With over 2 million real estate agents according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), becoming a successful real estate agent takes more than just a license and a knowledge of current laws and regulations.The first year drop out range estimated to be from 40% to 80% demonstrates that many real estate agents are not as successful as they could be and research suggests that 90% give up after 3 years. The following 7 tips may help you avoid becoming one of these statistics.

1. First and Foremost YOU are a business. Real estate agents work for a broker, but are independent, commissioned sales people. This means that you are a small business and must run your practice as a business. Again, remember you are a small business owner.
2. Embrace a Planning Attitude If you don’t have a plan, then you are on some else’s plan – usually the successful real estate agent's. During the last 10 years, what I have learned as a performance improvement consultant or coach is that most people place more value in planning a trip to the grocery store or a vacation than planning their lives either professionally or personally.
3. Research Your Market Plan Since you, as the real estate agent, are responsible for your own expenses, do your research specific to your marketing plan within your strategic plan. Time spent in constructing your marketing plan is definitely well spent. NOTE: Remember a business plan usually is data driven, while a strategic plan identifies who does what by when.
4. Establish Sales Goals Using your strategic plan, establish sales goals. If you are new to this industry, it may take 6 months before the first sale. HINT: Use the W.H.Y. S.M.A.R.T. criteria for goal setting.
5. Create a Financial Budget Budgeting is critical given the up and down of this volatile market place. Your financial budget should plan for your marketing costs, any additional costs such as education and your forecasted income.
6. Make Managing Yourself a Priority Building a business is not easy. You must learn how to manage yourself especially in the area of time management, ongoing real estate training (continuing education units) and personal life balance. Real estate is said to be a 24/7 business much like any small business. However, it is important not to lose sight of your personal life including family, friends, physical health, etc.
7. Find a Mentor or a Real Estate Coach Going it alone is not easy. Take the time to find a mentor who can help you steer through some of the known obstacles and help you during the “peaks and valleys.” If you have the resources, you may wish to hire a real estate coach or an executive coach who specializes in small business help and sales.

Being an incredible sales person and entering the real estate market does not guarantee similar sales success. However, these 7 tips may help you avoid many of the pitfalls by not being one of the four real estate agents who quit within one year or one of the nine who give up after 3 years.

Are you facing repetitive challenges? Leanne Hoagland-Smith, M.S., an Indianapolis business coach and Chicago business coach, helps business people just like you to turn these challenges into measurable outcomes using results driven leadership skills for sustainable transformational change.

When you are looking to purchase some commercial real estate, there are tips available to help you get the best deal.

Commercial real estate is any real estate that is more than the standard single family home. Usually this means an office building, a rental property with two or more facilities, a retail business, a gas station, a restaurant or any other property that is used for income.

1. When you are looking to purchase commercial real estate, you need to know what you are looking for. It is your money you are investing and therefore you want to make sure that your money is getting used in the ways you want it to be. If you do not want to take the time to manage a 10-unit commercial apartments building, then you want to look for something a little smaller like a 4-plex. If you do not like to do repairs and renovation, you will need a location that is already fixed up. However if you like to paint and have little projects, a fixer upper is a good idea for you. Know what you want to purchase before you go looking.

2. Financing is a main requirement for the purchase of commercial real estate. Take the steps of getting pre-qualified for your loan before you look around for the right property. This way you will look for the commercial property that you can afford.

3. Now finding your commercial real estate is the next tip. There are many sites on the Internet that you can use to locate the most up to date commercial real estate for sale in the area you want. Here are a few sites that you can search through.

• http://pages.ebay.com/realestate/

• http://www.lease2purchase.com/links_list.php?id=5

• http://www.vandema.com/Sponsors.htm

• http://www.costar.com/Products/CommercialMLS/?src=ppcg

• When you are looking for commercial real estate property, you can also look in the newspaper from your area, this can be done on the Internet by simply going to the web site of the newspaper and going to the real estate section.

• There are also listings for commercial property at the M.L.S. web site. http://www.mlsaccess.org/. The options you can see are for purchasers, and you would likely need to contact a broker to look at the property. However this is not a bad idea.

4. The documentation involved along with the legalities is sufficient reason to negotiate your purchases through a real estate seller agent or broker. The fee you would pay is usually a fair fee, for the trouble it will save you.

5. Know the specifics. This will empower you to be able to complete your commercial real estate purchase with confidence.

a. Make sure there is a clear title to the property

b. Get title insurance

c. Negotiate the price

d. Are there any covenants, codes or restrictions that you need to be aware of.

e. What type of deed will you receive for the property

Purchasing commercial real estate is a great investment that could create a long-term income. When you purchase the commercial real estate, you open the door to many options for business. Purchasing the commercial real estate will also give you equity, and therefore will increase your overall net value.

Knowing is everything. Take the time to do your homework, research your options, the seller and the property itself and empower yourself to make an educated decision. After all, it is your money.

Whether you want to create an income through a rental property or just build equity with a commercial property, the investment if done right is a great idea and can be a great deal.