My Four Biggest Lessons (and favorite quotes) from TurnOn!

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I attended 1000Watt's TurnOn event this week in Portland, OR. Since this was my first TurnOn conference, I came into it with zero expectations.

Marc Davison and Brian Boero, together with their team, vision cast an event that was essentially the "un" real estate conference which meant it would be stacked with speakers outside the industry and topics that were less about the mechanics of real estate and more about perspective, approach and leadership overall.

Here are the lessons that resonated most with me:

1. Look at things from a different perspective. Because we've been in the business for so long, we think we know exactly what our buyers and sellers want and how they will behave, so we do the same things repeatedly. During his interview with Marc Davison, Tom Ferry stressed the value of reinvention every 18 months. Ask yourself the hard questions, challenge the status quo, talk to your customers then act accordingly. We quickly become irrelevant, stagnant, and content when we don't reinvent ourselves.

2. Find your zone of genius and hone it. By far, this is the message that resonated the most for me. For too many years, my choices, attitudes, and behaviors were based on what I thought they should be. Once I started not caring about what others thought, I felt free to be me, flaws and all, and I found my vocation.

3. More feelings. Less facts. In this session, Bruce Turkel showed us the power of leading with brand offerings (benefits) and following up with reasons to believe (features). For example, in real estate, it's not about the amenities. It's about what the buyer does with the amenities. It's not about the location. It's about what the location can do for your buyer. It's not about the size of the house. It's about what happens inside the home.

4. Be a good storyteller. This has been a common theme for a few years now and remains relevant because storytellers know how to capture the hearts and minds of their customers. Vanessa Reilly from Domo Realty demonstrated how she uses storytelling in her property descriptions. Great storytelling grabs the readers' attention, brings them into the moment, and helps them see and feel what it's like to be in the story. For Vanessa, it helps sell homes and win listings.

Four lessons and one significant validation, perhaps the biggest benefit of attending an event like this is the quality time and the connections with industry friends, colleagues, clients, and peers. The time spent with these folks is priceless. IYKYK.

It wouldn't be a real estate conference (or an "un" conference in this case) without noting my favorite sound bites...

"Stop ringing the bell and invest in the relationships you already have." - Matt Beall

"Defining moments build the pathway to success." - Monique Allen

"Knowledge is not power. Sharing is power." - Clayton Collins

"Success is about continued focus." - Drew Meyers

"People always find what they seek." - Ken Robbins