What Realtors Can Learn From Martin Luther King, Jr.

Monday Morning Match is a quick post – maybe a quote, inspirational story or idea – intended to spark some motivation inside each of you so your week gets off to a fantastic start on Monday morning.

What Realtors can learn from Martin Luther King, Jr.

Ten famous quotes from the civil rights leader and lessons from each that could help make us better Realtors and better people…

1. Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase. – You can’t be afraid to ask for the business.

2. Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?’ – We get paid to help people solve problems.

3. The time is always right to do what is right. – Our job starts and ends with a fiduciary responsibility to our clients and their best interest. Never forget that.

4. The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. – Anyone can list a home; it takes a skilled professional to negotiate and manage the sale. Anyone can drive people around and show houses; it takes a skilled professional to identify needs, gain control, build rapport, establish expectations and show value to today’s buyers. 

5. We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope. – It typically takes 9 “no’s” to get to a “yes.” Do not be discouraged by rejection. Every day there will be someone in your town that is ready to buy a house and there will be someone ready to sell a house. Your job is to find them or make sure they know about you.

6. We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools. – This business is built on cooperation and collaboration.

7. Human progress is neither automatic nor inevitable… Every step toward the goal of justice requires sacrifice, suffering, and struggle; the tireless exertions and passionate concern of dedicated individuals. – No matter what your “goal” is, it will require sacrifice, suffering and struggle.

8. Whatever your life’s work is, do it well. A man should do his job so well that the living, the dead, and the unborn could do it no better. – Today, great service is expected. To succeed in 2015, you must have an unyielding commitment to provide memorable experiences to your customers and clients?

9. Almost always, the creative dedicated minority has made the world better. – There are over 1 million Realtors in the United States. Don’t be satisfied doing what everyone else does. Get creative and find ways to be unique, different and memorable.

10. Rarely do we find men who willingly engage in hard, solid thinking. There is an almost universal quest for easy answers and half-baked solutions. Nothing pains some people more than having to think. – So much of our daily activities are done subconsciously. You truly have to think each and every day how you can become a better salesperson, manager, broker, communicator, spouse, partner, parent and friend. 

Think about it right now. How will you build relationships, solve problems and have fun?

Photo Credit: Ron Cogswell via Flickr

Photo Credit: Minnesota Historical Society via Flickr