SUCCESS IS PERSONAL:
THE GCI MYTH
Lets talk about the comparison trap.
We’re told it’s a no-no, so Why do we continue to compare ourselves to others?
For as long as I can remember, I have been a “comparer”. This guilty pleasure (or more appropriately - sin) has been a stumbling block throughout my career and it has only been of recent times where I have made a decision to just stop it.
Easier said than done.
As driven women, we can’t help but peer across the fence to see what others are doing, and then decide whether we’re “good enough” or successful. Human nature has found us benchmarking ourselves against what we perceive in another. The operative word here being “perceive”. Because that is exactly what it is - a perception. Just a perception.
Social media has made it easier for us to make these comparisons but as we all know, what you see on social is only a tiny fragment of what is really going on in that person’s reality.
And why should we even care? Let alone let this influence how we perceive our own success.
Is it really all about GCI?
In the real estate industry, you are deemed “successful” if you are writing the most business, selling the most houses, or in the case of a buyer’s agent, working with the most buyers. The industry is obsessed with GCI (gross commission income/earned) but what we really should be focussed on is Gross Clients Impressed.
This More is Better concept seems to transcend across industries but I am here to lift the lid on why this is BS.
As a solopreneur, I associate my success with how many clients I am impressing the pants off, and specifically, the depth of the written testimonial they agree to submit. The longer, and more heartfelt, the better.
The trouble with the traditional GCI success measure is that you could be earning bucketloads and burning clients along the way, yet still be considered a success. That is not the definition of success in my eyes.
If you google Wendy Russell Buyer’s Agent you will see my best reviews are from clients who have elaborated on their experience and gone over and above to story-tell their journey.
Focus on the feels, and the numbers will come.
Feminine business means focussing on the feels, not the numbers, because with the feels, come the numbers. As women, we naturally want to please (sometimes to our detriment) but on the positive side, it is our nurturing nature that emotionally connects us to our clients and builds trust credibly.
So just because you’re not smashing the old school GCI target doesn’t mean you’re a failure. Rather, turn your focus to feminine GCI and make it your mission to increase your Gross Clients Impressed numbers.
Whether it’s a google review, a facebook review or some other review space that relates to your industry, where clients are likely to look when they’re deciding on who to work with, make it your mission to populate this directory with raving fans.
Raving reviews are like a good therapy session.
Sometimes when I’ve had a bad day; a deal has fallen through or I’m just feeling low, I read my online reviews and I instantly feel better. I know I’m a success because I have helped so many people and this keeps me on track and motivated to go over and beyond for more clients.
As a solopreneur, your review space should be one of your most important focus points of your business because our greatest source of new (quality) clientele is through direct referral.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Wendy Russell is a self-made businesswoman and Independent Buyer’s Advocate based in Brisbane Australia.
Courses for real estate agents and buyer’s agents :
The WENDYRUSSELL Buyer’s Agent Blueprint - steal my systems, processes and skillset to become an independent buyer’s agent.
Masterclass for Women in Real Estate - The Polished Professional - level-up to become a high-value agent who earns more and attracts A-class clientele.
This is how I (now) form a basis for my personal success:
1 | GCI - Gross Clients Impressed - How many clients become raving fans after we have worked together and have they agreed to write me an A-Class Review and refer me to friends and associates?
2 | Time Balance - How much waking time and energy am I devoting to work related tasks versus lifestyle related pursuits? Success for me is somewhere around the 60/40 mark. Around 40% of my energy is to helping others, whilst the other 60% is focussed on things that are important to Me.
(Notice the sway is more in favour of Me. That is because at this point in my life, I value the balance in favour of my personal pursuits. It might look different for you depending on what life stage you are at.)
For example,
Work related tasks:
meeting with new clients
negotiating
inspecting homes
researching and due diligence reports
Things for Me:
working on my business, rather than in it. This can be writing memoirs and articles (like this one), improving my buyer’s agent website, catching up with my referral partners (who are mostly now considered friends)
spending quality time with Ben and Lex, or my nearest and dearest (family and friends)
personal training
RnR (massage, nature walks, meditation, etc)
3/ Net Worth & Net Profit - yes, money does play a part in my success plan. I have a yearly net profit target that I work toward and I employ a strategic team to assist in my money management and investment plan. I used to benchmark my profit goals off what I thought was an industry standard for the top performers but now I just set a number that I’m happy with. Provided I can pay my bills, continue to invest and have a healthy splurge account, I’m set.
Success is no longer just a money pursuit.
So as much as society demands, success is not necessarily just a money pursuit like we have been led to believe. I no longer define my success based on my bank balance or net worth alone.
When defining what success means to you, it is important to determine what you consider to be “enough”.
Once you free yourself from the belief that to be successful you need to occupy a spot in the top highest earners for your industry, or you need to be writing the most business, or GCI, or you need to have the most followers on instagram, or (insert other validating metric) ; you will notice an energetic shift and be better equipped to let go of these outdated stereotypes for success.
Sure, if financial success is your driver, then go for it. I’m not stopping you. If your sway looks more like 90/10 then that is okay. I’ll admit, this was my measure for a long time, especially in the earlier days of my career.
But I know that for many of the solopreneurs I have met, it is a balance of time versus income that they ultimately seek. This is because Freedom is the underlining motivator behind why they started their business in the first place.
Bottom line: success is personal.
It is what You want it to be, and ultimately what makes you Happy.
What is your definition of success? Leave a note in the comments below - I’m curious.
