For most of my school age years, I looked forward to the end of summer and going back to school. September was that transition month from summer fun to a new fall routine. It was an exciting time. In my family preparing, for back to school meant some new clothes, a haircut, and school supplies. In retrospect it’s funny that as an adult I love clothes, spend far too much time fussing over my hair and a trip to the office supply store leaves me giddy. A likely carry forward from childhood.

I particularly like two things about the back to school season. The first being back to routine and the second being back to learning. Going to class, doing homework, writing essays, taking tests… these were all part of the routine. The results of undertaking these tasks represented the learning. The most valuable part was often not the facts or figures I needed to remember on test day, but what I learned about myself. The sense of accomplishment when I did well, and the disappointment when I didn’t.

So what does this have to do with real estate? I think a lot. The most successful real estate professionals I know have a daily routine that they follow. They assign themselves timelines and tasks. They commit to doing certain things day after day and week after week. Even when it’s not fun. Just like we did as kids in school.

Successful agents also continually work on themselves. They learn about the latest trends related to the industry, they read, they stay up to date on financing ins and outs and they engage a variety of tools to support their efforts. These are all examples of developing a skill set.

Perhaps most importantly, these people continue to learn about themselves.  They focus everyday on their mind set. Let’s be honest- real estate is not rocket science. However, our industry has a huge turnover of people who don’t make it. I would put forth that these people were smart enough to grasp the tool set needed. What they didn’t get was the mind set needed to succeed.

So this October, as the kids get accustomed to their fall routine, I encourage you to think about your fall semester and develop a plan that enriches not only your skill set but your mind set.