Your boat has a leak!

“If there's time for an emergency, why isn't there time for brilliance, generosity, or learning?
- Seth Godin

I can't think of a quote that better captures what I see happening with most real estate agents every single week.

They spend their whole week in ‘emergency’ mode, summed up by the following statement:

"I need to be available in case something comes up."

I hope you just said, “Holy shit, how does he know what I was thinking?”

Here's what "something coming up" often looks like: 

• A client who isn't ready to buy.
• A seller who isn't honest about price.
• A listing appointment you spent two hours preparing for, but they just wanted to know what improvements to make before they sell in three years.
• A drive across town for a meeting you could have done on the phone.

Those aren’t emergencies. Those are leaks. And your boat - I mean business - is full of them.

[Why we do this is a whole other topic...]

I was on a coaching call yesterday and it hit me again — I can't think of one top-performing agent who doesn't deliberately carve out time every week to build and nurture relationships. They get out of their homes and offices and go connect with people. The agents who are struggling do the exact opposite. They sit and wait. They ask themselves, "What should I do to get more business?" — and then do nothing.

Here's the worst part: most agents avoid getting in front of the people who could actually move their business forward, while spending endless hours with people who never will.

Let's put some real numbers to this.

Say your average income per hour is $150. If you spend just 10-20 hours a month with people who are wasting your time, you're losing $1,500 to $3,000 every month. Most agents don't think about it that way because the losses are invisible — they're buried inside your week, not on your P&L (Side note: let’s be honest, many real estate agents don’t even know what a P&L is, let alone look at one monthly. I know what one is - I used to produce them regularly for my dad’s company - but I rarely did it for myself!).

At any rate, let's make these losses visible.

A couple of hours prepping for a listing appointment. An hour of driving plus an hour at an appointment you could have handled by phone. Five hours a month showing homes to a buyer who isn't going to buy. Five hours managing a seller who isn't committed to selling.

That's 12-15 hours. Gone. At $150/hr, that's $1,800-$2,250 a month — or roughly $25,000 a year leaking out of your business.

And that's at $150/hr.

If your income goal is $400,000 and you work 2,000 hours, your time is worth $200/hr. Now we're talking close to $40,000 a year walking out the door. Every year.

Forty thousand dollars!

I know some of you are about to delete this message. You've decided this doesn't apply to you. But stay with me for one more minute, because this next part is worth it.

I know an agent who will make half a million dollars this year. They chase everything. Enough of it sticks that the number looks great. But when you factor in the discounts, the time spent on people who went nowhere, and the things they paid for that weren't their responsibility — they're leaving another half a million on the table. Or, if they simply charged their full fee and stopped working with the wrong people, they could make $750,000 in 2,000 hours instead of $500,000 in 3,000 hours.

Right now they're earning $167/hr.

They could be earning $375/hr. And have an extra 20 hours per week!!!!!!!!!!

Let me ask you something. When you go in for surgery, do you want a surgeon who's been grinding 3,000+ hours a year — tired, reactive, just trying to keep up? Or do you want someone who's rested, thoughtful, and current on the latest research and techniques?

Your clients can tell the difference between a professional with guidance and expertise vs. someone who is simply efforting their way through. They can tell the difference between the $400/hr professional vs. the $150/hr professional.

When you're operating with leaks, you compensate with effort. More hours. More hustle. More stress and energy. But effort has a ceiling.

The highest-level professionals don’t manage time. They manage who they work with.

They don’t operate in emergency mode. They operate by design.

The quality of your business is determined by the quality of the people you say yes to — not how “available” you are.

Fred Wilson, one of my early mentors, has this infamous test for who he works with. A client must meet all four of the following criteria before he will spend any time with them:

• They need help.
• They want help.
• They’re willing to let me help them.
• They’re ready to go now.

It sounds simple. It isn’t.

A Professional Worth Hiring builds relationships with people who are committed, aligned, and willing to be guided.

Because saying “no” to the wrong client is saying “yes” to a business — and a life — that strengthens you instead of draining you.

Quality clients don’t appear when the phone rings.

They appear when you decide who you are — and who you’re willing to serve.