When I was a small, I joined a softball team at the tender age of six. I had absolutely no idea how to hold a bat, let alone hit the ball. I wasn’t even completely sure how to run around the bases the proper way. But thanks to great coaches, I learned everything I needed to know to become proficient at the sport. In fact, by my second year I was voted the most valuable player.

No one can become an expert in their field without learning from someone else. A great coach helps a person fully develop their own natural potential for greatness.

When it comes to a field as vast and complex as real estate, it quite literally pays to have a coach. Even if you’ve been in the field for years, you can still benefit from the knowledge and encouragement of a trained coach. It is never too late to learn from the wisdom and experience of knowledgeable coaching.

Even the great leaders in industry like Bill Gates and Warren Buffet use coaches in their organizations. Whole schools of motivational thinking revolve around the teachings of life coaches like Tony Robbins and Stephen R. Covey.

There is only one constant in today’s real estate market, and that is change. In order to survive and thrive in an ever-changing market, you need someone mentor your adaptation to new environments. A coach will develop your strengths and improve on your weak points. They see you from the outside looking in and will spot your strengths and weaknesses easier than you will.

If you are successful, a great coach will take you to the next level. If you already have a working strategy, a coach will help you optimize it. I have yet to meet a person in real estate that would prefer to make less money than they are able. A coach will push you to exercise your full profitability by developing potential in yourself that you didn’t realize existed.

Hire a coach and invest in yourself. Rid yourself of the need for excuses and blame by learning to do things right. Other real estate agents and investors are playing the same game you are and winning. If you aren’t one of the winners, a great coach will transform you from an excuse maker into a money maker. The reality of the situation is that today’s market isn’t a seller’s market. It isn’t a buyers market. It’s an agent’s market, if only you have the right skills.

Your business will thrive with the right skills. Flying blind may allow you moderate success over the short haul, if you are lucky. To be consistently successful, you must know what to do, how and when to do it. Now is the time to roll up your sleeves and learn how to make opportunities happen. A great coach will make that more than just a possibility. It pays to learn how to work smarter, not harder; to keep earning, you must keep learning.

Smart real estate agents across the country are increasing their profit margins in this market as well as any other. Many agents expect to have their best year to date. How are some agents and investors making lots of money while others struggle? The name of the game is evolving to thrive and survive in this new market. A great coach will make all the difference. Coaches put you on a path that leads straight through the pitfalls of a changing market to profits you never dreamed were possible. Invest in your potential and find a great coach. You may just end up being the most valuable player on your own team.

Tim Harris is a co-founder and head coach of Harris Real Estate University. After a long and successful career of selling thousands of homes, he sold his real estate business and started HREU. Since 1997, Harris Real Estate University has thousands of Realtor-Students participating in education courses on a daily basis.
Read more in Tim’s blog.