Well over a decade ago, I read Michael Gerbers' famous book, 'The E-Myth.'  I am the daughter of two entrepreneurs and an entrepreneur myself.  I have lived through the 'technician syndrome' that Gerber described in which vast amounts of energy are siphoned from the entrepreneur who must run their business on a daily basis and subsequently becomes a slave to the work rather than the inspiration driving the company.

So, when the idea of making a business 'Idiot Proof' was introduced during a professional real estate seminar, I was eager to embrace the method.  The process involved systematizing a business by breaking each action/segment into small, clearly defined steps.  The BENEFITS: a precisely written manual which ensured that anyone could replicate the same results every single time with the aim of creating a consistent consumer experience.

To illustrate the point, the presenter used the example of the methods that fast food companies have perfected through their training systems to ensure that your burger is pretty much the same anywhere you get it.  If you've ever worked in a fast food joint, you know that every single item that impacts the business is detailed in the manuals. 

The system is fully automated with cookware that tells you when the fries are done and guides you through the process of making every menu item.  Most workers are hired to do one little segment of the work and not much else.  Even the cash registers are coded with pictures to make sure that the right order is processed and the correct change returned.  The RESULT: workers who know a few details very well, but may be largely ignorant when it comes to understanding how the operation works. 

The problem with this type of system is that it thrives primarily within a stable environment.  An environment in which the delivery truck can be expected to arrive at the scheduled time carrying the necessary supplies.  The system requires tremendous amounts of coordination and performs with supreme efficiency when that order is present.  However if there is inadequate staffing or the supply chain breaks down, the system becomes vulnerable.  Ultimately the problem with this type of system is that LIFE IS UNSTABLE. 

In the real estate industry, we have created our own versions of Idiot Proof systems.  In a sense our Forms and transaction management systems have allowed many of us to facilitate millions of real estate transactions with efficiency and speed.  These systems have also made it possible for anyone off the street to enter our profession with a mere 40 hours of training and then sit down with a client to list a Million dollar home. The agent simply needs to know how to fill in the blanks.  

However, just like the fast food industry, the real estate system of transaction management may be inherently vulnerable precisely because it requires certain 'anticipated conditions' to operate efficiently.  When the stability of those conditions is threatened or upset entirely, as we are currently witnessing in the mortgage crisis, the entire house of cards is in peril, not unlike the perilous times in which we currently live.

Perilous times require creative, innovative individuals who possess the critical thinking skills to make intelligent assessments and respond to unforeseen and unexpected circumstances. 

Idiot Proof Mechanisms are guaranteed to fail in perilous times, because the conditions necessary to support them are wobbling or have crumbled entirely. The hidden gift of perilous times is that we are given a fresh opportunity to re-evaluate the true effectiveness of systems we have used without questioning.

So, I'm in the process of dis-assembly.  Although we still use and appreciate our board supplied real estate forms, our agents are being challenged to not rely on forms to do the critical thinking.  Agents are required to think through solutions and to be ready to explain WHY they think the options they are suggesting merit consideration.  The days of using systems without thinking about what you're doing are numbered  OVER, because fewer real estate transactions are falling into easily defined categories!

Today's real estate transaction involves, amongst a host of other critical skill sets,  having the negotiation skills and patience to see a Short Sale through to the end.  Being a competent agent means having the ability to utilize the Internet to create important professional networks and prospect for future business.  Today's agent needs to understand what is happening in the financial world and be informed about the developments in ancillary services like the inspection and title industry.  In my opinion, the days of 'cookie cutter' real estate are over...if they ever truly existed in the first place. 

Copyright 2008  Audu Real Estate  All Rights Reserved

Picture of french fries courtesy of wEnDalicious photo-stream on flickr

 The Proper Care & Creatin' of Memorable Experiences...Boy, do I Miss My Travel Agent!

You know what, I really, really, really miss my former travel agent!   My favorite travel agency had to close down many years ago. My last visit to the shopping center where the travel office was located is now the setting for  a specialty food & party store. Barely anyone remembers that a travel agency occupied that space for many years.

But, I will never forget my first experience of Christmas away from home; a young 18 year old college student, separated by thousands of miles.  That winter in the early 80's was especially harsh...cold wet snow pelted me whenever I ventured outside.  I was desperately homesick. I longed for the balmy breeze of the warm harmatan wind and the noisy gaiety that marks the holiday season in Africa.  Although I had been invited to spend the Christmas holiday with my suite-mates family in Freemont, MI, the pain of being apart from my family felt like a cutting emotional shredder.  Then my miracle happened...a phone call came from a friend informed me that I'd been given a gift.  My ticket would be paid for if I could find a flight out of the country. 

Well, it turned out that, unfortunately for me, many people preferred tropical paradise to a harsh winter. Although I spent hours frantically dialing every major airline to try to get a seat....any seat...the answer was always the same.  Sorry Ma'am, ALL the flights out of the States have been fully booked for months! 

Finally in desperation, I called a travel agent.  Fighting tears, I explained how much I missed my family .  I now had the money to afford a plane ticket but could not locate any flight.  She promised to call me back. 

I don't know how she pulled off the miracle, but late that evening, I got the call...she said, "Lola, I've managed to find you the last ticket out of the country!"  Even a severe winter snow storm was not going to stop me from being home for Christmas.  My joy was boundless.  My family didn't even know that I had managed to get a flight out until I arrived home.  Talk about a joyous reunion.  Now that was priceless!

So how do you place a price tag to Evaluate the gift of that level of commitment to service?  The travel agent spent hours searching & calling in favors through her professional network to create a Christmas gift that I remember to this day. I have never forgotten her extraordinary work! 

Over the years, travel agents (many of whom are no longer in business) have helped me figure out where to take overseas guests to enjoy Michigan at its best. When we vacationed, I relied on their knowledge & expertise to recommend hotels & activities out of state.  When specials became available that they thought we might enjoy, I was given a friendly call. 

I couldn't believe it when they informed me that they had to close their doors...they could no longer be competitive.  It didn't make sense. What I didn't understand then was the forces at play that convinced millions of us into thinking that a machines and computers could accomplish far more efficiently the task of getting you from here to there. The new utopia premised that cost cutting was the only thing that mattered. These same entrepreneurial architects have the same business schematic in mind to overhaul the underpinnings of the real estate industry. 

Today, my options for assistance with travel plans are technically limitless. Typing in any destination across the country on-line brings hundreds, if not millions of web options promising low cost, total satisfaction. Yet, I now find myself having acquired the skills of a burgeoning private investigator as preparing to travel frequently involves trying to figure out what communities on our route are safe & a good places to eat and hope to be successful in locating a reasonably priced clean hotel. I've learned that hotel promotions and pictures can sometimes fail to accurately portray reality. Trying to locate restaurants which are not the standard franchise variety requires a significant amount of research when one is unfamiliar with the local area.  Coordinating a number of different options requires tons of work....Did, I tell you...I miss my travel agent. 

How much did their services cost?  I now ask myself how much MORE I now pay for my hours of time & research now spent on expedia.com & priceline.com.  Yet these on-line substitute Cyber Travel Agenteurs cannot personally answer my questions when I ask them for knowledge about the community or local patterns or customs. I've found myself endlessly circling one website after another.  The hollow truth is that I loved the price gouging that resulted in air line ticket prices plummeting.  I gasped with pleasure at what I could get a 5 star hotel for on priceline.com.  But that was then...before I experienced the future of travel plans made with just me & my computer.  This is now.  Now, I am willing to pay more than I ever did to my travel agent when I desire something special. This is because while information is abundant, service and the intimate knowledge that comes from an Expert in customer care remains exquisitely rare. When I want a 5 Star Experience, I now know that I can no longer simply place the care & creatin' of a memorable experience in the hands of a machine! 

I've heard the same sentiments expressed by our clients.  Years ago, the only service available during a real estate transaction was full service.  Now, there are agents who have NEVER presented an offer to a real live seller.  I heard of one local agent who indicated that this was not what she was hired to do when she listed the property!  Yesterday, I watched a story about  a company that lists homes on-line for a Flat Fee without necessarily visiting them.  According to the owners of Redfin Real Estate Company, Sellers Save money while they do the work of Staging, Arranging Showings, Qualifying buyers, Negotiating price & terms, Creating Marketing pieces and doing their own Open Houses...all for a discount fee of several thousands of dollars. Kind of sounds like my Expedia/Priceline experience. 

After one of my listing presentations, the home owners looked at me...stunned. They wondered if I had just put on this "show" for them or if I really put this type of presentation on for everyone.  They had interviewed agents who could give them a deal...but there was no time to explain the process...they were busy rushing off to their other appointments, presumably to to dish out more deals! Another couple, buying their second home had become convinced through he media hype that the Internet offered deals that were better than those available through the  traditional real estate experience. When they arrived at my office with a 2 page list of "desires" they simply said, "Can you please help us?  We thought we knew what to do & didn't need you...but we're realizing that we need help." 

Then there was the young lady with a young child who simply sat in my office & wept.  She had no idea where she was going to go & how she would find a place to live.  We simply hugged her & let her tears cleanse away the pain & fear.  Then we prayed with her.  She left our office with a new sense of composure.  Days later, we received a call.  Her miracle had happened.  She had found a safe place to rent  & called us to say Thank You.  No, we didn't find her a home.  But what we did  no machine or computer could do...we listened, supported & cared. 

This is what is lost in the noisy, abrasive rhetoric which presupposes with loud arrogance that for consumers, money is the only appropriate measure & definer of Value & Service.  Proponents of the argument that somehow labels Realtors as uncaring, greedy & unscrupulous are careful not to measure the significance of  of acts of neighborly kindness, concern & care that real estate professionals carry out every single day without fanfare or bombast.  They can't afford to. They'd have a Serious Valuation Problem. Because, you see...it's not just about what we do or what we earn. We're Realtors, this Job, for many extraordinary individuals is About Who We Are!