The Wizard of Oz

In the beginning of my real estate career, I was eager to learn but didn’t know where or from whom to do so. I attended a conference in Vegas and went to as many classes and seminars as I possibly could.

Most speakers were okay, but one speaker fascinated me. His name was Craig Proctor.

Just about everything he said was opposite from everyone else. Plus, he showed attendees the exact ads he was running, so we could go copy them. He even encouraged us to copy his ideas.

He was awesome.

I made a point to find him later to tell him how great his presentation was. He thanked me and invited me to an upcoming 3-day conference where he would share his entire business model, from top to bottom. He was, at the time, one of the top selling real estate agents in the world, so that sounded like an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.

When I got back home, I immediately implemented a few of Proctor’s unique ads, and they instantly started working. I bought a ticket to Chicago and signed up for Proctor’s conference.

I was so excited to learn from a master, who seemed so willing to share his secrets. When I arrived at the conference, I was instantly impressed when they handed over the biggest binder I’d ever seen, full of examples and blue prints of everything Craig and his team were doing.

I can safely say that there was a bit of “hero worship” going on in my head at this point.

HOWEVER…

As the conference went on, I began to see what it really was. A big sales pitch to get us all to sign up for coaching. It was quite a production. Every move was planned out. Scripted.

He was, after all, a master salesman, and I saw people signing up for the very expensive coaching program in droves. The more people that signed up, the more others followed.

I eventually decided to try out the coaching myself. I knew I was being peer pressured into it. But I was so eager to learn from a master, I decided to take a chance.

The first thing I learned once I joined this expensive coaching program was that my main job was to become a telemarketer.

I was assigned a coach. Not Craig. And I was made to feel like a loser if didn’t make phone calls all day and night.

I learned that this was Craig’s great secret. He was amazing on the phone. He knew that if he could get someone on the phone, chances are he could close them. He hired the best copywriters to help him create ads, which produced a lot of leads, so he could call them at all hours of the day. Even as one of the top real estate agents in the world, his day was primarily still focused around sales calls.

For me, it was like learning that the Wizard of Oz is just a slick talking sales guy behind a curtain.

I despised calling people in the evenings. Every fiber of my being resisted these calls. My coach preached that I wasn’t harassing them, I was helping them, even if they didn’t know it yet. I hated using a script when I did talk to people. I just wanted some legitimate clients. I didn’t want to run a call center.

I began to hate my coach and the entire organization. The last time I spoke to my coach, I said that if this is what it takes to be successful in real estate, then I don’t want it.

It’s funny to me how much I initially respected and admired them, only to discover what was really going on behind the curtain.

Since that time, I have known many great salesmen. They are all driven and remarkable. However, only a few have gained my respect and admiration.

Wizards you admire may just be magicians using sleight of hand.

It all comes down to “how” you do business, rather than “how much” business you do.

Until next time,

Mike Turner

Co-Founder: Impact Club Boise
Host: Idaho Speakeasy
Collaborator: Value Drive Approach
Founder: Front Street Brokers
Author: Agent Entrepreneurs
Voice: 208-340-8399