MIKE COSTIGAN

You know how long it takes to piss me off?

31 minutes.

That’s exactly the time you should start lighting dollars on fire. 31 minutes after you start your listing presentation. Flaming George Washingtons. Ugh.

Holy Moly! WHAT in the world can these agents be spewing from their lips after a half hour of selling? I’ll tell you what it is…DEADLY SALE-KILLING DIARRHEA.

And it’s utterly disgusting.

Gross more so in the way that it displays lack of competency than in the stomach-churning image it evokes.

And it only decimates your closing percentage.

Trust me, I know how to list homes. I’ve listed thousands. Routinely more than 75 in a month. And it ain’t for the faint-hearted.

But it’s not a dang Rubix Cube challenge either.

An Agent On Fire Blaze newsletter reader just bragged to me about how he “closed this evil “PITA” engineer” and got his full commission. Told me he was there at the table for 3 HOURS! What?!

6, six, SICK!

In 3 hours I could go on 6 appointments, close all six to listings and make him SICK for wasting all that time with one guy.

Look, this may seem like bs, But I assure you that you if you learn just the VERY FIRST part of solving the 30-Minute puzzle, you’ll drastically cut your time spent chit-chatting and massively increase your number of listings.

It’s totally in the setup call before you ever meet.

I use sneaky little mind tricks like speaking in pre-suppositions.

I basically “command” sellers to be ready to list when I get there.

And it works.

Every. Single. Time.

Some say my evil hypnotic methods are “unfair”.

Lesser agents cry in their tears when they see my sign in their best friend’s yard.

But it’s game on, and you either sit there fumbling the cube around in your hand for hours or you learn to solve the puzzle and close fast. (without cheesy sales pitches btw)

So 31 minutes. Yeah, that burns me.

If you want to learn to list 3x as many homes without losing friends, go here:

www.aoflistings.com

-Mike Costigan

I was watching “The Profit” last night. I record all of the episodes. Great lessons to be learned.

Marcus Lemonis was working with two estranged brothers to grow their drum business. The place was a DISASTER.

No process.

No organization.

Limited production capacity.

ZERO growth.

The lacking efficiency of the company left it dying on the vine, along with the brothers’ relationship. Seriously, total turmoil at it’s worst!

Geez does this give me a chill thinking back to the infancy days of my real estate business.

1 guy. 1000 tasks.

Holy crap! No wonder my wife hated me, and my clutter of real estate crap in the garage. Just the sight of a RE/MAX sign and she’d veer into a yard with a killing vengeance in her eyes unless I grabbed the wheel!

I wanted to be a “better” husband.

I wanted to have more time.

I wanted to make more commissions.

I just desperately wanted to sleep! Heck, I’d take THAT by itself!

So why was super-agent not able to do this? What was I missing?

Easy: Leverage through AUTOMATION and SYSTEMS.

What you need to figure out now, and I mean NOW, is that there’s a big difference between running a “practice” that requires your every-minute participation, and a “business” that runs even when you aren’t around.

And AUTOMATION is your ticket to the big show.

You don’t need to hire a huge staff to get started. You don’t need to spend a bunch of cash. You just need to create a few simple systems that instantly give you your life back…and a fighting chance at a decent marriage.

There are certain cheap software programs, inexpensive technology apps and Virtual Assistants who will work for pennies and do a stellar job, and many other tiny implementations that you can use “on the cheap” to transform your life and put lots of extra dollars right in your pocket.

I’ve got a little systems “cheat sheet” graphic that I’ll be sharing in an upcoming issue of The Agent On Fire Blaze monthly newsletter….it’s made true business owners out of so many agents.

Anyway, you can choose to get up and be Dr. “Do Little” every day or you can put on your CEO hat. Your choice.

If you want to start marching to the beat of your own drum today, go here:

www.aoflistings.com

-Mike Costigan

Do you seriously think a seller is going to enjoy looking at that?

I’m a straight-forward guy…akin to the proverbial “bull in a china shop”…especially when it comes to helping agents get listings.

So, when I run into someone who dresses like a bum, has horse breath, or just genuinely looks sloppy, I’m going to rush them like a 2000 lb Brahman.

Saw a guy in CVS Pharmacy yesterday. He worked there. Nice guy who genuinely offered to help me. Bull ring pierced into his nose.

I can’t see anything past that ring. All other positive qualities I want to see in him are secondary in my mind. It’s just the ring and me. Nose to nose.

I realize WHY he’s 30+ years old and he works there…He doesn’t give two sh*ts about what others think. And it gets him exactly NOWHERE.

Almost told him.

Figured it was breath wasted.

Now, believe me…

I fully embrace the ZERO F***S attitude when it comes to having fun. But when it comes to playing the game of making money…the bullshit has to go.

I think about how I subtly infuse Agent On Fire Blaze newsletter readers with little teachings of NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming).

I know…”Magic Mike hypno-tricks again that I can’t do…”

But pay attention little mega listing wizard apprentice…

Because, you CAN do this…easily.

NLP is about “suggestion” through things like rapport.

And getting in rapport involves no trickery…no sorcery.

It’s simply “matching”.

* Matching breathing patterns.

* Matching posture

* Matching “look” (as in dress code and appearance)

* Matching speech patterns

..and a few more secret but “obvious” tactics hidden in plain sight.

And when you learn to get quickly into rapport with a seller prospect, you transform them into clients “at will”.

I recently had a little fun with one of my AOF Blaze subscribers. She had this “bully” of a seller to follow-up with. I challenged her to do the follow-up in person and to simply watch his arms. If he crossed them, she was to cross hers. Then she was to match his breathing.

She called me in almost hysterics. Guy turned into a pussycat and signed the listing…and she BUMPED the commission!

Now THAT’S some mind-altering stuff at work.

Not only did it change him…more importantly, it permanently LEVITATED her mental attitude about the power she now possesses when faced with any challenge.

She’s 10 feet taller…figuratively.

Want to learn how to start taking control of any bullfight, instead of being the carnage left bloodied by the real estate game? Then go here:

www.aoflistings.com

-Mike Costigan

Upstairs. Door slammed and literally LOCKED shut.

That’s been my life lately. And it’s frightening admission…to you, but mostly to myself.

I really hadn’t thought about it until 7 minutes ago.

I was downstairs in my bedroom. I grabbed a book…”The Blackbook”, by Garrett White, founder of Wake Up Warrior.

Inside, it talked about how men USED to spend all day with their sons, working on farms.

…Used to show them what “work-ethic” meant, by way of side excretion of blood, sweat and tears.

…Used to let them SEE what a man did every day to support his family.

…Used to be an EXAMPLE.

Then came the Industrial Revolution, and the strong father figure evolved into “disappearing dad”, traveling to the city before sunrise and coming home to pat the wife and kids on the head at dinner, watch the evening news and sluggishly slither away to the bedroom…

Man became weak.

Reading this was like getting punched square in the gut by Mike Tyson. It was a knockout punch that left me breathless.

What the HELL have I been doing?!

I claim to LOVE this work (and I do), but it’s literally killing my role as Daddy and Husband.

Forget the “open door policy” bullshit. Mine is slammed shut and LOCKED!

What kind of example is that to anyone?

Here I am “super broker”, “super info-marketer”…TRULY LOVING what I do…but it doesn’t show.

My sons see: Locked door. Daddy unavailable. “I don’t want to be like Daddy. It must SUCK to be in prison like that all day.”

Worse yet…”I’ll look to MOMMY for example of DADDY role.”

Wake Up Warrior!

Whether you are mommy or daddy, you need to look at how others perceive you.

Are you gone ALL WEEKEND with buyers while the family is having fun at home?

Are you spending 12 hours in a day, driving around in traffic and coming home looking exhausted and worn out?

Are you the shitty example who the kids feel sorry for…and sure as hell won’t imitate?

If so, you need to fix it.

There’s an answer. And I have it for you. I’ll be publishing it in the next Agent On Fire Blaze newsletter.

Locked doors and a shut out life are not good. Even though you work hard, actual productivity dies right along with your spirit. Like depression, you don’t know it happens until you are in deep.

Years ago, during a trying personal time, I fell into it. NEVER AGAIN!

For me, I get a handle on this TODAY before the slide starts. Thanks Garrett for the heads-up.

Unlocking and opening the door now…

If you want to start living by example (and naturally selling more houses because of it) right now, go here:

www.aoflistings.com

-Mike Costigan

If April showers bring Mayflowers, what do Mayflowers bring?

Who gives a sh*t.

These holidays irk me.

Sorry, I just don’t buy into Pilgrims sitting down for a romantic little dinner with Indians, devouring juicy dead bird and delicious pumpkin pie.

There wasn’t any passing of the peace pipe between these mortal enemies. If you believe that tall tale, I’d wager you’ve been smoking something much better.

It wasn’t turkeys hunted on this day many years ago. It was Indians being shot, robbed and pillaged. Their women raped.

People make up all kinds of bs excuses NOT to work. And this day takes the cake.

So, I’m NOT thankful for the laziness that’s so embraced by the Mediocre Majority, who’d rather stuff their face than produce.

Totally not Thankful for the fact that I’m going to gain a few pounds, because I have to munch down a plateful of crap, to be “nice” with the family.

Just plain not thankful for the obvious way, that laziness seems to take precedence over “DOING”.

Save the “Happy Turkey Day” wishes for fellow couch potatoes with their eyes glued to idiots on the football field.

I’m doing a special presentation to my Agent On Fire Blaze subscribers to help them understand that TODAY is like any other day. If you stand still this afternoon, you will be fifteen steps back (and 10 lbs. fatter) tomorrow morning.

ALWAYS be working on improving your business. NEVER let the Hallmark company fool you into slipping into a peach cobbler coma.

I’m not suggesting that you never rest at all. Bob Marley and I have had plenty of Sativa Saturdays together…but that was college.

You can look forward to holidays, wind-down to a crawl a week in advance, accomplish next to nothing. Or, you can create a business that keeps you on a never-ending high by joining me here:

www.aoflistings.com

-Mike Costigan