Success takes time.

While it’s tempting to jump from one “shiny object to another,” looking to grab onto whatever helps you make it big, consistency and patience are both INCREDIBLY important.

Over the years, I’ve talked to countless real estate agents, financial advisors, and service-based salespeople from dozens of other industries.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned from all those conversations, it’s that (almost) no one hits it big right away. It takes time to make connections, build your brand, and start closing deals. Along the way, you’ll pinch pennies and work yourself silly trying to get ahead.

A lot of people can’t handle the personal or financial toll that comes with being a service-based salesperson—and they walk away.

In fact, the failure rates for people in these fields are alarming.

• 87 percent of real estate agents quit within 5 years.
• As many as 90 percent of financial advisors
• 89 percent of insurance agents quit within 3 years.

On the surface, those statistics are pretty grim. But they’re far from the whole story.

Yes, a large percentage of people who enter these competitive fields fail.BUT… the people who stick it out have an amazing opportunity to build the life of their dreams.

I co-host a sales and marketing podcast called Stay Paid, where I talk to top producers from different industries. Through those conversations, I’m able to learn about the different ways people from all walks of life have found success.

These top producers work with the people they want to work with, and do so on a schedule they design for themselves. And, despite it all, they make a TON of money—empowering themselves to take vacations, spend more time with family, and focus on doing the things they love.

No two top producers have the exact same success story. But, inevitably, all the people I talk to have found success through consistency, discipline, and the willingness to take action.

These people refused to give up and over time, they were rewarded with flywheels of business that continue to grow and grow.

You can’t expect to do anything one time and see amazing results. You can’t go to the gym one time and expect to get in shape. But, when you consistently go to the gym five days a week for months on end, you’re definitely going to start to notice a difference.

It’s the same thing with your business—anything worth doing takes time.

My brother Stephen is a real estate agent. He’s one of those very fortunate agents who was able to not only stay afloat in his rookie year, but actually thrive. In fact, he closed 35 deals in his first 12 months. (You can watch him tell his story here.)

Of course, it wasn’t easy for Stephen to close all those deals. He hustled like you wouldn’t believe. And, even after his initial success, he continued to hustle, and closed out his second year with 78 deals.

Today, success is coming a lot easier for Stephen. Yes, he still works hard, but he’s also learned to build and leverage relationships. Today, most of his business actually comes from his sphere of influence.

That’s the thing about real estate, financial services, and any number of other industries—when you find your ideal clients, service them well, and stay in touch, you’ll see exponential growth in the years ahead.

That’s our guiding philosophy at ReminderMedia. In a word, it’s all about relationships.

When you build lasting, meaningful relationships with your clients, you’ll be rewarded with referrals and repeat transactions for years to come.

Here’s the thing: most small businesses know this. The problem is that they don’t spend the time adequately building and nurturing those relationships. They focus too much on closing individual transactions and lose sight of the bigger picture.

In other words, they quit too soon.

If you’re committed to your own long-term success in business, referrals and repeat transactions should be your bread and butter. You want to create your own flywheel of business, rather than spending all your time chasing leads.

You might not get a referral this month or next month. But, when you keep your connections strong, it’s only a matter of time.

Statistically, everyone in your database knows multiple people who will need what you sell over the next year. If you stay connected with those people—and stay top of mind with them—you’ll be uniquely positioned for those deals.

Don’t quit now. Focus on building and maintaining better relationships. Connect consistently and be willing to go the extra mile for your clients. When you do this, I promise you’ll create an amazing business that thrives for years to come.