'Since when did leaving work on time count as a act of courage?'

In reading Jeremy's column (reprinted below), it reminded me of the conversations at the CRE Summit board meetings, firm recruitment meetings and commercial real estate clients. The key question is - "How do we engage young people into joining the commercial real estate profession?"

His take is of the old school - work the number of hours it requires to become successful, make it into the top 10%, and you have it made from there. Today, just add social media engagement to more hours of work, get your training online, and use your phone like a maniac 24/7.

Not downplaying a strong work ethic but the research on Millennials from Pew Research shows a very different picture. Pew asked people how the viewed themselves and found Millennials to be the most likely generation to attribute negative attitudes to themselves. Or - according to Hyundia - 'Since when did leaving work on time count as a act of courage?'

And by population the Millennials are taking over. In 2015 the “Millennial” generation is projected to surpass the outsized Baby Boom generation as the nation’s largest living generation, according to the population projections released by the U.S. Census Bureau last month. Millennials (whom we define as between ages 18 to 34 in 2015) are projected to number 75.3 million, surpassing the projected 74.9 million Boomers (ages 51 to 69). The Gen X population (ages 35 to 50 in 2015) is projected to outnumber the Boomers by 2028.    

So, how do we attract the best of the youngest generation into commercial every area of commercial real estate? 

Send me your ideas - Jerry Slusky

If you follow my posts, I tend to offer advice, mostly to young brokers. This post is a little different.

I have been following Gary Vaynerchuk on social media recently. Gary is a very successful entrepreneur and he offers business and life advice via social media and other online tools.  He’s all about working hard and “hustling”.

His posts remind me about the early parts of my career. When I joined my current team as a junior member in 2001, my partner, Joe Sarno, told me that if I couldn’t get everything the team needed me to do accomplished between 8:00 am and 6:00 pm AND bring in my own business, that I could (and should) simply work more hours.

I followed his advice and his lead.  We spent our days in the office, working hard, and many nights out networking and entertaining clients. Thanks to my father, Phil Neuer, I was also very involved in NACORE and later CoreNet on a local and national level. These organizations not only provided a great venue for networking, but as important, they offered me opportunities to learn about the industry and current trends.

So if you are a young broker, here are some questions I have for you:

• Are you really committed or do you have a Plan B?  When we were deep in the recession in 2002, I sold baseball cards on eBay so I could make the minimum payments on my credit cards. I was known to repeat the mantra, “Failure is not an option” around the office and in team meetings. I had no Plan B.
• Do you think canvassing is enough to get you where you want to go? If you do, you’re wrong.
• Do you have an elevator speech? Do you know what an elevator speech is?
• Are you seeking opportunities to learn by attending conferences and industry events? I guarantee you that some of your peers (aka the competition) are doing so.
• Are you learning the ins and outs of a lease document? What about financial analysis?
• Are you trying to figure out how clients are won and lost?
• Do you ask detailed and in-depth questions about why certain deals get done and why others don’t?
• Do you ask potential clients what is important to them about a service provider?
• Do you know all of the different services your company provides other than brokerage?
• Have you figured out how to differentiate yourself amongst the masses that are similarly spending their time canvassing?
• Why should a busy executive or business owner meet with you?
• What skills are you working on every day? Every week?
• I know my company, CBRE, has a learning portal online. Are you taking advantage of the array or tools at your disposal to get better at your job?
• Are you adding value to your team in a way that is unique?
• Are you adding value to your clients?

The attrition rate for young brokers is approximately 90%.  Personally, I think the industry needs to change the model to increase the success rate, but that’s a story for another post.

If you want to be part of the 10% that makes it, what are you doing to make sure that happens? I truly believe that if you aren’t getting better, you’re getting worse.

What are you doing to get better today?

If you want me to tell you what I am doing, just shoot me a note. You might have to wait until I am in front of my laptop late at night for an answer, but I know that the day I stop trying to get better at my job is the same day the 10% who is committed will start to take my place, and my clients.