It Was Twenty Years Ago Today...

To my loyal readers, I beg your indulgence for a totally selfish post. It's a moment to tap into the memory bank and relive some unbelievable times. I'm sure if you're like me, the following post will bring back many memories for you from a similar time in your life.

Scene Setting- August 10th, 1991
Scene Location: Stephen C. O'Connell Center, Gainesville, Florida

[Lights fade. Scene ends with Sean confidently walking off the stage with diploma in hand]

My parents Jot and Claire Carpenter were in the audience to witness the memorable event. I graduated from the University of Florida with a Bachelors Degree in Exercise and Sports Science exactly twenty years ago today - August 10, 1991. At that moment (or perhaps the next morning), six of the best years of my life came to a close.

Apart from my 18 years of marriage and the entire lives of my children, there has not been anything in my life that has had a bigger impact on me than the time between August 1985 and August 1991. 

I'm sure you all have something in your life between the moment you entered this world and this exact moment in time as you are reading this that hold special memories for you. Perhaps it's a specific birthday such as your Sweet 16 or your 21st, your wedding day, a birth of a child (or children), a last moment with a parent or grandparent or some other personal moment in time.

For me, I can't tell you which moment from my time in Gainesville stands out the most but I can share a memories - some generic and some specific - that are in the "Play it again Sam" reel in my memory banks.

Rawlings Hall - Freshman year. 17 year old boy from Columbus enters a un-airconditioned, co-ed dormitory to begin my college years. My Dad helped move me in and still to this day, I remember every moment of that day...even my Dad sneaking in the two cases of Bud Light that my older brother Jot helped buy for me before I left Columbus. (It's not like Dad never did any underage drinking at University of Georgia when he was a freshman, right?)

Carl Bergeron - my Rawlings Hall RA (resident assistant) and the person who introduced me to my future best friends at...

Delta Upsilon Fraternity - A non-secret, non-hazing fraternity that was originally founded on November 4, 1834 at Williams College that became a huge part of my life in Fall 1985. 

Class of 1985 Pledge Class - Matt Corey, Tim Burch, Jim Daniel, Rick Marshall, Norm Cuadra and many others who became my first "band of brothers" in my adult life. Brian Marmaud, my fraternity Big Brother, was the original "River Dawg" and a huge mentor in my life over the next six years.

Jot T. Carpenter - My grandfather (a.k.a "Pop") lived in Jacksonville, Florida and was a huge factor in me choosing to attend UF. Turns out, after pledging Delta Upsilon, I found out that my "Pop" was a DU brother from the University of California back in the early part of the 20th century. Pop's beachfront property in Ponte Vedra Beach quickly because the DU House East until his death in 1987.

Joe's Deli - The eatery next door that was a legendary spot to eat before, during and after all Gator events. Many of my DU brothers worked here thru the years which meant great discounts on food and beers and many "after hours" events that weren't open to the public.

It's been said before but guys like Jim Mullaney, Tom Sandberg (River Dawg Gen II), Marc Jackson, Bill Loehle, Tim Logan, Pete Reichert, Pete Blank, Todd Meininger, Ross Bilbrey, Mike Neuwirth, Mike Richardson (River Dawg Gen III), Matt Scaringe (River Dawg Gen IV) and may other DU brothers that have a huge majority of my memory cache than any "lesson learned" in that same time frame. "Good times don't last but good people do." Dikaia Upotheke boys!

Crescent Beach, Sugar Mountain, NYC, Boston, LA, and many more road trip locations across America including most major college towns in the Southeastern quadrant of the United States. Many memories, most of which have been sealed in a pledge of confidentiality.

"Stop", "Can I get some Viresh?", "Abutments don't give," and "Calibogue" as well as many other sayings that don't mean anything except to those who ever said them.

.10 beers at The Park, .25 cent beers at CJ's, Reed Boyd at Chelsea's on Bottomless Beer Night, Danny's on Thursday Token Nights, Chili's Friday afternoon, Happy Hour at the Purple Porpoise from midnight to 2am, Balls, PJ O'Reilly's, Bennigan's, Nells for drafts and many more I am sure we've forgotten about...or probably should.

Tony and Pat's, Skeeters, Sizzler, Burrito Bros., Waffle House, Bill Knapp's, Grandy's, gator tails at Joe's Deli and anything served by fraternity cooks -  Ed, The Rev or Pat the Cook. (Please note the term "cook" used loosely and probably an insult to true chefs everywhere)

Faces of Faith, DU Lagoon, Full Moon Formal and Grand Slam Sorority Softball Tournament just to name a few events that come to mind.

Donating blood two times in a four week period to help win Greek Week


The Pike Open


Serenading sororities during dinner time


The Mallard Lounge, Work Parties and the Pent-House (forever)


Delta Upsilon's Florida Chapter earning the Sweepstakes Award for Best Chapter in the Nation - 1986. Not very often you can say you were among "the best in North America."

Dr Owen Holyoak - The toughest, meanest, most caring teacher I had in the College of Health and Human Performance. A tough SOB who wasn't liked by anyone but was respected by everyone. Without knowing it, he probably was a mirror image of my father. Earning a 100% on the final thesis in his course remains one of my proudest accomplishments in my life. 

Visits to see the lovely ladies of Delta Zeta at the University of Kentucky - some solo to visit my future wife and some with buddies to attend random sorority events.

Hitting my first hole-in-one on the 11th hole at the University Course with Brian Marmaud by my side

Seeing some incredible sporting events involving the Florida Gators and many other great SEC and rival teams.  

Wow - what a trip down Memory Lane. I hope you enjoyed the trip too and it made you flash back to some of the people, places and parties from your college years.

It's funny, because thinking about this now, it's probably during my college years that I subconsciously developed my current philosophy of "building relationships, solving problems and having fun."

I'm excited for the opportunity to continue that approach for another twenty years... and hopefully a few more.

 

Respect, Relationships and RBI's

Many times in a real estate environment we're battling against someone. The co-op agent we're competing against for the listing. Maybe it's a fellow licensee who is also showing the same property to their buyer that you are showing to your buyer. Perhaps it's all boiled down to negotiations and we feel like its "us" versus "them"?

It's Not Always About Competition

I was travelling this week for work so while spending a few nights in Cincinnati to spend some time with my Coldwell Banker West Shell associates, I wanted to catch my alma mater, The University of Florida, play in the College World Series. The Gators were playing the Gamecocks of the University of South Carolina so grabbing a spot at a local restaurant to catch the game was a high priority.

I walked in to an establishment expecting to find the game on all the main screens but that wasn't the case. The Cincinnati Reds were playing in a nationally televised game so the College World Series was relegated to a smaller screen in the corner. I quietly found a seat and looked around for other Gator fans but found none. As I surveyed the crowd, I did notice one patron wearing his garnet and black, the signature colors of South Carolina.

The "competition" made eye contact with me and quickly sensed we had something in common - SEC fans in the middle of Big Ten Country. He invited me to sit with him and watch the game together so I quickly agreed. (Remember...I am a big believer that the most important thing we can do in a sales position like real estate is "build relationships" and it's not like I am known to be shy). Just step up, make eye contact, give a firm handshake and introduce yourself.

"Hi, I'm Sean Carpenter. I'm a Gator fan. You mind if I join you?"

"No problem. Happy to have you join me. My name is Joel. Let's watch some baseball."

Joel is a production and safety specialist for a paper/box manufacturing company located here in Cincinnati. He hails from Greenville, South Carolina, is happily married and is the father of three kids (two of his own and a step son). As it turns out, Joel and I have a lot in common and a passion for college sports was the key that opened the door.

As we sat and watched our two teams battle, we enjoyed a great discussion about our careers, our industries, our families, our hobbies and interests and a small glimpse into our future dreams. The Gators and Gamecocks were playing a great game and it went into extra innings. As we each had a job to do the next morning, we left after the 10th inning but planned to connect again tonight for Game 2 of the College World Series (best of three event).

Long story short - Gamecocks win in 11th inning to take a 1-0 series lead.

Game 2 was tonight and I was desperately hoping for a Gator victory to force a deciding game 3. Joel and I met up again at a different local spot and watched the first few innings together. It's kind of funny how quickly you can "catch up" with an "old friend" you've known for less than 24 hours. We discussed my workshops I taught today and his plant visits and staff meetings he attended. Really, we have nothing in common when it comes to our jobs but we have everything in common when it comes to our careers.

Who's Your Competition?

If you're going to wear your "independent contractor" status like a badge of honor when you're doing well, will you wear it as proudly when you're struggling?

When you head out into the real estate world tomorrow, who is your competition? Is it the other associates in your office? The agents working down the street for the "other broker'? The person who has decided to sell their house themselves?

Or is it you?

Are you friends? Can you carry on a conversation? Do you know anything about each other?  If you did, would that threaten your success or enhance your career?

When you aren't getting all those listings, is the competition beating you out or are you falling short in your listing presentation? When the other agent's client gets the house, were you beaten by a better negotiator or did you just not bring your "A game"?

Work With vs. Work Against

Joel and I had no control over what happened on the field in Omaha between "my Gators" and "his Gamecocks."  We were pulling for our teams but we weren't hostile or derogatory to each other. We cheered each other's team's great plays and laughed at the errors made.

We left with a new relationship and a little bit more pride in our schools.

As you head into the second half of the 2011 year, will you earn more business by working with or against your fellow man or woman? Are you going to focus on your company's strengths or will you divert the attention to your competitor's weaknesses? Will you make it about what you can do or what your competition can't? Will you negotiate "against" the other agent or "for" for own client's best interest?

We refer to our fellow agents as "co-ops" because it is short for "cooperation." We don't call them  "comps" for "competition." Working with them, instead of against them, sure does make things go easier and helps you think that the more you give, the more you will get.

Game Over

South Carolina won tonight 5-2 to secure their second College World Series title and second straight National Championship. Sure, I am bummed out that Florida didn't win but I now have a new relationship to build upon, some new respect for Gamecock baseball and some happy friends who would be considered "competition" including  Joel T., Joe E., Bryan V., Fred K. and Mark S - all of them loyal Gamecock fans through thick and thin.

Congratulations to South Carolina on your big win. You have just made the Gators and all of your competition want to work that much harder...which means you need to work harder too.

I respect that.

I better get out there and start building relationships, solving problems and having fun so I can keep up with my competition.

What Realtors Can Learn from College Football

Are You Ready to "Tackle" Your Way to the Top?

Thankfully, the college football season kicked off this past week. As a huge sports fan, this just may be my favorite time of year. Between college football, professional football (kicking off this week), baseball pennant races, the PGA and NASCAR playoffs and hockey training camps, the Fall is a great time to be a sports fan. It's also a great time to be a Realtor.

In the same tradition of my November 2008 blog post about What Realtor's Can Learn from Black Friday, let's take a look at What Realtors Can Learn from College Football:

Proper Expectations are Created During the Recruiting Process

When you became a Realtor, what were your expectations? My guess is no one gets started hoping to be "just average." Maybe you didn't necessarily want to be the superstar but you certainly wanted to be on a great team and have a chance to earn playing time.

College programs look for players with the right skills, work ethic and personalities that they can combine with the players they already have and the systems they run to continue to work towards a championship season. It also helps to understand a team's "system" so they can make sure the players that are recruited will fit in nicely. They promise to train, coach, provide maximum exposure to the best tools available and welcome you to their school and family of alumni, fans and supporters.

Real estate brokers should be doing the same thing, especially in today's ever-changing landscape. If you're with a full service company like Coldwell Banker, you probably met with a Branch Manager or Recruiting Coordinator who discussed how the company can help you get to where you want to be with substantial training, coaching, maximum Internet exposure and national branding.

Training Camp - Turning "Role Play" into "Game Play"

I have never heard of many players who look forward to the grueling days of pre-season training camp. Sure, they are excited to be back with their teammates, back on campus (their "home away from home") and just weeks away from starting another season. In August, everyone starts with an equal chance of hoisting the National Championship trophy at the end of the season. But unless they love pain, they're never looking forward to two-a-day practices, wind sprints and coaches in their faces for three weeks.

It is clearly evident once the season kicks off that the players (and teams) who give 100% effort in this phase of their season will earn the biggest payoff once the games begin. As the old saying "practice the way you play" infers, the more you can put yourself in "game situations," the more prepared you'll be.

Does your company offer a thorough training program? Do you take advantage of training opportunities such as scripting sessions, skill building workshops and on-line educational opportunities? Do you have a written business plan showing how your "season" is going to play out? Are you "lifting weights" by practicing scripts, learning about contractual changes and studying market inventory so when you're in a game situation, you'll react accordingly?

Just like most football players don't like the sweat equity required in August, they know it will help them in the trenches of a close battle with a equally prepared conference foe late in the season.

Will you be ready when face-to-face with a Seller who has a tough objection? Will you be confident when a co-op agent send you a counter offer and tells you you're in "multiple offers"? Will your training help you "act" like a skilled professional instead of "react" like a Rookie when it counts?

Preseason Rankings Matter...But That's Why They Play the Games

Do you ever wonder how people who are part of those pre-season rankings determine who gets their votes? Do they base it on the number of players returning each season? Do they look at the schedules of each team and try to determine the number of wins and losses each team will have? Do they vote for their favorites or perhaps their alma mater?

It certainly helps to start the season towards the top of the rankings because if you do what you're supposed to do (i.e. win games), you'll be at the top when the season ends. If you lose however, you'll need to climb back over people...sometimes with victory and sometimes with a little pizazz and P.R. for good measure.

Much of a team's pre-season rankings can be attributed to their reputation. Can the media (or those voting) count on you handle the pressures of a big game or will they assume you'll choke in a pressure situation? Many people didn't think BYU could beat Oklahoma during opening week but a untimely injury to Oklahoma QB Sam Bradford and a determined effort by Max Hall and his underdog BYU Cougars led to the first big upset of this season.

What does your personal marketing say about you? Will people have a preconceived belief about you before they meet you? Are you playing for one of the "big names" in town or will you need to have a few "upsets" to start becoming known as a challenger?

One thing is for sure - people love an underdog, so don't worry about your pre-season rankings. A skilled, confident and determined agent can deliver a quality presentation to any Buyer or Seller with the proper preparation. Just don't get caught reading your own press clippings and start believing how good you are. All it takes is one slip up to dramatically affect a season. Treat each client as if they are the only "game" on your schedule and deliver the services you know you can with enthusiasm, energy and service.

League championships and individual awards can't be won in week one but that can be lost. Titles aren't given out during the season just like commission checks won't be earned during a deal, so always be prepared for fourth quarter comebacks and pre-closing obstacles. Until the clock strikes zero or the HUD-1 statement has been signed, remember that the ball is still in play.

Your Schedule Plays a Big Role in Your Success

It's been said by many "experts" that Florida's schedule this season sets up well for the Gators to return to the National Championship game at the end of the season. As a Florida alum (Class of 1991) I am very proud and excited for our chances but will certainly reserve getting too excited until they arrive in Pasadena in January 2010.

In many cases, these schedules are determined years in advance, usually before any of the current players were even a candidate for recruitment. College players don't get to choose who they will play but once that first ball is kicked off in early September, play the games they must.

No questions asked, no excuses about "not being ready," and certainly a team would never just not show up.

A Realtor will be much more likely to succeed when they prepare and follow a consistent schedule. There are basically two sets of activities that should be on most Realtor's schedules: Business Development and Business Support.

What area do you think most agents spend their time on? That's right...business support. Where do you think they should be spending most of their time, effort and energy? You got it...business development.

You see, business support activities will never tell you "no!" Business support activities are easier and usually don't involve any self-esteem impacting events. But it won't take the business-saavy agent long to realize that without business development, there will be no "business" to support.

In addition to the weekly business meetings that will keep you updated with your office, company and industry, a schedule should involve prospecting activities (lead generation calls, follow up visits to FSBO's and Expired listings), listing appointments and buyer counseling sessions, showings and closings. It will also require time for coaching, training, script practice, follow up, inspections and computer research.

Just like a balanced team will need to practice offense, defense and special teams, a good Realtor should be sure to include personal activities into his or her schedule including things like church, children's activities and appointments.

Avoid the Big Injury

Just like Oklahoma will need to proceed without their Heisman Trophy winning QB Sam Bradford for an undetermined portion of their schedule, making sure you stay in "playing condition" throughout the season will be a huge key.

Be sure to find some time in your schedule for physical exercise, maintain a healthy diet and listen to your body. Until you've been in this business for a while, you never realize how exhausting the role of a Realtor can be. Don't succumb to the fast paced, fast food filled world of real estate. One sure way to avoid exhaustion is to drink plenty of fluids.

Buy In to What the Coaches Say...and Don't Believe What the Media Might Say

In football and in real estate, your coaches/managers are looking out for your best interests. Magazines, reporters and web sites are looking to sell papers or gain subscribers and readers.

Good coaches and managers will help hold you accountable to the activities needed to achieve the levels of success you desire or expect (see above). They will strive to show you how your actions can positively affect your future.

The media will usually provide detailed accounts of what wasn't done and who was negatively affected.

Only you can choose who you will listen to.

Play with Emotion...Play to Win

No matter how loud the crowd cheers or no matter how good the band sounds playing the fight song, the success of a team will be determined by how well it executes once the whistle blows. Don't winning teams play with passion and enthusiasm? Don't winning teams execute each and every play as if it determines the outcome of the game? Don't winning teams have leaders who step up and challenge their teammates, encouraging them to give it all they've got?

The same philosophy applies to Realtors. No mater how shiny your name tag, what type of car you drive or who designed your suit, it still boils down to how well you know how to deal with people. Are you excited to help people achieve their goals? Are you confident in your ability to help people solve their real estate problems? Do you believe you are the best person for the job?

It's Game Time

So there you have it...a few things that Realtors can learn from college football. As the cool temperatures of Fall arrive and people break out their college sweatshirts to cheer their schools on, think about the "big game" you're facing in your real estate career right now. We're just a few ticks away from the 4th quarter - where games are often won or lost. Will you be ready to execute when your number is called?

Good luck to you and your team as you move through the season.

Down...set...hike!