I'm sure there are many new beginners here (just look around the forum) I myself being one, C'mon we all been in situation where we want to jump right in but not sure how we might land. Why don't you guys post some success stories on how you started? how long did it take to sell your first property? what made you want to get in R.E? etc. Anything that will encourage newbies.

One thing I remember from when I was new (which was a loooonnnnngggg tim ago) was that I had lots of time on my hands.

My company at the time didn't seem to have much in the way of a training program so I went to our public library and spent several days reading the books they had about how to sell real estate.

Most of the books seemed to agree that listings were a good thing to have.

After my weeks stay at the library I went on a listing campaign. I got to the office at 7:00 AM each morning and pulled off the new expired listings off the computer and called them.

Next I got the daily newspaper and called all the FSBOs.

After going through these two groups I got a cross reference directory out and started cold calling for 2-3 hours. I used a short, simple script I made up that said: "Hi, I'm looking for some homes to sell in your area. (this part is important to use exactly because it worked for me) I would then ask" "Who do you know that is thinking of selling?" and say nothing else until the person on the other end of the line responded.

Usually it was "I'm sorry, I don't know anyone." but once or twice a week I heard: "Well, my friend 2 streets over got transferred out of town yesterday and will be selling very soon."

After my calling time was up I got ready for and went on the appointments I had set up with the expireds, FSBOs, and cold call prospects.

My first month in the business I took 16 listings from the 3 sources above and I did not have a clue what I was doing. My first listing never sold and I believe my former seller's kids still live in the house all grown up now (that was 25 years ago). ;-)

But several of my 16 listings did sell and I started getting paid; I even sold 2 or 3 myself as I recall.

None of what I did was hard nor rocket science; anyone can do it if they just will get out there and talk to people.

And BTW, I've never been able to do 16 listings in a month like that since which proves you can sometimes do better when you don't know what you're doing than when you learn how to do it. ;-)

If any new person will just do any 2 or even 1 of the 3 things I mentioned above, consistently for 1 month you cannot help but be successful.

what made u want to get into re?

Several things.

First I knew several people in the real estate business that seemed to be doing well financially so that was an attraction.

I also liked the ability to set my own hours and work as hard or as long as you wanted or not and gettting paid accordingly.

Real estate has not only been a financially rewarding business for me, I have had the opportunity to meet lots of great people every year and help them buy or sell a home.

Additionally I've also had the opportunity to travel lots of places for conventions and meetings and made lots of new friends.

I also was one of the 'early adapters' when the Internet started being such a driving force in real estate and got to do some pretty neat stuff like being invited to Chicago along with a few other Realtors to meet with NAR leadership about the Internet and the direction NAR should go, got invited to speak on a cruise (I got paid a fee for that plus all expenses) ;-) about Realtor.com and it's role in real estate sales, and some other things.

I've written a couple of articles about computers and how to do business on the www.

Wrote a course titled "The Internet for Realtors" and got it approved for 3 hours of CEU credit in my state.

I was one of the beta testers when NAR developed their e-PRO course and got to help with that.

The list goes on. The proverbial bottom line for me is the real estate business has been lots of fun for me and still is. When I get to the point I don't enjoy it anymore I'll be looking around for a new career.

I've started doing more investing for my own account in the past few years and I would encourage anyone just getting into the business to make that one of your goals a lot sooner than I did; it will pay off beyond your wildest dreams.

I would also encourage all new people to get involved in your local, state, and national associations; not all at once but maybe start with a local committee and go from there. You will learn a lot about how your associations are run, get to help make decisions to make them better for us all, and meet lots of your fellow Realtors you otherwise might not have the opportunity to do.

Finally I also urge all newcomers to find out what RPAC (Realtors Political Action Committee) is and what it does as well as get involved in that as well.

http://www.realtor.org/rpacweb.nsf?OpenDatabase

RPAC is OUR PAC and it does some great things to not only help our business but help buyers and sellers as well. Just recently we defeated some proposed legislation in Tennessee that would have effectively doubled our state's property transfer tax and impacted home sales adversely. RPAC dollars and support helped us do that.

My biggest deal was bosses. Bosses who overworked and underpaid me, who didn't respect me but expected me to run their lives and businesses, who micromanaged my every decision and then blamed me when their ideas didn't work. Glass ceilings were a biggie, too. I wanted to do something that gave me autonomy. If I failed, I wanted it to be because I failed, not because some leadbutt genius-wannabe sabotaged me. I wanted respect--self-respect, respect from my community and respect from my peers. Now, if I fail, I'll do it on my own and if I succeed, nobody else can take credit for it.

Hello Jim Lee
I always enjoy reading your post. Everytime someone has questions or concern you are so detailed with your answer. Thank you for sharing your knowledge.

Regards
Ritu

I have been in Real Estate for 3 weeks now. I sold my first house this past Saturday, and did my first listing yesterday. I am also working with two other buyers right now. I think I am off to a good start but still have a long way to go. Any tips from you professionals would be greatly appreciated.