In this episode we discuss how getting into political conversations with your clients can have a very negative impact on your business and income. Staying neuteral is best.
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Why Discussing politics can hurt your business.
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So there’s a very good reason why most people in business today don’t discuss their politics with other people. If they do, first, they’re probably making a big mistake, second they feel their opinion matters more than it really does and third, they don’t understand the impact it could have on their business.
Unless you’ve been hiding your head in the sand for the last several years, you may have noticed that there’s a pretty big divide in this country right now when it comes to politics.
But it’s not your normal division, where people have one opinion or the other, it’s a very strong polarizing outlook on politics in general. Something we will not touch upon at all on this podcast.
You could be having a conversation with somebody that’s going very well, good chemistry between you, but then politics come up and they realize that you’re playing on a different side of the politics realm, things will start to change, not for the good, and often very rapidly.
People are putting politics first before relationships, family, business, before everything. And this could have a very negative effect on your business, if you let it.
Now what I’m saying here we’ll seem fairly obvious to most people. But for some, their desire to express their beliefs and opinions far out weigh the logic they should have about their business and their income.
In the real estate business, it’s extremely critical. Because we are in a people business. And if you’re not getting along with all people not just half the people, you’re not going to meet your full potential.
You could even wind up making enemies, and having people talking bad about you to others.
Negative conversation will spread like wildfire. Once people have a bad impression of you or your beliefs it could be very detrimental to your business and almost impossible to change their thinking later. And in the type of industry we’re in, where we are trying hard to build a long-term relationship with everyone, cutting that in half, by discussing a topic that’s probably not worth discussing anyway, you’ll find it will affect your bottom line tremendously.
I speak with people every day who try to draw me in to a political debate or discussion. I find myself doing the same thing every time, I smile I nod I say very neutral things like boy can you believe that. And I leave it at that. I’m not agreeing with them I’m not disagreeing with them I am keeping neutral, and they have no idea that is what’s going on.
I guarantee you that most of those people I have those conversations with probably think I’m agreeing with them. And that’s OK. Whatever they want to believe to keep our relationship good, and accomplish what we need, is fine.
In today’s environment, politics has no place in our discussion right now. Now for those of you who are very strong minded and feel like the most important thing we can talk about today is politics,
well that is your opinion and decision. But if you need to make money, and you make money from dealing with people, you are only hurting yourself.
I don’t discuss politics with family, friends and of course not clients. I think the only person I discuss politics with would be my wife and my television set. But that is about it.
If you’re the kind of person who likes to discuss politics freely with everyone, you may not even realize how it is affecting your business or how people look at you. In the long run it’ll make a huge difference, whether you realize it or not.
But if you’d like to keep a grip on things and have the most success you can, you need to leave politics out of your discussions.
Some people get extremely angry talking about politics, it’s a very emotional hot topic. And that kind of emotion can only have a negative affect on your day and how you do business.
So even if you’re not discussing it with others, but just getting engulfed in it so much that it affects you mentally, this could hurt you and your business as well.
In our business we try to keep a positive attitude and we strive to have a very positive flowing day, every day. But when you let the negative politics get to you, and let it affect your mental being and how you react through the day, it will affect your money as well.
There are many people out there who have completely thrown away their professional careers because they could not hold back their opinions and debating their politics with others on a daily basis. Unless you’re in politics professionally, chances are, that discussion you’re having is not gonna change much of anything anyway. The only thing I will change is the way you think for the day and the customers who now don’t want to do business with you.
If you’re wondering in general what percentage of people you could alienate by discussing politics with others, you’re probably looking at a clean 50%.
And that is your five minute Monday.
Have a great day