Book Recommendation: The Speed of Trust: The One Thing That Changes Everything

In his book, The Speed of Trust, Stephen M. R. Covey talks about one aspect of trust being "capabilities". To me, this is the no-nonsense, practical aspect of trust. Being competent goes beyond the core aspects of trust which are related to character. We trust those who are capable of getting the job done. Consumers have had enough of the talk, and they have been disappointed trusting people with good character but poor performance. Every once in awhile I will run across a client who reveals a story about their previous experience with an agent who went to the same church, or belonged to the same community organization -- they trusted the person because of their common religious values, or common social values, but the person failed to get the job done.

So when talking about trust, or when consumers choose based on trust, the trust goes beyond character to capabilities -- am I growing as a professional to improve my knowledge, skills and performance? This is a vital question I have to answer all the time. People have faith and trust in competent people. I don't know how many times I've breathed a sigh of relief when I've found a competent professional in my search for a service provider. It's like -- Yes! This is what I'm looking for, you are who I want to get the job done. Covey sets up his chapter on capabilities by writing about "intent" -- declaring your intent so that there is perfect understanding of what to expect in the service offering, examining motives, creating the "trustee standard", and choosing "abundance". Abundance is a mindset, says Covey, a way of being and becoming. I call it a "sense of life" as Ayn Rand described it in her writings. Abundance of energy, abundance of generosity, abundance of co-operation, all a way of approaching a job and viewing life from a positive angle -- all this inspires trust.

But, then there is actually getting the job done -- Covey tells us that bad execution of good intent is not helpful. Covey breaks the dimensions of capabilities down to:

Talents

Attitudes

Skills

Knowledge

Style

Examining each of these on a continuous basis keeps me focused on what's important and ensures I'm doing all I can to deliver the goods after I've developed the initial trust that pertains to character. In our on-going discussions about 2.0, Covey's emphasis on capabilites is a reminder that talk is cheap, but delivering the goods takes a lot of effort, growth, insight, and consistent action. We're presented with a learning curve that requires constant awareness and renewal. Covey talks about one business person who has a three year plan to "reinvent" himself in order to stay on the edge (three years may be too long nowadays). The tendency to rely on past achievements is dangerous in the present environment. A long term vision requires constant learning and re-inventing, but, perhaps not to the point of confusion -- it's also important to stick with a strategy long enough to determine if it's working. The point I think he's making is to stay fresh and always be in a learning mode, always working toward self-improvement.

Building trust is an important aspect of long term success, trust in character, trust in capabilities, and trust in results. I recommend the book, it's a good inspiration to stay on track. 

The Libertarians are serious this year

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1821675,00.html

It will be interesting to see what happens between now and the election. There is a chance that Barr will catch on with many voters tired of government interference and tired of the Republican shift to big government away from Reaganism. The likely outcome is that if Barr succeeds in gaining a lot of votes, Obamba will win.

Something has to happen to break up the two-party stranglehold on the country. And if the fiasco of an Obama presidency is what it takes, then so be it. Perhaps Obama will grow up in office and realize that bigger government means bigger problems.

The defenders of freedom and small, limited government have been framed by the media as kooks and right-wing fanatics, but when this country began the leading intellectuals had a much different perspective, such as Thomas Paine's:

Society in every state is a blessing, but government, even in its best stage, is but a necessary evil; in its worst state an intolerable one.
______________________________________

Oh, how far we have drifted.

Georgia Real Estate Commission Office

Recently there was a discussion on Bloodhound about real estate associations. I understand all the reactions from those who feel if you have problems then the best way to make changes is to get involved, but I would rather eat sawdust and have my eyes plucked out by crazed pigeons than to deal with the bureacrat mentality. There is no changing a bureaucratic system once it's infected by "governmentalism". Short of doing away with the whole sytem and starting from scratch, there is only tinkering with a screwed up system. The system is dead to the ones it's supposed to represent and serve.

Every time I've had to call the Georgia Real Estate Commission I've gotten some arrogant clerk who refuses to listen to what I have to say. Every time -- EVERY TIME -- I hang up angry and dissatisfied, the way I feel when I have to call a government agency.

This is the basic problem -- service. The Georgia Association of Realtors, The Georgia Real Estate Commission, they all have an attitude and mindset of being above agents and companies. I had to call the commission this morning to get an answer to a question, and it was the same old arrogant treatment. I was cut off in mid sentence, talked down to, and the general impression I got was one of disdain. It was if I had intruded on something important and needed to be dispensed of as soon as possible. It took going through a maze of automation just to reach the person, an automation designed to be obfuscating so that a caller would give up -- I had learned before when they give you the options, that the option to speak with someone is not given, you just have to wait until they go through the options twice, then remain silent, then they will put you through. Byzantine and deceitful.

The disease of "governmentalism" is the problem and it won't go away by complaining or joining a committee. It will take a major overhaul -- it will take hiring it out to a management company that understands service.

Update on Friday, July 11, 2008 at 12:29PM by Mike Farmer

Here is the stated purpose of the Commission:

To enforce these laws fairly and impartially, the members of the Real Estate Commission and its staff must:

• understand the attitudes and actions of both consumers and licensees in brokerage transactions and in their relationship with the Commission while relying on their experience as consumers and licensees to provide background for this understanding and to render fair and impartial treatment;
  
  
• make judgments and reach conclusions only after careful review of all relevant facts and opinions regarding allegations of wrongdoing and recommend modifications to the existing laws or new laws or regulations;
  
  
• supervise and administer the regulatory and disciplinary powers of the license law to provide that licensees and the public receive due process rights;
  
  
• generate rules and regulations that are reasonable, within the limits of the legislative law, and economically feasible to administer and enforce;
  
  
• communicate with licensees and the public to assure the appropriate dissemination of the laws and to obtain opinions and concerns regarding the nature and content of the laws;
  
  
• develop policies and procedures that are administratively feasible and not unduly burdensome to the public and licensees;
  
  
• respect and consider all opinions and views concerning the nature of the laws and their administration;
  
  
• express opinions on matters of conscience and policy in appropriate forums;
  
  
• and cooperate with their colleagues in the real estate community to improve the level of professionalism and knowledge concerning the nature and transaction of real property.

It's this commingling of government and associations that infects the whole system. The mindset is one of governance, regulators, controllers, protection. You get to a point in this system where you understand that it is government controlling real estate -- once we get so far from free enterprise, and as little rules and regulations creep in, and as committees form and enmeshment starts -- it feels dirty to have to simply get an answer to a question. I have the feeling when I deal with the association or the commission that my boss is a faceless bureaucrat hidden in a cold and unresponsive system.

To Greg by way of Jubal Harshaw and the other Mike

Drink deeply, brother, Thou Art God.

(just finished reading your recommendation, well, almost -- a few pages left.)

Thanks

One Excellent Agent

So what is best for the real estate consumer? That seems to be the most important question when talking about real estate services. The only reason real estate companies and all vendors and ancillary businesses exist is because people either need or want real estate services.  In actuality, underneath all the hoopla - real estate sites, marketing companies and RE vendors of all sorts - the consumer either needs to expend their own efforts buying or selling a property, or they need an agent. If the consumer expends their own efforts, then it's useful to have infomation sites where they can gather their own information to make informed decisions. If the buyer/seller wants to hire out services then they need one local agent.

What's best for the consumer who wants to use an agent is an agent who can get the job done at a fair price (no matter how good you are, at some point you will price your services out of range). The consumer interviews a few agents and selects the one most connected and knowledgable and proficient and then the rest is taken care of by the agent. It's as simple as eating grits. In each town there are agents who can do an excellent job, all the consumer needs to do is find that agent.

The internet has made the process of finding a good agent easy -- you just search and read their blogs and you will know if the agent knows what they are doing or not. If the agent doesn't have a website or a blog, the job of finding them will be more difficult and the consumer might have to rely on word of mouth, referrals or go to the offices of all the agencies and interview dozens of agents. Searching for an agent who is not on the internet is like finding an honest politician, very difficult and painstaking. But, first, the consumer has to decide if they want an agent who doesn't have a web presence. What does it say about an agent who doesn't have a comprehensive website in 2008?

The person who wants to do it all themselves has Realtor.com, Trulia, Zillow, Realseeker and other sites where they can find listings or advertise their home for sale. For the seller who wants to do it alone, there are FSBO sites with lots of information on how to sell your home. This requires more effort, but, again, the internet is making it easier. For the buyer, they can go from listing agent to listing agent looking at homes, and they can search the FSBOs in the area, then choose a home and represent themselves during the closing process, setting up an inspection, keeping up with all the paperwork and managing the process -- this is done all the time, but it can be a hassle for anyone who works or isn't familiar with the process. Doing it alone is not efficient and is more risky but it can be done.

So here we are. What's best for the consumer? The consumer who wants to be represented by an agent is best served by one good agent, regardless of the company they work for -- different companies might be advantageous for agents but companies don't provide services, the individual agent provides the service, and as long as the agent has the resources and expertise to do the job, it doesn't matter which company they work for, unless you just happen to prefer balloons to pictures of two old men talking in commercials, or you like ERA because it's easy to remember, or Keller-Williams because you heard they go to Sunday school.

What's best for the consumer who wants to do it themselves is the best listing/advertising site or the best FSBO site. Then it's up to the consumer to do a good job representing themselves. If the consumer screws up they have a mirror to which they can address their concerns.

So, will there be a schism between marketers of do-it-yourselfers and service-seekers, or will a partnership of real estate sites and service-providers, like we have today, continue to offer consumers choices? As more and more agents create better and better sites with excellent tools and reliable information, all the needs of the service-seekers are taken care of much more efficiently and comprehensively through the agent's local site.  And with agents getting better at SEO they are being found by service-seekers. On the other hand, the real estate listing sites, Zillow/Trulia, etc., are doing a great job of providing advertising opportunities on their sites for do-it-your-selfers, and they have the advantage of taking our listings to give do-it-yourself buyers plenty of listings to look at and choose from. Another advantage the RE listing sites have is they can position themselves as the neutral country of free information where the consumer can avoid the unseemly business world where wild-eyed, capitalism-crazed agents try to capture and enslave them. 

This image should change, though, as more consumers become more web-savvy and realize that agents with a 2.0 mindset are actually not trying to enslave them but merely serve them with context and personalization which is lacking in the national, RE listing sites that suffer from unscrubbed, un-analyzed information and pictures of homes out of context that may or may not still be on the market.

It's my opinion that what is best for the consumer is one web-connected, knowledgable agent who has the resources and skill to provide excellent service. That, to me, is the bottom line -- the rest is hoopla, perception, marketing, noise or tomfoolery ( I like writing tomfoolery and use it when I see an opportunity.)  There will still be debates about listing sites, do-it-yourselfers, incompetent agents, high costs of commissions, etc -- but, underneath it all is the transaction and the consumer, and what is best. It's all that matters. I respect the listing sites - I respect the do-it-your-selfers, but when you look at the whole and you take efficiency into account and what is best for the majority of real estate consumers, I maintain that what is best for the consumer is one excellent agent.