Latest / Beyond Leadership - Adopting a Coaching Mindset / #01 - Using Curiosity to Build Credibility from Zero
Transcript
- Michael Hoffman: Welcome to Beyond Leadership, adopting a coaching mindset. In this series, our conversations aren't about biography or polished advice. They're about how decisions are made in the real world when the pressure is on. We'll anchor on one situation where the path wasn't obvious and explore what goes on in the mind of a leader when confronted with real tradeoffs, imperfect information, and the need to move anyway. My guests come from diverse walks of life from across the globe, but they share one thing: courage. The courage to be vulnerable and to unpack what was happening internally when the stakes were high. This podcast is brought to you by Pier Plaza. Human help instantly. Today's guest is Steen Anker Nielsen. He's built two top performing real estate businesses from scratch, twice, without a network. He brings an unusual edge from his time as an undercover detective with the Danish police: behavioral insight and the ability to read people, applied to moments where trust has to form fast. Today we're unpacking one decision: how he delivered an unexpected experience when he had no credibility, no market knowledge, and everything depended on his first listings. That is real estate listings. Glad to have you. Steen Anker Nielsen: Glad to be here. Thank you, Michael. Michael Hoffman: So, Steen, let's jump in. Let me ask you, when you landed back in Christchurch, because you had been there as a young man, I think you were like 22 years old when you first went to New Zealand. Steen Anker Nielsen: Not exactly Christchurch. I played a couple of seasons of cricket in Wellington. Michael Hoffman: Now, there's a detail we didn't get into in our podcast. It turns out that Steen was an exceptional cricket player, which is what put New Zealand on the map for him. Steen Anker Nielsen: I'd only spent a week there during a summer holiday between seasons as a tourist in Christchurch, so I didn't know anyone in Christchurch. Michael Hoffman: But still, let's say New Zealand. What specifically made it hardest for people to trust you as an agent? I mean, you're Danish, so most people trust Danes, right? Maybe that was an advantage. Steen Anker Nielsen: I haven't really asked people about that, but certainly when it comes to real estate, for most people it's the biggest asset, and at the same time it's not stocks and bonds. It's something that they're really emotional about. So when it comes to putting it in the hands of a stranger, it takes careful consideration, and they need to feel really comfortable. They need that gut feeling that this person here is not only going to achieve a great result for them, but this person here is also going to take them there in a safe and considered way. Michael Hoffman: And since you were a foreigner, do you think that helped or hurt you? Steen Anker Nielsen: Oh, that definitely made it a lot worse. I came to Christchurch when Harcourts, a competing franchise, had a 60% market share. So I was always up against some experienced agents who'd already sold real estate, not only in the area but also in the streets where I was door knocking. So it was a lot easier, a lot more safe for most people to put their property in the hands of someone that they knew of, had heard about, or had dealt with in the past. Michael Hoffman: What kind of risks do you think were going on in their head? Not theoretically, but real, in practice. Steen Anker Nielsen: Well, they were worried about my authority. What had I sold? I'd sold nothing. What did I know about the Christchurch real estate? I didn't know anything. And English was my second language. It is my second language. So yeah, there were lots of things. I don't blame the people who didn't give me a chance. I probably wouldn't have given myself a chance. Michael Hoffman: I know that I wouldn't have given you a chance. Steen Anker Nielsen: No. But somehow it worked out. Michael Hoffman: So explain, how did that happen? Steen Anker Nielsen: Yeah, it was really interesting. I come from a country where real estate franchises are mainly owned by the banks. So a lot of leads come down from the banks. In Denmark, real estate agents, when they are associated with an office, the office gets all the leads and then they pair the leads with the agents. I had another thing coming. I had a map printed from Google Maps and a few streets highlighted by the manager, and then she told me to go door knocking. I looked at her and I asked, “So what do I say to these people?” “Just go and ask them if they want an appraisal.” Which I did. And of course I had doors slamming in my face. Not in a rude way, but there was just no interest. So I had to really go back and look upon my strengths, my background, how I could use this. And one of the things I learned from my time as an undercover detective is that there are typically three things that people gauge upon when we're dealing with people. One is your presence. People need to like you. The other thing is the authority that you bring to the table. What have you done in the past? What gives you the position to ask for something? And thirdly, and probably most important, what's the impact that you're likely to have on people? If I engage with Michael Hoffman or Steen Anker Nielsen, what impact are they going to have on my future? So that's where I had to really think carefully about it, and this is where I invented what I call the unexpected experience. (continued…) Steen Anker Nielsen: Even though the first months were really tough, I didn't have a sale, I didn't have a listing in the first seven months, I practiced all the time. So when I went door knocking, I found things to talk about before I knocked on the door. If it was an immaculate garden, I asked who the gardener was when they opened the door, because I wanted the gardener’s phone number. And you could see people smiling and say, “Well, you're looking at him, Steen.” And then the ice was broken. Michael Hoffman: Sounds like you leveraged your interest in people a lot. Steen Anker Nielsen: Yeah. Life is all about people. If you want to build something, you have to build it through people. Michael Hoffman: I'm just thinking, seven months without income, what was going on in your mind at night? Steen Anker Nielsen: I think it was easier for me than my wife, because I could see the daily progress. Michael Hoffman: Tell me about the communication with your wife. Steen Anker Nielsen: There were a few times she grabbed me and said, “Steen, are you sure you know what you're doing?” And I said, “Trust me, I know exactly what I'm doing.” Michael Hoffman: So you actually interned for Richard. Steen Anker Nielsen: Yes, I did. Michael Hoffman: A grown man, wife and kids, and you worked for free. Steen Anker Nielsen: Yes. Steen Anker Nielsen: I worked with Richard for three months. I got all that information vendors could never know. After that, I created case studies, brought them into my listing presentations, and from that day on I listed nine out of ten properties. Michael Hoffman: That sounds like a fairy tale. Steen Anker Nielsen: By 2008 I was the number one agent on the South Island. Then the recession hit. Then the earthquakes hit. We moved to Auckland and I had to start from scratch again. Michael Hoffman: How long did it take? Steen Anker Nielsen: I was number one in the office the year after. Michael Hoffman: Do you think this is scalable? Steen Anker Nielsen: No. You can't scale it. Michael Hoffman: Interesting. Steen Anker Nielsen: The difference now is people invest in themselves. That changes everything. Michael Hoffman: What’s the one thing you wish your students understood? Steen Anker Nielsen: Be open to change. Be brave. Michael Hoffman: Sounds like respect for the person in front of you. Steen Anker Nielsen: And curiosity. Be curious. Michael Hoffman: Steen, thank you very much. Steen Anker Nielsen: Thank you for the opportunity. Michael Hoffman: As I finish the final edits of this podcast, Steen is back in New Zealand. Thanks to my guest and to all of our loyal listeners. Subscribe today so you don't miss upcoming conversations. If you found this podcast valuable, please leave a review. It helps others discover the show and keeps the dialogue growing. For more information about ScaleYOU and ScaleYOU retreats, go to scaleyou.org. Thanks for listening. See you next time.