I want to let you in on a little secret – It is ATTITUDE!
To me, one of the most difficult tasks of managing real estate is having the right personnel in place who are all fulfilling their responsibilities. The real estate itself is pretty straight forward. Real estate isn’t moody, it doesn’t get complacent, it doesn’t call in sick, it doesn’t sit around complaining about what it gets paid, it doesn’t get upset when you do something it doesn’t like, it doesn’t fight with others and it for sure doesn’t quit without some kind of notice. Your real estate investment sits there nice and quietly waiting for someone to love it. And when it finds the right people to love it, it shines, increases in value and puts money in your pocket.
So how do you find the right people? You call me for help! But if you aren’t quite ready for that, then please keep on reading.
Those who are in the business of real estate management are serving their clients and customers. Without the person who invests in the real estate to manage and without the customer to pay the rent and other fees, there is no business.
I believe in real estate management there is a required basic operating attitude that is required to provide this service. Treat clients and customers honestly and professionally. Show respect and empathy. Be responsive and positive. And always smile!
When you are searching for someone who will be involved in the management of your real estate assets, you should be looking for a person who:
- Has an overall positive attitude,
- Respects themselves and all others,
- Is thoughtful and caring,
- Has initiative and takes action,
- Is not afraid to make decisions,
- Is a problem solver, and
- Continues to gain knowledge and learns from others
A person with all these attributes will most likely have a willing heart. Which is so very important in real estate management because “Nothing is Impossible to a Willing Heart” (John Heywood, deceased 1580).
A willing heart takes motivation and perseverance. There are no problems to a willing heart, only solutions. A willing heart is positive, never negative. A willing heart finds the good in others and has a desire to help others. A willing heart cares for and respects others. A willing heart is not afraid of hard work.
If someone tells me I can’t do something, I will do everything I can to prove I CAN do it. I want to surround myself with others who think the same way. I want willing hearts with a positive attitude who think nothing is impossible – ordinary people made extraordinary because of what they accomplish such as the many athletes who break record after record, the Wright Brothers who proved a machine can fly and Walt Disney who said “It’s kind of fun to do the impossible” and “if you can dream it, you can do it”. And look at what Mr. Disney created!
Those in real estate management may never become famous, but they can be just as revered by the real estate investor they serve because they are not afraid to push recognized limits and are not afraid of thinking outside the box to find solutions.
I was hired to turn-around a poorly performing property so the investor could sell it for a reasonable price. I replaced every person on staff at that property with a staff with a positive “can do” attitude and got to work. At a point during the process the investor visited the property and said to me, “It looks good. I think this is as good as it can get.” My reply to him was, “It has only reached the adequate stage. Now I am striving for perfection!” We didn’t reach perfect, but we did reach very good and the value increased significantly. This meant the investor didn’t sell it at a reasonable price, he sold it for a price unimaginable to him a year earlier. It could not have been done without the team of people with the proper attitude and a willing heart.
Hire the attitude and teach the skills the person may lack. Make sure they smile because a naturally happy person is going to make a much better impression on your customers than someone who doesn’t appear happy. The right attitude produces a willing heart. Willing hearts will do everything they can to increase your returns and value of your assets to a level you never thought possible.
Because Nothing is Impossible to a Willing Heart!