Conversations That Change Everything

Dried up potted plants tried to greet us outside the front door and soon enough, we would understand how they felt. All hope for relief from the Arizona summer heat quickly evaporated when we entered the property. A sour feeling swelled up inside of me and my mind began to race, “It’s insanely hot and stuffy in here. Why in the world is the air conditioning off?  Carpet is missing from the stairwell and the primary suite… they’re refusing to replace it. Why are we going to bother sprucing up anything? No one was going to want to stay here long enough to see everything.” Grace, knowing I was heated (both literally and figuratively) simply said, “I told them that the air has to be left on… let’s go get the stuff.”  Just as we began to unload multiple baskets of cleaning and staging items, a nasty hot gusty sandy wind kicked up seemingly on cue. Over the next couple of hours, we climbed up and down the stairs replacing missing/nonworking light bulbs, covering exposed outlets, hanging shower curtains and rods, cleaning, and staging. As if the slow steady bake on the inside wasn’t enough, we had to move outside to finish cooking on the broil setting while attacking all the fallen twigs, tumbleweeds, dead pigeons, and scattered debris which littered the yard.  Competition was stiff in that neighborhood and to move this property successfully a couple of crucial conversations had to be had: 1) with the clients, we needed to revisit the topic of concessions and keeping the utilities on throughout the entire process; and 2) since the Arizona summer heat was not going to subside and presenting/bringing to market a desirable product depended on us, the Grace of Brazier Group needed to fine tune my attitude so we could properly focus on doing what was necessary to best serve our clients.

When we find ourselves at odds with the actions and words of others, often it is our professional response which will dictate the tone moving forward. Conflict delayed festers and inevitably transitions to conflict multiplied so it is prudent to address it promptly in a careful manner. Behavior is the fruit which we can see and when that fruit is undeniably bitter, we must dig deeper to the root which is feeding it. Each person is “coming from somewhere” before interacting with us. This somewhere can be their upbringing, the accumulation of their negative experiences and poor decisions, an adverse situation or current mental state. Different life circumstances require empathy or sympathy i.e. divorce, death, illness, financial woes, family disputes, and internal conflict.

In turn, we, as agents, “are coming from somewhere” as well; however, our profession calls us to identify/address problems and cultivate viable solutions. Just like Wall Street- The money never sleeps. There is a distinct art to not only redirect those who are being difficult or oppose our progress towards a common goal, but also, to guide and walk alongside them towards that goal. Meaningful conversations tempered with honesty, patience, and empathy often save deals and deepen relationships. Honesty presents itself as a clear illustration of the reality of the market and the condition of the subject property. Empathy understands financial concerns and why someone is adamantly opposed to offering concessions to buyers. Patience explains why a flooring allowance for the carpet which was randomly torn up from the stairwell and primary advances this deal and keeps the FHA buyer interested as opposed to going across the street to the recently updated home or to the neighboring new build community with attractive incentives.

Ultimately, when we use our words and hearts to edify others, anxiety/stress lessens, resentment dissipates, and all parties benefit.  Sometimes, just one conversation can change the entire direction of a transaction or even a life.