"Curiouser And Curiouser."
For those unfamiliar with Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll introduced the phrase way back in 1865. Look it up if you're a tiny bit curious.
Curiosity being the second of my core values, after Candour.
Down this rabbit hole I go, deeper and deeper, on a daily basis. It's an adventure into the unknown that can last seconds or hours.
I guess it's the consequence of my finding school curricula extremely dull. So now I'm catching up - on my terms.
I've plonked myself into the archaic world of estate agency right now, after a long career teaching golf, I get the same satisfaction from forming my thoughts and beliefs on all that could be advantageous or disadvantageous to the real estate industry as I did with golf. Bringing new, radically different ideas that seek to solve a problem.
With golf, it was the softer skills like behaviour, mindset, communication preferences. For golf pro's that make their living teaching the game, it shouldn't be about the clients that arrived for tuition but about those that stayed. The bio-mechanics of the golf swing are relatively stable and easy to convey. Keeping a pupil interested and committed is harder.
With agents, areas such as how might realtors might improve the dreadful public perception they currently carry on their shoulders. Or how they can avoid a commodity marketplace. The process of listing and selling homes is, again, fairly stable despite the regulations. And again, it is about attracting attention and making sure that those vendors that arrive on your site are the ones that stay and become loyal clients.
Since candour is a core value, let's not hesitate. The overall standard of coaching in both golf and real estate is 3rd rate.
Golf Professionals that talk to every pupil in the same manner - regardless of whether the pupil learns visually, verbally or kinaesthetically. That teach a set process to every beginner. The acronym G.A.S.P - how to grip the golf club; how to align the feet/hips/shoulders; how to stand with regard to ball position and finally the importance of correct posture. Is it important? Of course, but everyone doesn't learn the same way, or at the same rate. It's kindergarten stuff introduced back in the 60's.
Golf by numbers.
Estate agency is no different.
Encouraging agencies to compete against each other by virtue of brand awareness, fee, size, technology, or appraised value. That madness of playing an infinite game where there are few clear rules and them stupidly expecting a finite result.
Wake up!
"Better than" is only ever temporary and is hard to prove because it invites a comparison from a vendor who is not qualified, or experienced enough to judge the agency's relative competence.
Competition positions your agency alongside all the rest - a commodity that always becomes a race to the bottom.
And your agency is paying for that 3rd rate advice?
Why does "expert advice" in golf and in estate agency lag behind other sectors?
My hunch is a lack of curiosity on the part of the coaches.
Doing what has always worked in the past has produced commodity work. Reliant on incremental improvements.
What curiosity could help both these sectors?
Well, for starters, a deep dive into building sustainable relationships. Both estate agency and Golf are people-businesses. Both rely on trust.
Perhaps a glimpse into the communication skills from Ted Talks. A session on copywriting - not because you have to D.I.Y, but so that you recognise the crap sales copy when you see it. Every industry has a spectrum of talent and if you don't know what you're looking for, you're in big trouble. Same with web design. Simplicity of design, like simplicity of message, is what attracts clients. Most web designers would have you complicated your web site. Why? Because they make more profit.
If someone isn't curious, not much will cause them to be. We have someone who takes the world at face-value and sees little wrong with making limited choices.
Do you prefer your coffee straight-up black, or white. Sugar with that?
Instead of flat-whites, Caramel Oat-Milk Latté, or Cortado.
Better yet, Mushroom Coffee, Bullet-Proof Coffee or Deathwish Coffee. How about beans from Costa Rica, Ethiopia, Tanzania or Rwanda? It took curiosity to bring these options to our tastebuds.
Aren't you just a little bit curious, or simply happy with your lot?
The arts, science, anything you care to name was brought to life or improved because of someone's curiosity.
The car, the aeroplane, the web, medicine, mobiles - all from curious people.
Curiosity started me down the road for Personal Branding.
A simple post from Nicolas Cole that said: "If you don't have a Personal Brand, in three years time, nobody will do business with you."
Hmm. That sounds worth investigation.
It changed my entire thinking on estate agency - gone my fixation that k.p.i's were the best indicator of a great estate agent/realtor. Percentage of this or that, replaced with core values. Competence, replaced with Character.
I'm fascinated by people - even those with whom I don't find affinity. The more I learn about them, the more fascinated I become.
I've yet to converse with any two agents that share identical core values and beliefs. That's what makes them unique.
So too with Story. Far more impactful than advertising and far, far less expensive.
Of course you can run your agency on traditional methods - the leaflet drop, the uninvited door-knock, the touting letter, the meaningless awards, the sales scripts, the incremental improvements, the "local property expert" tag and many more. Be part of the common, fit in to stereotype, if that's your style.
But if your vision is for something different, curiouser and curiouser will be indispensable.
One thing is for sure - you will never run out of ideas for content.
Thanks, as always, for reading. Next up, a deep dive into a core value of Kindness.
www.andsothestorybegan.co.uk
www.persuasivewords.co.uk
Mob: (44) 07369251435
Chris.
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