Salsa and ballroom dancing along with Pilates helped Leslie Glazier keep her stress at bay and her world balanced through all the craziness of 2020.
“Dancing is harder virtually. You have to own every step instead of being led,” says Glazier, a broker at @properties, Chicago and North Shore. Many Illinois REALTORS® altered their lives and businesses – some drastically – in the last year.
According to recent Robert Half research, 34 percent of workers surveyed say they are more burned out on the job now versus a year ago. Thirty percent said they are managing a heavier workload, and 19 percent noted they’re unable to establish boundaries between professional and personal life while working remotely.
Even with all the changes, Illinois REALTORS® aren’t sitting still. They are building stronger relationships with clients and family. They are getting their minds and bodies in shape. And they are revving up for a big 2021.
Gathering Good from the Bad
For Glazier, the events of 2020 drew her family closer.
“We were thinking of downsizing before the pandemic, but we were glad we didn’t. There were seven people in our house and three dogs when we were quarantined together,” she says. “We had family dinners every night in our house, and we feel we have gotten to know each other in a different way.”
But she also saw the sale of condos and apartments in high-rises change as people wanted more space.
“People don’t want to be waiting in elevators anymore. They pay for amenities they can’t use. Some are moving to the suburbs,” she says.
As a certified divorce real estate expert (CDRE), she already knows she’ll be helping more divorcing couples. The change in schedules, homeschooling and working from home have a negative effect on some relationships.
“Attorneys and divorce coaches are talking about the huge uptick in divorce cases to come,” she says. “The courts are already overwhelmed and trying to do more collaborative work and mediation instead of litigation.”
She hopes to get divorce mediation training to help even more couples than she does now. Glazier also plans to start up her Windy City Wednesdays videos again. For two years, she interviewed owners of neighborhood hot spots and her favorite places. That stopped with COVID-19.
It was the highlight of my day, and I want to go back to it. It was so fun,” she says. “These are places I’ve been going to forever, and I learned so much about the people during the interviews.”
That human interaction has become one of the biggest losses for REALTORS®. But they work through it with more videos, more wellness checks by phone, and more handwritten notes and cards.
Leslie Glazier
Finding the Balance with Life and Work
COVID impacted life and work for Nykea Pippion McGriff as she assisted her son with e-learning.
“I’m focused on being intentional with the time I spend with my son, so that means I have to say no to other things like checking email, answering the phone, etc.” says Pippion McGriff, 2020-2021 President of Chicago Association of REALTORS®. She works as Vice President of Brokerage Services, Gold Coast–Lincoln Park–West Loop for Coldwell Banker Realty.
She became the first Black female president of the association in its 137 years, and “it should not take another 137 to replace me. I would love to create a leadership hub with opportunities and training available to anyone who’s interested,” she said. Her focus for the next year is finding ways to connect with people one-on-one.
“I think we have leaned heavily on virtual meetings during this time and perhaps taking it ‘old school’ with phone calls can set us apart in our business and personal lives,” she explains.
Balancing all of it in her life can be tough. But she constantly evaluates the time she spends on business as well as in business. For herself, she focuses on creating a specific plan of action for working out and eating healthy.
“Right now, everywhere you look are potential stressors,” she adds. “So, I’ve limited the time I spend consuming the news and social media. Working out also helps me to recharge.”
Nykea Pippion McGriff
Sparking Your Personal World
Real estate can be a demanding job and that has only been exacerbated by trying to juggle it all during a pandemic. REALTORS® say it is important to find personal and professional goals.
“I do exercise and meditate daily and try to not spin my wheels obsessing over a problem but rather think about solutions,” says Theresa Mueller, managing broker at Trelleum Real Estate, Naperville.
For Max McComb, he’s slowly but surely putting his health at the top of his to-do list.
“I have Type 2 diabetes, and less medication is my goal,” says McComb, broker at RE/MAX Realty Associates, Champaign. “I’m carrying this focus on health into next year.”
Walter Sanford has set many goals for himself, including a vacation to Montana, finishing the restoration of an 1898 Queen Anne Victorian home, increasing church responsibilities and focusing more on his health.
Sanford, a former real estate agent, now owns Sanford Systems and Strategies in Kankakee. He trains agents and loan officers on different systems to gain productivity.
“If you are rudderless, you will have stress. The wrong business plan will cause stress. Change your strategy,” he states.
Theresa Mueller
Max McComb
Walter Sanford
Ways to Get Unstuck
If you are having problems getting motivated or changing bad habits, here are some ideas to rekindle your spirit, build your clientele, and be happier for the new year:
- Find a good mentor – If you are new to the business, get a mentor or become part of a team, says Glazier. “It’s the best way to learn every facet of this business. If you are by yourself, how do you know you are doing the right thing?”
- Gain more clients – “Agents in 2021 will always win if they generate listing leads for a couple of hours every day,” Sanford says.
- Strategize and make a plan – “Put together a plan and strategy that will work with you and for you, and keep working on it,” McComb says. If you have available dollars to put behind a lot of marketing, then go to that. But make sure it is sustainable. “It doesn’t do me any good to spend $10,000 on marketing the next quarter, but then I won’t be able to afford anything the next two years.”
- Learn something new – “Often times, we get into a comfort level of doing things, and we don’t take the time to invest in ourselves to learn a new tool that may allow us to serve our clients more efficiently,” said Pippion McGriff.
- Put yourself out there – Ask all your clients if they need anything from you and be ready to pivot, Mueller says. She also volunteers for a few community endeavors and attends Zoom networking events.
- Manage your stress – McComb unfollowed a lot of people that frustrated him on social media because “that’s a battleground overflowing with anger and hate.” He also has limited his time listening and watching the news.
- Live on less – Save 25 percent of gross commission for taxes and invest 25 percent in income property to hold long-term with no flipping, Sanford suggests. “Learn to live on 50 percent of your income. I did this, and it was not easy (at first). But it is now.”
Bringing Some Normalcy Back
Sanford says that even in this strange housing market, “inventory holders will be king.”
“Learn how to close against good competition, get the right price, do post-listing inspections, learn easy and automatic customer service that evokes perceived value and close in a shorter time period,” he says.
REALTORS® are listing homes, and they are selling homes in the state. He believes if you find sellers who have reasons to sell, you have won part of the battle.
For Mueller, she has missed regular attendance at wine tastings, going to restaurants, creating themed monthly potluck parties at her house, and traveling.
But she quickly joined Zoom meetings and started a more aggressive social media presence with the gains coming. She feels fortunate enough to work with a “variety of clients in this new normal.”
“I really hope to return to all the activities I so enjoy. But in the meantime, I’ll say yes to anything that even remotely seems social like a book club via Zoom,” she says.
Glazier has been picking up the phone and talking to people she had done business with five to 10 years ago.
“We didn’t talk real estate. It was so fantastic,” she says.
Her experiences with all those conversations became a great life lesson.
“I learned to connect with everybody on a more personal level. Before, I would get too busy and just shoot texts and emails,” she adds.
Despite a pandemic or anything else that comes along, REALTORS® understand that it is a people business first and that will continue into the new year.
