This article was written for Southern Nevada CCIM newsletter called the Perspective – January-February 2022.
By: HAYIM MIZRACHI, CCIM – President | Principal | Broker
Are you creating a Gap?
In the last article, we talked about taking Championship Action in 2022. In this article, we’ll talk about using a Gap Analysis to create specific actions that you can apply that will close the gap between your current state and your desired future state.
Order Taker to Trusted Advisor
One of the first assignments I got when I started my career in commercial real estate was working with a friend of my father-in-law. He was building a portfolio of medical office buildings. As a young agent, I was thrilled to have this opportunity. In those early days, the dynamic was such that my client told me how he wanted me to execute or negotiate, and I would go do it. I had about two years of experience as an agent, and he had closer to 20 as a principal. I was an order taker.
Over the next few years, that dynamic evolved, and I credit CCIM. Each course I completed built into me stronger perspective. Financial Analysis, Market Analysis, User Decision Analysis, Investment Analysis; by the time I completed my designation I started communicating differently with my client. When he “gave me an order” I would respond, “have you considered looking at it this way”? By obtaining my CCIM designation I created a gap between being an order taker and becoming a trusted advisor.
Gap Analysis
One of the things CCIM’s learn in CI 102 is how to calculate retail leakage or surplus through a Gap Analysis. In business, the concept of a Gap Analysis involves the comparison of actual performance with desired performance. If an organization does not make the best use of current resources or fulfill market potential, it may be producing or performing below its optimized potential.
By applying a Gap Analysis to yourself and your real estate practice, you can compare your current state to your desired future state and then create a series of actions that will bridge that gap.
- For example, if your current state in 2022 is that you have grown a team and now, you’re ready to expand your business nationally…
- Or, if your current state is that you are primarily a leasing agent, and your desired future state is to sell income properties…
- Or, if your current state is as a junior agent on a team and you want to become a senior agent or partner on the team…
What are the series of actions that you need to take to create a gap between your current state and desired state?
In reviewing my example above;
- Current State – I was a young agent limited to taking orders from my clients.
- Desired Future State – I became a trusted advisor who adds valuable perspective for his clients’ real estate decisions.
- Specific Action to create a Gap – Going through the process of earning my CCIM designation.
Let’s look at some more examples that might be less obvious which took me from a current state to a desired future state.
Communication – Shortly after getting my CCIM designation, Bobbi Miracle told me I have to take a Dale Carnegie course. She said her business tripled because of it. In 2012, I enrolled in an 8-week course through the Dale Carnegie Institute called Effective Communications and Human Relations. We met every Monday for 3 hours. There were 20 people in the class, 10 being managers of Walmart stores across Las Vegas.
The gap I created from my current state before the course to optimize my potential included increased self-confidence, enhanced people, communication & leadership skills, and realizing how important an enthusiastic attitude would be for my career. “I would be thrilled to work on this assignment with you!”
Presentations – Every year the Southern Nevada CCIM Chapter partners with Commercial Alliance Las Vegas to host an annual symposium. In 2014, the keynote speaker was Mike Lipsey. For 40 years Mike Lipsey has provided CRE training ranging from Presentation Delivery, Sales Calls, Negotiating, Closing Techniques, Tenant Representations, Landlord Representation, Investment, and Capital Markets Valuation.
“Not all space should be priced the same.” When presenting a listing proposal for an agency assignment you should look at each vacancy for what it is and price it accordingly. A newly completed spec suite should have a higher lease rate than a 2nd generation suite. A 1,250 square foot suite should have a different asking rate than a 6,000 square foot suite.
It seems obvious now, but this presentation is where I created a gap from a current state (basic presentations) to a future state (Presentations that Win)!
I have many more examples in my career that moved me from where I was to where I am now. My hope is that you think about your current state in 2022, your desired future state and then you create a series of actions that you can take to create a gap in your career!
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