WHO DECIDES WHEN BABIES ARE BORN?

Understanding Cause and Effect: Babies, Doctors and the Art of Selling Houses

By Scot Kenkel, CRS GRI DAD www.PersonalSalesCoaching.com

Did you know there’s a strong parallel between babies being born and selling houses? Let me explain. First, you’ll need a basic understanding of the principle of “cause and effect.” Here are a couple of examples you may have learned in school:

--- Every action has an opposite and equal reaction.

--- What goes up must come down.

--- E=mc 2 (I can’t explain this one but thought listing it would make me sound just a little smarter.)

Cause creates effect, and a good understanding of cause can help predict the effect. Conversely, study a particular effect and you can more clearly understand the cause of it. For instance, did you know that each year almost 60,000 more babies are born in August than in February? Why do you think this happens?

It certainly has nothing to do with what’s happening in February or August, does it? But it has everything to do with what happened nine months earlier.

So what happens in May, when the least amount of babies are being conceived, and December, when the highest number of conceptions occur? Maybe it’s the weather; maybe it’s the long, dark nights; or maybe there’s just more joy and happiness being shared in December.

Here’s another cause and effect item: out of the nearly 10,000 babies born in the U.S. each day of the year, almost 1,000 more are born on Tuesdays than on Sundays. Does it have anything to do with the day the baby was conceived? Nope. Doctors don’t like working on Sundays, so fewer babies are born on that day.

From a cause/effect perspective, how much of an impact do the working habits of doctors have on which day of the week a baby is born? Probably more than you’d think. Fair enough. But what does this have to do with selling homes? Let’s start with this: the US Census Bureau and the NAR reveal that the slowest months for home sales are January and February.

The real estate market is driven by the activity of the sales professionals in the business. Houses aren’t just bought: they’re sold. They’re sold by highly motivated, commission-driven real estate agents who generate business when they need it or want it. More importantly, when they DON’T work, they ABSOLUTELY DO NOT sell as many homes.

Any experienced agent will tell you that the sales activity you conduct today will translate into commission checks tomorrow. In most cases tomorrow means 30-60 days from now. That means if you want to make money in January and February, you’ll likely have to do the selling in November and December. If you don’t want to work in November and December, then you probably won’t have any income in January and February. It’s that simple.

Cause and effect. Baby doctors don’t like working on Sundays, therefore fewer babies are born on Sundays. Many real estate agents don’t like working between Thanksgiving and New Year’s, therefore fewer sales are made.

When do real estate agents feel the impact? It’s not during November and December, is it? So here’s the real question: are January and February the slowest months of the year because there aren’t any buyers buying, or because there aren’t as many agents selling? I’d say it’s the latter. You have complete control over your own business during these months. Choose to NOT work and your income will drop in a month or two. It is what it is.

Does the fact that the real estate business actually slows down mean you should slow down as well? No. If nothing else, do what my one-on-one students do: track your monthly production numbers over the last couple of years to see at which points you have measurable slowdowns in your income. Start by looking back a couple months to see if you can pinpoint the cause. You’ll probably uncover a pattern of earnings tied to your own beliefs and attitudes and, most importantly, your work habits.

By raising your awareness of your own habits throughout the year, you’ll be better prepared to maintain a successful business all year long. Stay committed, be consistent.

By the way, my own definition for the formula E=mc 2 is:

Earnings = My Consistent Commitment --- try it, you’ll see.

Good luck and happy selling. Now go ahead and get back to work.

About Scot Kenkel, GRI CRS DAD

Scot Kenkel, a self-professed dad-a-holic, proud father of four, recovering travel junkie, training humorist, and overall smart guy, has been edu-taining real estate agents for nearly 15 years on how to grow their business using cutting edge sales and marketing techniques. Scot’s style has been described as energetic, fast-paced, down-to-earth, easy-to-follow, and sometimes hilarious but always informative. Find out more about Scot and his other courses by visiting his web site at www.PersonalSalesCoaching.com. You can also contact Scot directly by email at Scot@PersonalSalesCoaching.com or his office at (888) 831-5945.