundamental grasp on technology.  As the world around us has progressed and adapted, somehow we have remained mostly rigid in hanging on to the old ways. The business of tomorrow belongs to those that are willing to make the changes today. We have more Lions at our Gates than ever before and yet so few hear the roar and there is no one rallying the charge.

Homework for tomorrow – think about your geographic farm area, if you have one.  If you don’t have one,  think about where it is you would like to work.  It does not have to be just one place, but you need to start somewhere.  The area should be definable – a condo building or  a subdivision is a good place to start. Try to begin with something small and then we can grow it… avoid thinking of things like all of Miami Beach or all waterfront properties. Look at the MLS – make sure there is some sales activity.  Even the best marketing tools won’t generate you any business if there has only been 1 sale in the last 2 years.  Make sure it is an area that you either have some good working knowledge of or you are willing to get some working knowledge of… you need to become the expert.