RE/MAX’s Dave Liniger Chats About His New E-book, “The Good 10”

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Fifty-five years in the past, Dave Liniger was on a path to nowhere.

Though he was clever, Liniger was a self-professed slacker and failed out of the College of Indiana. His subsequent alternative was to hitch the USA Air Drive, the place he fought within the Vietnam Battle. These 5 years within the Air Drive gave Liniger the time to mature and successfully harness his ardour for actual property.

“Thank God the USA army was there,” he advised Inman. “I spent two excursions abroad, and it gave my boy mind an opportunity to mature and meet up with everyone else.”

As soon as he caught up with everybody else, Liniger determined to stretch his potential and start RE/MAX — one of many first corporations to interrupt away from the 50-50 fee cut up. His determination spurred criticism and competition, with lots of his opponents setting the clock on Liniger’s downfall.

“The trade didn’t like [RE/MAX] as a result of I used to be providing to pay brokers far better than what they have been being paid on the previous 50/50 scale,” he mentioned. “They have been making an attempt to place me out of enterprise, and so they didn’t must strive too laborious. I used to be doing a fairly good job doing that alone.”

“I used to be pissed off. I used to be making all of the errors,” he added. “The recession began, after which the oil embargo hit. I misplaced my monetary backers. I had two selections: I may go to the naysayers and say, “I hand over,” or I may hold going. I wouldn’t give up.”

Linger mentioned his journey to all-time low carved the trail for the very best discoveries and development of his life and laid the inspiration for a 50-year historical past that nobody thought he may obtain. Now that Liniger has stepped again from the limelight, he’s able to share all that he’s discovered with a brand new e book, “The Perfect 10.”

The e book’s debut coincides with RE/MAX’s annual R4 Conference in Las Vegas, the place Liniger and newly minted RE/MAX President Amy Lessinger will formally kick off the corporate’s 51st 12 months in enterprise.

“That is 55 years of an 18-year-old child that awoke, went to varsity, failed out, went to struggle, got here again and mentioned, ‘I’m going to start out a enterprise, I’m going to have a spouse and kids, and I’m going to be a hit,’” he mentioned.

Inman: What was the inspiration behind “The Good 10?” 

Liniger: Once I began RE/MAX, it wasn’t a hit instantly. I assumed it will be. I assumed I used to be an entrepreneur, however I had no actual management expertise apart from what I discovered within the army in Vietnam. I assumed I had the correct dream.

I used to be pissed off. I used to be making all of the errors. The recession began, after which the oil embargo hit. I misplaced my monetary backers. I had two selections: I may go to the naysayers and say, “I hand over,” or I may hold going. I wouldn’t give up.

I started to find private improvement. I went to my managers, there have been eight of them. One lady, seven males. Their common age was virtually 20 years older than me. I sat down with them and advised them to be sincere — What do you want most about RE/MAX? What do you dislike probably the most? It takes a fairly thick pores and skin to take heed to that. They have been powerful, however I didn’t wish to lose.

They have been sort, however they identified my lack of managerial and management expertise in actual property. I needed to construct the correct workforce. It was magic, and the corporate survived. I didn’t cease there — I began taking each course I may take despite the fact that I actually didn’t have the cash. I discovered from the very best and the brightest, and once we began internet hosting RE/MAX conventions, I employed those self same folks to show our brokers.

My ardour is creating a greater manner for women and men in the true property trade to make more cash and have extra freedom and independence. So this e book is all in regards to the classes [Gail and I] discovered in our private expertise and the teachings we additionally discovered from the very best minds within the enterprise on entrepreneurship, management, scalability, private improvement, and franchising.

That is 55 years of an 18-year-old child that awoke, went to varsity, failed out, went to struggle, got here again and mentioned, “I’m going to start out a enterprise, I’m going to have a spouse and kids, and I’m going to be a hit.”

I learn an excerpt out of your e book and appreciated what you mentioned about studying from “The School of Laborious Knocks.” There’s solely a lot we will study in a classroom. Some issues we merely must expertise. Contemplating the place the trade is true now, what are the particular alternatives folks have proper now to study, develop, and set themselves up for long-term success?

There’s an 80/20 rule within the trade. Twenty p.c of the brokers do 80 p.c of the enterprise. We currently have 1,500,000 Realtors and 50 p.c haven’t closed a single transaction within the final 12 months. We’re an trade with a really low barrier to entry. All people’s obtained a mom, a brother, a next-door neighbor, and a greatest good friend who may use us as a result of they like us and belief us. Not as a result of we’re skilled and a prime producer.

This jogs my memory of what folks say about Charles Darwin and his ideas on the strongest of a species surviving. However that’s by no means what he mentioned. He mentioned probably the most adaptable of a species survives. Greater than 100 million years in the past, dinosaurs have been the strongest creatures to ever stroll the planet. Are they right here at the moment? No. However guess what’s nonetheless right here? The mosquito.

So when folks used to ask me why RE/MAX was so extremely profitable, I mentioned it’s as a result of we rent probably the most skilled, proficient salespeople within the trade. We don’t emphasize inexperienced persons and part-timers. We’ve been by way of eight recessions and 9 presidencies; two of them are outright crooked to downright silly. I’m not calling events. There have been some good Democrats and a few good Republicans, however in actuality, we reside by way of all their bullshit.

For instance, Reagan, in his infinite knowledge, mentioned “We’ve obtained to cease inflation.” I’m a Reagan fan, however as a Realtor, to see mortgage rates go from 7 p.c to 17.8 p.c in a 12 months was devastating. How the hell do you promote actual property? It’s a must to be adaptable. Yeah. You then undergo the opposite recessions, and in 2007, the variety of transactions dropped virtually 50 p.c. Once more, probably the most adaptable that survived.

It’s a must to be resilient. It’s a must to be adaptable. It’s a must to regularly embrace change. You may’t say, “No, no, no, I don’t wish to change.” Go to Inman [Connect], go to the Nationwide Affiliation of Realtors conferences, go to the conference of your franchise, and take heed to the people who find themselves nonetheless succeeding.

Hearken to the road fighters, take heed to the loopy ones — they only don’t stop. They don’t say it’s too powerful. They are saying, ‘Whether it is to be, it’s as much as me. I’m gonna go to it. I’ll discover a method to do it.”

How are you remaining adaptable? Your e book mentions that you just learn 5 to 6 books per week. What current learn has had the largest affect on you? 

“Atomic Habits” has been on the bestseller checklist for nearly 4 years. It’s the most rational have a look at how habits construct our lives. One other one is “The Compound Impact” by Darren Hardy. The compound impact is that we make minor choices day after day that add up over a lifetime. These choices decide whether or not you’re a hit or a failure. It’s straightforward to learn, straightforward to grasp, and laborious to implement.

It’s about doing 100 issues 1 p.c higher. Not doing one factor one hundred pc higher. All people needs the magic of, “I would like this tomorrow.” However change takes time.

Talking of change, RE/MAX has skilled loads of it currently. The franchise turned 50 final 12 months and not too long ago handled the lack of former CEO Nick Bailey. How do you suppose RE/MAX can stay adaptable and chart the trail towards one other 50 years?

The reality of the matter is we’re an trade that’s undergoing unbelievable change extra quickly than at any time within the final 50 years. All industries — I don’t care whether or not it’s farming, training or medication — have to determine methods to hold tempo with the change. You may’t be afraid of it. You may’t block it out. You may’t be an ostrich and put your head within the sand. You may’t do at the moment’s enterprise with yesterday’s strategies and count on to be in enterprise tomorrow.

It’s a must to be open-minded and open to concepts which can be overseas to you. You don’t essentially must be the primary one to alter as a result of loads of the modifications occur, and so they peter out, however you’ve obtained to remember, and also you’ve obtained to be large open and take heed to either side of the argument. Don’t let your personal private prejudices or your personal private experiences dictate the way you’re going to reply.

The litigation explosion, the know-how explosion, the unreal info explosion—they’re all modifications. You simply adapt. You learn, you examine. You don’t must study tons of of concepts. Be taught one or two and implement them, after which study one or two extra and implement them, and also you proceed your development.

Email Marian McPherson