Lab Coat Agents Podcast

During this episode of the Lab Coat Agents Podcast, host Jeff Pfitzer speaks with Judi Fox, a professional LinkedIn Accelerator. She teaches her clients how to build a sustainable business on LinkedIn without needing to post a million times each month. Judi is also a pioneer in combining LinkedIn with Clubhouse, so take notes people! Episode Highlights:  LinkedIn is kind of an outlier as far as social media platforms go in the realm of real estate sales. When Judi graduated college in 1999, she had no idea what she wanted to do and no digital platform to research it. Coming from a family of engineers, Judi earned her degree in Chemical Engineering and began traveling the world for pollution cleanup. After getting her Masters in Environmental and Business Sustainability, Judi knew how to build a truly sustainable business. Many agents don’t really understand what a sustainable business looks like, or how to build one. It took Judi 10 years to explain to others what she was doing that was changing her own life. The exposure algorithms that apply to most social media platforms do not quite correlate to LinkedIn. While networking for her own job after the crash of 2008, Judi first began to help others network. In 2014, Judi had to start her life over, becoming a single mom overnight and forced to move back in with her parents. Think about your LinkedIn profile as a lead-generating website rather than a boring resume. You can use pictures on your LinkedIn profile to show properties and incite emotions. Before you ever make a post on LinkedIn, you should go out and make high-quality comments. The LinkedIn community is centered around high-profile conversations between business professionals. Most real estate agents look to engage and create a conversation with those that see their social media content. As agents build up their visibility on LinkedIn, they need to produce less and less content. Life is going to get in the way, so all you need to do is ramp up to a sustainable business level rather than grow forever. 1 to 2 posts per week on LinkedIn is Judi’s suggestion as a sustainable cadence for agents. If your content is getting 0 to 100 views with no likes or comments, there is more work to do before ramping up your posts. You have to comment on other conversations in order to tell LinkedIn what kind of conversations you want to be a part of. Jeff has traditionally used LinkedIn as a place to park his content that he is posting on other platforms. Even if you only get 10 comments on a post, those comments could be from potential partners. Pick 3 current clients or collaborators, 3 peers, 3 people ahead of you, and 1 fun person when commenting on conversations. Judi comments on Gary V’s conversations because the amount of exposure she gets is equivalent to a personal post. Reflect back on what the original post is about while adding an original thought or opinion of your own. You can turn your high-quality comments into personal posts down the road and also tag the person who made the original post. Tagging 100 people in a post does not work anymore as the LinkedIn algorithm figured it out years ago. Judi takes her clients through a 4-week acceleration program where she teaches them to increase their visibility. As a single mother, Judi does not have time for constant social media attention, yet, people always tell her she is omnipresent. As of January 14th, Judi is the first person to merge running a LinkedIn event and a Clubhouse event at the same time. 3 Key Points: Judi was able to grow her own Environmental Sustainability business through LinkedIn, eventually prompting her to teach others how to do the same. Social proof, testimonials, properties, emotion, and a calendar link are all different ways to make your LinkedIn profile a lead-generating website. Judi’s strategy for commenting on LinkedIn includes 3 current clients, 3 peers, 3 influences or people that she looks up to, and 1 fun person that is associated with her interests. Resources Mentioned: Lab Coat Agents (website), (Facebook), (Facebook Group), (Twitter), (Instagram) Judi Fox LinkedIn | Instagram | Website Chelsea Peitz Barry Wolfe Chime (sponsor) LinkU Webinar (sponsor)

During this episode of the Lab Coat Agents Podcast, host Jeff Pfitzer speaks with Dr. Hank Seitz, a mental scientist that is responsible for developing over $4B in real estate sales and running a brokerage of over 450 agents. There is no one better at teaching you how to control your mindset and control your world! Episode Highlights:  Dr. Hank has a Ph.D. in Mental Science and is a practicing behavioral psychologist. As a consultant for Fortune 500 companies all over the world, Dr. Hank has helped create a mass of wealth. With over 20 years in the real estate industry, Dr. Hank and his team have moved over $4B in real estate. According to science, our thoughts create the energy and emotions that construct our individual worlds. People tend to be close-minded when it comes to the potential power of controlling their thoughts. Through Dr. Hank’s consultancy, Fortune 500 companies all over the world have seen measurable success in their numbers. With Dr. Hank’s teachings, he knows that he can help anyone double their business in the next year. Over 90% of leads close that are brought in from Dr. Hank’s programs, which have been developed over 20 years. The people that come to Dr. Hank are anyone that wants to be, do, or have more in their life and business. Too many coaches tend to show their clients how they became successful when in reality we will all have a different path. Dr. Hank does not force any real estate agent to do anything that doesn’t make them feel good. Rather than face reality and look at what’s going on right now, focus on what you want for your life. Success will be painful if that is how we view it to be; how we perceive our duties is a choice. Public speaking is the #1 fear in America, even over death, and can be traced back to our parents telling us not to talk to strangers. There is more to overcoming our fears and limiting beliefs than positive affirmations; your conscious and subconscious minds must agree. Rather than using the word “money,” Dr. Hank elects to use his own word because of the resistance that comes with “money”. The #1 way to build relationships in any business is to do it through referrals, though video content and cold calls do help. By changing the word “nervous” to “excited,” you can change where you stand when it comes to public speaking. When most of the world was stalling and giving into chaos, Dr. Hank’s team had their best year yet. Everything is what we want it to be and we have the choice to not listen to society’s perspectives above our own. Too many people focus on manipulating the outside world to their liking when it’s just an impossible task. Dr. Hank teaches people to have trust in the flow of their stream and to stop swimming against the current. 5 years ago, Dr. Hank found himself paralyzed from the waist down after totaling his car in an accident with a semi-truck. Dr. Hank chose not to believe doctors that declared him permanently disabled and 5 years later he walks as well as he ever did. When you are able to change yourself and your mindset from the inside, you have the ability to change other people. Mental health is a subject that affects everyone, whether they find themselves on the negative or positive side of it. Go to Dr. Hank’s course below to get $200 off, then text or email Dr. Hank about his unique course to get half off that price! 3 Key Points: Our thoughts create emotion, which creates energy, which ultimately creates matter. These are the 3 steps that make up mental science. As a behavioral psychologist, Dr. Hank never pressures any of his clients to do something that they don’t feel good about. Anything that makes us feel bad does not connect with our higher self. By constantly thinking about things that we don’t want, we attract those things. It’s better to focus on the things that we do want, ultimately opening our minds to the possible paths to achieving those things. Resources Mentioned: Lab Coat Agents (website), (Facebook), (Facebook Group), (Twitter), (Instagram) Dr. Hank Seitz Website, Course, Phone: (214) 753-7204, Email: drhank@drhank.biz  The GPS Guide to Success (Book) LinkU Webinar (sponsor) RedX (sponsor)

During this episode of the Lab Coat Agents Podcast, Jeff Pfitzer gets interviewed by Tristan Ahumada, the Founder of Lab Coat Agents. Besides acting as the regular host of this podcast, Jeff is also a Regional Manager at USA Mortgage in St. Louis. Jeff is considered THE video guy in the real estate industry, so pay attention to learn how Jeff uses video to cultivate relationships, which leads to success in business and life! Episode Highlights:  Jeff graduated with a degree in Media Communicates from Webster University in St. Louis. For his final project in 1999, Jeff was required to create a product, ultimately creating the ad campaign for a male sex pill Erecto. Many agents and loan officers want to make that shift into social media without disrupting their real estate businesses. Prior to getting into the mortgage industry, Jeff was the mascot for the St. Louis Cardinals. As a Suite Manager for the Blues, Jeff hated that he did not have any control over his career growth. At his first job in the mortgage industry, Jeff was trained in a Boiler Room environment. Back in 2008, USA Mortgage began to focus on purchases which was the best move they have ever made. In 2015, Jeff noticed a guy in his market that was conducting “coffee talks” on Facebook live. After starting his own Facebook live content before everyone else, Jeff became the video expert in the real estate industry. Jeff figured out that if he could make himself the authority in a certain area, it will only attract more people to his brand. As a very likable person, Jeff has mastered the art of creating relationships, a skill that goes very far in real estate. The ultimate goal for real estate agents is to get their phone to ring with people looking for an agent. By providing agents what they need that they’re not getting elsewhere, Jeff has been able to elevate his status in the industry. Due to COVID, agents have had to find other ways to create more relationships and opportunities for themselves. Most salespeople make the mistake of talking about themselves as soon as they enter the room. By taking interviews with as many people as possible, Jeff has been able to make great content and make people feel special. Jeff unknowingly did what nobody else would and followed through for Tristan, thus opening his door for opportunity. Before getting into real estate, Jeff had ownership in a handful of different businesses that weren’t making him money. Jeff knows that all of his different businesses and content provide value and bring growth to his mortgage business. Now that the world has shifted to digital, businesses can scale at a much faster speed. The best way to utilize the value that is provided by the shift to the digital world is to embrace everything that comes with it. After 6 months of immersing himself in TikTok, Jeff realized the value that it brought to the business world. Clubhouse de-evolved at exactly the right time, giving people something different than the countless webinars that are being conducted. Unlike its other social media counterparts, having followers isn’t the most important aspect of Clubhouse. Originally, Jeff found himself motivated by money, but now it is more about doing it for the love of the game. Jeff is incredibly excited to do small-group mastermind classes because he can get intimate with everyone involved. With so many different activities taking up his time, Jeff has to remain incredibly disciplined to keep a balanced relationship between work and family. If your goal is to build up your brand on social media, know that there is going to be pain and sacrifice along the way. Conferences should be seen as an opportunity to learn from those that have done what you want to do. The biggest mistake made by most entrepreneurs is forgetting to include their family in big decisions. 3 Key Points: After entering the Facebook live arena before most other people, Jeff started to get noticed, getting invited to masterminds and being asked for insight on video content. Now, he is the video guy in the real estate industry. When building new relationships, agents need to focus on 2 things: ask questions and listen better, and figure out how you can deliver value to anybody. Clubhouse provides people with the opportunity to be in a breakout room and the ability to share the knowledge in their heads without having to sell. Resources Mentioned: Lab Coat Agents (website), (Facebook), (Facebook Group), (Twitter), (Instagram) Jeff Pfitzer (314) 220-4945, website, Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin, Business Video School  Hacking Marketing Boiler Room RedX (sponsor) StreetText (sponsor)

During this episode of the Lab Coat Agents Podcast, host Jeff Pfitzer speaks with Tristan Ahumada, the Founder of Lab Coat Agents, for episode number 100. Tristan is the authority of building massive online communities, a true professional in providing value to the masses! Episode Highlights:  Jeff meets most of his podcast guests just a few moments before the podcast goes live, but not this time. Tristan and Jeff actually met when Jeff interviewed Tristan on the Real Estate and Content Ninja Podcast. In early 2012, Realtor.com sold Tristan a zip code package that brought him some great online leads. Realtor.com requested to interview Tristan about his process, not knowing that they were located in the same building. After a successful interview with Realtor.com, Tristan and his family were flown into San Francisco to give a speech to 20k people. Initially, Tristan didn’t think that his speech would take him anywhere with Realtor.com, so his wife suggested that he create a Facebook group. Spending an hour behind closed doors, Tristan and Jake came up with the Lab Coat Agents idea. Tristan was looking to give back to the real estate community, one that had very little technological automation. When creating a community, it’s important that you know it’s going to transcend Facebook. Take a step back and decide what you are passionate about, then pick your niche, area, or idea to build the community around. For the first year or two, you’re going to be the only one there to pat yourself on the back and keep yourself going. After deciding on your community, you need to go pick up your domain name and every social media handle that you can. Whether it’s social media posting or having a partner, you must hold yourself accountable for what you want to do. Real estate agents only have 4 or 5 raving fans when they enter the game; building a community is a long-term process. When people see that you are consistently taking time to give them value, they will begin to trust you more and more. The idea of putting money first is not going to get you through the hard times when you don’t want to do what you have to do. Creating a community means bringing value to its members on a daily basis because it’s what you’re already doing. You know someone is forcing something when they try to monetize before they have built the audience. There’s nothing wrong with making money, but make sure you are doing things in the right order. When growing a community outside of Facebook, many people make the mistake of overlooking their email list. It’s important to build multiple communities like Facebook, YouTube, and an email list in case one of them gets shut down. Think of like-minded people that you can bring in to help when you are building your community. Unless you are someone that is famous, rapid growth is very hard to do these days. Instead of measuring KPIs, you should measure your OKRs, that being, your objective and key results. People feel more close-knit in small communities, meaning the opportunity to add value to your members is very high. Rather than creating your own group from scratch, you can become a strategic part of a massive group. A community is just another word for followers, so with that in mind, you can build one on a variety of platforms such as Disciple, LinkedIn, TikTok, and Mighty Network. Disciple is a company out of England that builds apps that also act as your community. 3 Key Points: Lab Coat Agents got its start when Tristan was asked by Realtor.com to give a speech to over 20k people about his automated lead organizing process. People make the mistake of starting more things than they finish. Consistency is vital to success because the first couple of years are going to be very stagnant. Build your email list by asking everyone that joins your Facebook group for their email upon entry. Roughly ⅓ of the people that join will gladly provide their email as long as you use it to provide value. Resources Mentioned: Lab Coat Agents (website), (Facebook), (Facebook Group), (Twitter), (Instagram) Tristan Ahumada (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, (310) 356-3715) Disciple Drunk on Social Facebook Group StreetText (sponsor) Followup Boss (sponsor)

During this episode of the Lab Coat Agents Podcast, host Jeff Pfitzer speaks with Austin Allison, Founder of a platform called Pacaso. Through Pacaso, Austin works to help homeowners achieve that dream of owning a second home through joint ownership! Episode Highlights:  Austin hails from the Midwest, Cincinnati to be specific, but now he lives in Napa. With a carpenter for a father, Austin grew up around real estate and eventually bought his first property at the age of 17. At the age of 18, Austin got his real estate license, selling real estate all through college while he studied architecture and real estate development. Dotloop was founded because of Austin’s frustrations with the document signing process in real estate at the time. Austin fell in love with Italy when visiting the country, eventually opting to live there for 3 months and learn Italian. After getting his pilot’s license, Austin realized how much goes into flying a plane besides the actual flying. Setting the goal of running a marathon in the 2 hours and 30-minute range taught Austin what it meant to really pour himself into a goal. Many highly-successful professionals have accomplished incredibly intense physical feats. Though Austin sold Dotloop to Zillow and has no affiliation anymore, Austin both understands the tension and success that surround Zillow. Austin found great inspiration from Zillow’s mission and the team that has been built to accomplish that mission. Jeff believes that if agents find themselves threatened by Zillow, they need to take a look in the mirror. At the age of only 35, Austin has started his second startup to help consumers buy their second home, Pacaso. Following his passion has led Austin to all the success that he has achieved to this point and he advises others to do the same. Since purchasing their second home at Lake Tahoe, Austin and his wife have built a whole new life. Pacaso was inspired by the widespread desire to own a second home by homeowners who can’t afford it. Some people can’t justify owning a second home when they only use it 10% of the time. Pacaso forms an LLC, buys a home under that LLC, and handles all the maintenance and details. All buyers get their own app to reserve time at the home by distributing requests fairly, making sure no single person takes all the good days. Pacaso properties are not intended for investors, only those that look to own and occupy properties for their own enjoyment. Renters tend to treat houses differently than owners, thinking mostly about the short-term, and that’s why renters are prohibited. 90-95% of homeowners who have purchased a second home do not put it up for rent. Every home is split into 8 shares of interest, not allowing more than 50% to be purchased by any 1 party. If you choose to sell your share of the home, other owners get the first shot at buying your share before hitting the market. Pacaso keeps agent partners in their respective markets in the case that buyers and sellers are unrepresented. With its sell down tool, Picasso empowers agents to win listings that would have otherwise been unavailable. Agents can use the sell down tool to email their network and post to their online communities. For those in a second home destination, Pacaso will eventually make its way to that market. Partnering with the real estate industry has given Austin the opportunity to enrich people’s lives. 3 Key Points: As a young man, Austin grew up immersed in the real estate game. He purchased his first property at the age of 17 before fixing it up with his father and flipping it. Pacaso deals with both buyers and agents to purchase new listings or listings from the website under a specific LLC and sells the remaining half of the home within 60 days. Because Pacaso acts as a manager to take care of the home, when it comes time to sell, the seller receives 100% of the profits. Resources Mentioned: Lab Coat Agents (website), (Facebook), (Facebook Group), (Twitter), (Instagram) Austin Allison Pacaso, Instagram, Facebook Dotloop Followup Boss (sponsor) Chime (sponsor)

During this episode of the Lab Coat Agents Podcast, host Jeff Pfitzer speaks with Brent Bowers, an expert land investor that spent 8 years in the Army after the real estate market crashed in 2008. Eventually, he found his way back to real estate, but this time, he began investing in land. Listen to hear how you can generate passive income through buying and selling land. Episode Highlights:  Jeff does not know a lot of real estate investors that focus on land rather than structures. In 2007, Brent purchased his first house and turned it into a rental property after getting his real estate license. After the crash of 2008, Brent found himself struggling to sell real estate and ultimately joined the Army. In 2013, Brent re-entered the real estate industry when he started a wholesaling business. Investing in land can act as a side business because of the small amount of customer service that is required. Land is potentially a better investment than renting when comparing the difference in stress and risk levels. Ford is able to figure out a way to make sure buyers can afford that monthly payment because they have no debt on the truck, just like Brent with his land. When buying land, there is a lack of risk because so many realtors are focused solely on property investment. In 2015, Brent reached out to 687 land-owners whose land was not buildable or inaccessible. Brent was able to buy his first land plot, roughly 12,000 sq. feet, for only $285, and sell it for $5,000 in less than a week. It only took one phone call for Brent to find out how easy it was to fix his land plot that was considered unbuildable. All it takes is calling the county to find out who is behind on their land tax payments to get a list of potential sellers. There will always be hurdles and challenges, but there are plenty of ways to work around them, all it takes is the effort. By making the monthly payments affordable, Brent is able to sell land to just about anyone who is looking. In the beginning, Brent was all about flipping the land as quickly as he could, but now has switched to mortgage-based financing options. In-fill, recreational, and agricultural are the 3 types of land that Brent is buying and selling. One out of every 12 or 13 properties that Brent sells goes into default, but it is usually already profitable. It’s incredibly easy to re-sell a piece of land that a buyer has defaulted on because all the content is already there. Based on KPIs, Brent has mostly stopped buying land in his county and focuses on places where land is cheap. Plenty of people let land go when they realize all the necessary steps that it takes to alter the land. Signs, referrals, and retargeting ads on Facebook are the KPIs that Brent focuses on when selling land. Because every county collects taxes on their land, they also have a tax-delinquent list and a tax-lien list. In June of 2020, Brent began his own coaching platform that gives systemized steps on how to buy and sell land as he does. It only takes 18 days to get through the course, so cash flow is possible after only 60 days. 3 Key Points: When the market crashed in 2008, Brent decided to let go of his real estate license and join the Army, being sent off to Afghanistan shortly thereafter. Most agents avoid buying and investing in land simply because they do not know how to make money off of it. Brent focuses on counties that have incredibly cheap land, usually sticking to an hour or more away from Walmarts and McDonalds. Resources Mentioned: Lab Coat Agents (website), (Facebook), (Facebook Group), (Twitter), (Instagram) Brent Bowers The Land Sharks, Instagram, Facebook ListSource AgentPro247 PropStream Chime (sponsor) LinkU (sponsor)

During this episode of the Lab Coat Agents Podcast, host Jeff Pfitzer speaks with Jack Tompkins, the owner of The Pineapple Consulting Firm, where he helps business leaders simplify their data to grow their companies!  Episode Highlights:  Currently living in Charlotte, NC, Jack knows what it’s like to live in a booming real estate market. Jack grew up in the corporate world as an analyst in the homeowner’s insurance sector. With a desire to help the little guy by using his analytical skills, Jack started his own consulting firm. As a young man, Jack learned quite a bit about data work and financials through Hartford Insurance’s leadership development program. By taking data from the P&L and putting it in charts and graphs, Jack is able to help business owners understand what is happening in their business. Clients come to Jack to convert their data into something that anyone can digest, thus saving them time. Tracking prices will help real estate agents keep a finger on the pulse of the market at all times. Data is going to help agents decide which market movements are random and which ones are trends to act on. Customer Relationship Management (CRMs) can be consolidated to make data less messy. By showing home buyers trends over time around homes that they are interested in, you can give them something to grab onto. Compared to the chart from the MLS, Jack’s visuals bring numbers to life by creating a geographic map. Most agents don’t think about a client’s perspective when they are presented with complicated data. No matter how old you are, your eyes will always be drawn to visuals over words and numbers. By plotting data points on a range, agents can give sellers a visual of where the price point should be. The more you can simplify the data, the easier it will be to have the price conversation with sellers. Make things easier on yourself by making things easier on the client; clean up the messy data. Converting data from the CRM into a simple visual is going to save you boatloads of time. You can set up indicators through whatever CRM you use that will help you prioritize your tasks as time goes. Jack’s firm can help agents add a personal touch to their businesses by complementing their CRMs. Right now, Jack has one real estate client that uses his services to project the financial future of different markets for investor presentation. Clients usually approach Jack with their ideas and he is able to mold the data to their needs. There really is no secret to Jack’s methods, just the use of Excel and Tableau. As Jack moves into the real estate industry, his goal is to help those who want to make their client conversations easier. To see if Jack’s services can help you, you can set up a consultation through his website. Dissecting and displaying the data may be boring to most but it is absolutely necessary in today’s world. 3 Key Points: Early in his career, Jack worked as a product manager in the world of homeowner’s insurance where he learned how to digest a massive amount of data. A combination of price tracking, CRM consolidation, and gut instinct helps agents prepare to respond to trends in the market. Jack’s company, The Pineapple Consulting Firm, takes mountains of complicated data and essentially dumbs it down for anyone to view and digest. Resources Mentioned: Lab Coat Agents (website), (Facebook), (Facebook Group), (Twitter), (Instagram) Jack Tompkins (LinkedIn) Pineapple Consulting Firm (website, Facebook) Tableau MortgageCoach LinkU (sponsor) RedX (sponsor)

During this episode of the Lab Coat Agents Podcast, host Jeff Pfitzer speaks with Ruth Krishnan, one of the top 10 agents in the San Francisco market, and one of the top 65 agents in the country. Oh yeah, and she started as an agent during the financial crisis of 2008! Listen to hear Ruth explain why you shouldn’t be afraid of setting large, audacious goals and why you should revisit them throughout the year. Episode Highlights:  Even though Ruth is one of the top agents in the country, she still enjoys learning from other agents. In today’s episode, there is no specific agenda other than for Ruth to share the information in her head. Growing up as 1 of 9 kids in a small town in Missouri, Ruth was motivated to attain a better life. Ruth decided to get into real estate in 2008, a time when everyone was trying to get out of the business. Starting as a single agent, Ruth was pretty much left to learn everything by herself and the first 2 years were incredibly challenging. There were hard times that left Ruth with no money at the end of the year despite working 60-hour weeks. Starting as a real estate agent during the pandemic is not all that different from starting during an economic crash. It’s important to formulate a business plan at the beginning of the year and revisit it often throughout the year. Don’t be afraid to think big; you might not reach your goal but you will get farther if you aim farther. Ruth has allowed the fear of failure to force her into thinking too small, usually landing exactly on the number that she plans on. Setting an audacious goal is daunting, but not hitting that audacious goal is not the same as failure. Our brains have a way of finding a way to do what we previously thought was impossible. People think that they are not wired to hit these crazy-high numbers, but there are ways to trip those wires. Ruth has set up accountability partners in every area of her life to make sure that she crushes her goals. At the beginning of her career, Ruth made an effort to connect with agents in her realm to add value to each other. It’s important to Ruth to always be the dumbest person in the room so that she is constantly learning from others. Groups of like-minded professionals in your market are great places to both gain and give value. When partaking in a group, it’s important to surround yourself with collaborative people who all have something to offer. It’s natural to be intimidated by agents that are always winning awards, but get closer to their level and they will view you as their peer. Many agents make the mistake of getting stuck in their own brokerage, not branching out to collaborate with other agents. Successful people aren’t afraid to share their knowledge because they know that for the most part, no one is going to act on that knowledge. After a crazy year, many agents find themselves either trying to maintain momentum or dig themselves out of a hole. With San Francisco on the verge of another shutdown and many people moving away from the city, the future of that market is uncertain. 70% of Ruth’s team’s business has come from online appointments while the other sources of her business have gone down. Investments in content and her own website for the last 10 years helped Ruth smooth over the transition to online this past year. Moving forward, Ruth is focused on investing money in her areas of weakness. It’s always going to be scary reinvesting in the business, so try to take it month by month and crush those numbers. Your reasons for reinvesting in your business are unique to you and don’t have to be the same as big agents. 3 Key Points: Like many agents, Ruth stumbled into real estate, looking for a fresh start after her interior design agency fell apart when she was 5 months pregnant. Set goals that seem almost unachievable, because regardless of whether you hit that goal or not, you will crush your previous year’s numbers. It’s vital to your growth as an entrepreneur to surround yourself with people that are doing better than you. This way, you are always learning. Resources Mentioned: Lab Coat Agents (website), (Facebook), (Facebook Group), (Twitter), (Instagram) Ruth Krishnan (Website, Instagram, Facebook) RedX (sponsor) StreetText (sponsor)

During this episode of the Lab Coat Agents Podcast, host Jeff Pfitzer speaks with Lars Hedenborg, best-selling author, host of the Business Freedom Podcast, and Founder of the Real Estate B-School. Lars focuses on teaching agents how to calculate their net hourly income so that they can make the most of their time! Episode Highlights:  Before leaving New Jersey, Lars got his start in real estate investing while he was still working a corporate job. Lars was relocated from New Jersey to Charlotte in 2002 with his corporate job before leaving to become a real estate agent in 2007. In just 5 years of building his real estate business, Lars sold his last house at $1.2M before letting the business run without him. Lars’s stint with his first broker lasted only 10 months as he began to realize the true value of the money that he was bringing in. Jeff’s issue with eXp Realty is that it started with the model of just creating future wealth. It took Lars 6 years from the time he became an agent to the time that he owned his own business. Real Estate B School teaches each person in a given real estate team how to do their job at a professional level. To be at the top of your game in 5 years, you have to be willing to go through the first 2 years that will suck. Too many agents focus on percentages and numbers when they should focus on who can bring them value. Both Lars and Jeff consider themselves brokerage agnostic as they believe each brokerage has its own benefits and downfalls. In 2008, Lars determined that he wanted to make $500k in a year while working 40 hours per week. Most agents spend 2-3 hours a day doing the tasks of the lowest member on the team, thus wasting their time. The only way to maximize the use of your time is to be honest with yourself about how you are spending it. Lars has found that most agents that handle a lot of the technical work only earn about $20/hour. Jeff appreciates agents like Lars that know all of their calculations and data because those agents know what they need to do. By using your adjusted gross income (AGI) and tracking the hours that you work, you can figure out your current hourly rate. Figuring out your hourly rate via time study may be the most painful thing you ever do but it will help you correct course. Doing the same thing over and over again while expecting different results is the definition of insanity. There are different ways to conduct a time study; Lars continually uses this method to achieve his financial goals. Stop wasting so much time throughout the week watching Netflix and sports instead of spending time with your family. Lars has been the person that binge watches 9 seasons of Dexter in 2-3 months, but he pulled himself out. Being intentional with your time will help you realize just how much time you waste every day. Lars has noticed that TikTok and other social media platforms suck you in from a variety of angles. No one wants to look back at the end of their life and think that they focused on the wrong thing. 3 Key Points: Lars left his cushy corporate job to become a real estate agent in 2007. It took him 6 years to stop selling houses and start the Real Estate B School. Once you decide how much you want to make on an hourly basis, you will start to see all the tasks that should be delegated out. Prospecting, lead follow-up, negotiations, and closing deals are the 4 things that agents need to focus on to make the most of their time. Resources Mentioned: Lab Coat Agents (website), (Facebook), (Facebook Group), (Twitter), (Instagram) Lars Hedenborg: Podcast, Website, Real Estate B-School Time Study Exercise Business Growth Navigator E-Myth (book) StreetText (sponsor) Followup Boss (sponsor)

During this episode of the Lab Coat Agents Podcast, host Jeff Pfitzer speaks with Stacy Bahrenfuss, the founder of The Catalyst Group and creator of the Inside-Out Success Method. Stacy shares her thoughts on how to become a magnet for opportunities, how women need to lead with a mindset of abundance, and how shifting your perspective can lead to the success you desire. Episode Highlights:  During her senior year of high school in Idaho, Stacy was hired as an assistant at a real estate office. The limitless possibilities and opportunity to help people who have had bad experiences drew Stacy to real estate. Starting out as a single agent, Stacy began to build her team at a very young age. Even at $6M production volume per year, Stacy wanted to take it to $30M in volume. It took Stacy 18 months to take her volume from $6M to $30M after she entered the new-development industry. Stacy was able to purchase her own development area and just got done selling all 11 houses this past August. Keeping a motivated and positive mindset on a daily basis helped Stacy stay out of her own way. Stacy made sure to know her numbers from the beginning so that she could always approach her work as a business. After watching The Secret, Stacy was able to develop a morning ritual to fill up her cup at the start of the day. Using YouTube, Stacy is able to connect herself with her interests which eventually gets deeper and deeper. The Secret breaks down The Law of Attraction and how the rules of the universe shape our lives. People who dismiss The Law of Attraction mindset tend to defend their limitations and aren’t where they want to be. Successful people all do these crazy feats that other people see as impossible, but some try to do the same. You don’t have to be miserable along the path to success; you can enjoy the process. Stacy makes sure to have a plan when diving into social media as to not waste any of her valuable time. Social media gives businesses 24/7 access to leads and the ability to connect with people that they never would have before. With Instagram being her favorite form of social media, Stacy and her team build use it to build silos and create educational content. Select the source of lead generation that piques your interest and that you enjoy; this makes it easier to do consistently. Go to 3 open houses each month with the intention of getting one sale, one buyer, and one seller. Ask the people that are in your network who they know that you need to know in a consistent manner. Networking events can be taxing for most, but thinking about them from a value-adding mindset can make them easier. The real estate game isn’t all positivity and sunshine, even for someone as positive as Stacy. Stacy shares the details of a negative experience with a builder who made things tough for her team. The Inside-Out Success Method helps put people in the driver’s seat of their lives by focusing on their past experience. The high earners are always paying the most to grow and enrich themselves with great education. Stacy’s Triple Threat daily process consists of deep breathing, practicing gratitude, and creating short and long-term goals. 3 Key Points: Stacy found success by keeping her mindset in check, knowing her numbers from the start, and knowing that she has the ability to get through tough times. The Law of Attraction is all about being intentional about what you want and who you follow. Your mindset will shape the world around you. Approaching networking events and prospecting from the perspective of how you can contribute can help make the process more enjoyable. Resources Mentioned: Lab Coat Agents (website), (Facebook), (Facebook Group), (Twitter), (Instagram) Stacy Bahrenfuss (Website, Catalyst Website, Linkedin, Facebook) The Secret Follow Up Boss (sponsor) Chime (sponsor)