Brittany Ranew a St.Petersburg & Tampa Bay’s Real Estate & Lifestyle Expert talks about her own life journey with background in music and event planning and her transition into real estate. Brittany mentions the importance of mental health, consistency and commitment in what you do and what you want. Next, Brittany talks about her St. Pete Soul Podcast and what she offers to her listeners. Brittany also discusses how tracking the transactions like buying/selling is very important to build a trustful environment in the field of real estate.
Please check and subscribe to Brittany’s St. Pete Soul Podcast here.
If you’d prefer to watch this interview, click here to view on YouTube!
Brittany Ranew can be reached at 727.258.1064 and brittany.ranew@premiersir.com.
This episode is brought to you by Real Geeks.
Transcript
D.J. Paris 0:00
mindset is talked a lot about in the realtor training and coaching space. But what does it actually mean? What we’re going to talk about mindset today and do a deep dive. Stay tuned. This episode of Keeping it real is brought to you by real geeks. How many homes are you going to sell this year? Do you have the right tools? Is your website turning soft leads and interested buyers? Are you spending money on leads that aren’t converting? Well real geeks is your solution. Find out why agents across the country choose real geeks as their technology partner. Real geeks was created by an agent for agents. They pride themselves on delivering a sales and marketing solution so that you can easily generate more business. There agent websites are fast and built for lead conversion with a smooth search experience for your visitors. Real geeks also includes an easy to use agent CRM. So once a lead signs up on your website, you can track their interest and have great follow up conversations. Real geeks is loaded with a ton of marketing tools to nurture your leads and increase brand awareness visit real geeks.com forward slash keeping it real pod and find out why Realtors come to real geeks to generate more business again, visit real geeks.com forward slash keeping it real pod. And now on to our show.
Hello, and welcome to another episode of Keeping it real the largest podcast made by real estate agents and for real estate agents. My name is DJ Paris, I am your guide and host through the show. And in just a moment we’re going to be speaking with top producer Brittany Renu. Before we get to Brittany, just a couple of quick favors that we ask of you. One and really the most important favor we ask is to please keep this train moving by telling a friend about the show. Think of one other realtor that could really benefit from hearing from top producers like Britney and send them a link either to our website, which is keeping it real pod.com Or any podcast app, they could just search for keeping it real, hit that subscribe button, we’d appreciate it. But please tell a friend we really want to help as many Realtors as we can this year stay in the business. It’s a very vulnerable year for realtors with the way the market conditions have been going. And we just want to make sure everyone has got all the resources they need. And hopefully this podcast can help them. So please tell a friend and then also please support our sponsors. They are the reason we can keep doing these episodes, they pay the bills. We are so grateful to our sponsors. So please check out their products and services, consider investing in them. And all the services that we promote on this, this podcast are only to assist your business going forward. So please consider sponsoring or actually supporting our sponsors sponsor our sponsors by buying their services. Anyway guys, thank you so much for being a valued and trusted member of this podcast. We love you so much and we’re grateful to have you but now on to the main event my conversation with Brittany Renu.
Today on the show we have Brittany renew with Premier Sotheby’s International in St. Louis and Tampa Bay. Let me tell you more about Britney. Britney Renu is a licensed realtor and relocation expert with Premier Sotheby’s International as the official relocation expert of Tampa Bay. She’s also the host of the St. Pete soul podcast, and Brittany provides valuable resources to her customers by immersing herself in the community in which she lives and works and we’re going to talk about that today. She believes it’s not simply about buying or selling a home but building community I could not agree more. I want everybody to go visit Brittany’s website which tells you every all things Brittany including her podcast, which is Brittany renew.com Let me spell that for you br ittanyranew.com There’s also links to that in our show notes. And I also want you to follow her on Instagram and YouTube search for Brittany Renu realtor on both Instagram and YouTube. Also links to that will be in the show notes. And if you’re in the Tampa or St. Pete area, please consider Subscribing to our podcast, the st. A St Pete soul which you can also find on her website. Brittany, welcome to the show.
Brittany Ranew 4:35
Hi, DJ. Thanks for having me. Appreciate it.
D.J. Paris 4:39
I get very nervous when I talk to other podcast hosts and when people hear this final version, they won’t know that I screwed up three times in my introduction to you. So I am a little frazzled right now so I have to get back to my center or else I am going to be it’s funny I get very nervous like I can’t screw up in front of another another broadcaster Oh I did. Well, I think I think this is great. It’s actually a great segue into what we’re eventually going to talk about which are, which are one of the topics would be mindset. So we’ll get to a place where maybe I can take a lesson from you and learn how to quiet the, you know, the voices in my head that are telling me I’m screwing this up. But before we get to me, let’s, let’s talk about you. And I would love to hear what actually I don’t know this story is how you got into real estate. So if you don’t mind sharing that.
Brittany Ranew 5:34
Yeah, so kind of an interesting path. I have a music background. So I actually went to school for music. I was a vocal major.
D.J. Paris 5:42
Wow, wait, did you do that in Florida or somewhere else?
Brittany Ranew 5:45
So I’m from Mobile, Alabama, originally born and raised. So it was a local school there. And so we moved to St. Pete 2015. So I just like my husband, and I born and raised in mobiele, and took a leap and moved to St. Pete. So so yeah.
D.J. Paris 6:01
So did you did you have dreams of being like a singer? Did you want to sing professionally? Or?
Brittany Ranew 6:07
I did I and I had a writing background as well. So definitely in that creative space. And so I was like, Well, you know what, I’m not going to be a professional singer, at least at this moment in time. So why don’t I pursue the music industry as on the business side. So there was a local company media company that I started working for immobile. I mentioned having a creative side. So that was something I wanted to have my own business. So I started an event planning company. So I was doing that on the side while I worked full time at this media company. And that was like, slowly growing, kind of getting my feet wet. And then I got laid off from my job after they sold to another company, and closed down operations in mobile. So I was like, Oh, what am I supposed to do with myself now, I mean, I’m young and my first like, real full time job at a college. So it was kind of traumatic to get laid off. So had the event planning company and I was like, you know, what, I’ve always loved houses. Real Estate sounds like something else that I could really make my own. So I got my real estate license, it was I was doing both trying to, like build real estate had the event planning company, then that wasn’t really going the way I wanted it to. And I was starting to fall in love with real estate. I was like, You know what, I’m gonna just go all in, in real estate. And that was about I got licensed in 2013 and 13. And 2014 is where I really kind of like went full time so
D.J. Paris 7:44
yeah, it’s that’s a quite a shift. But I guess with the event planning background and the media company background, it probably especially you were doing your own event planning. I imagine that probably was that the sort of first entrepreneurial thing that you did where you’re like, Okay, I want to be in charge in my own life and my own time and all of that.
Brittany Ranew 8:01
Yeah. And my husband was in kind of a not so great work environment. And I was like, you know, what, if I have my own business, that the it’s limitless, I can do whatever I want, you know, the income is limitless. And so I just had these dreams of like, Alright, I’m gonna help us build this different life, you know, life that we always imagined. And things didn’t go exactly as planned. It was a lot slower growth than I wanted it to be. Which came back to my mindset but I didn’t know that at the time. So when we moved to St. P It was a job opportunity for my husband Steven. That was just life. It was a life changing move. And it just really helped me kind of get out of my shell and it helped put us on a path for really a better future.
D.J. Paris 8:56
But so when you move to St. Pete And by the way, if anyone out there has not visited St P it is just a lovely even if it’s just a day trip because a lot of times because I visit my sister in Tampa which I’m there a lot and I was telling Brittany earlier that I mean, we didn’t really talk about St. Pete But because my mom my parents didn’t Clearwater which is also kind of a comparable type of area. Although very different but but cool as well. In a different way. And St. Pete I always I love the Dali museum. I love it. Just everything about St. Pete is just it just feels kind of fancy and trendy and fun and cool and easy to fall in love with. It is easy to fall in love with and every time I leave it I even though it’s only like a 30 minute drive back to my sister’s or 40 minutes. I’m like, I love this place. There’s more going on, I think in St. Pete And Clearwater and that’s not a dig at Clearwater at all I love Clearwater it’s just a different Clearwater is more of a beachy vibe and st Pete’s a little bit more like an upscale kind of fun but it It’s also a very difficult place to become a realtor, because it’s such an exclusive area. Obviously, prices are high competition is high. There’s just lots going on there. So I am really curious how you got started in, you know, in St. Pete, because that’s not an easy place to get started.
Brittany Ranew 10:20
No. And, you know, I was, like I said, I had some mindset issues that I was dealing with. So that was a struggle as well. So I decided to not start selling right away when we moved. And it was a hard decision, because I loved real estate. But it was the ultimately the right one because I needed to kind of get my get myself settled. So I actually was the office administrator for my office that I’m at at Premier Sotheby’s International Realty. So it was, it was cool, because I got to immerse myself in the market, learn. And I had like a steady, steady paycheck. And then I could learn the company, and how amazing an amazing company is, and all the resources that we have. And it gave me time to build that sense of community. So that was in 2017, is when I got back into sales full time. And I hit the ground running at that point. Yeah.
D.J. Paris 11:25
Because you you know, that is, that’s the first time and all of the people I’ve interviewed, that I believe someone has gone that particular path. And as I’m hearing it now, it makes perfect sense. And I’m sort of shocked that I don’t hear more people having done that, you know, basically the way I think about it is it was almost I mean, yes, you were paid. And you know, you were paid to do that role. But I imagine it was just a learning experience, you had to absorb so much, probably great best practices, and maybe things not worth doing. And really just watching other you’re basically or just if you were at an office where people came in and the agents work there, then boy, I can’t even imagine what an education that was.
Brittany Ranew 12:06
Yeah, it was, it was tremendous. And also just kudos to my, my company, for letting me make that transition. You know, I went from office administrator back into sales. So, you know, sometimes that can be a little sticky. Because competitive, you know, environment, especially, like Florida, you know, yeah. But yeah, it was, uh, it was, it was the way I needed to do it. And I’m not gonna lie and say it was easy, because it was, it was tough. It hurt my pride a little bit to not be selling. But it was, it was definitely the right way for me
D.J. Paris 12:43
when he finally got into production, and that so you had been in St. Pete for for several years at that point. Correct?
Brittany Ranew 12:51
Yeah, so 2015. So it was it was two, it was about a year, year and a half, basically, from when we moved to when I got back into sales. So
D.J. Paris 13:01
and so at that point, still, and again, I don’t know your sort of social life and how active you are getting out meeting people. But essentially, I’m assuming you didn’t have a sphere of influence when you move there, or at least a small one. Right now. Yeah, zero. And, and then having to build that in, in. It’s interesting, because I have Matt and I don’t know that much about St. Pete, like the residents of St. Pete, I don’t know how many are born and raised, lived their whole lives there. But I bet it’s a lot of people who move there at some point in their life. And it isn’t a lot of born and raised and sort of you know, I’m there my whole entire existence. So it’s kind of be tough to really sort of establish oneself, because there’s so much so many people coming in and leaving, that you have all these other agents that are also trying to make those those relationships with these new residents, or people who are newer to the area or thinking of moving there. How did you go about, you know, finding clients when when you got into production?
Brittany Ranew 14:00
Yeah, you know, I’m, I’m a very social person. So like, my husband, I joke that just about all the friends that we have here is because I made them first. So I was not afraid to get out there and meet people. And I think that’s something that people forget is it’s kind of hard to make friends as an adult. Totally hard. Yes. So you have to put yourself out there and be vulnerable, to be able to connect with new people. It’s almost like dating. It’s kind of a it is very much that way. Yes. So it’s like I had to take the initiative to constantly meet people. And then when I met people like, Hey, would you like to hang out? You know, and it takes that until you get into rhythm with people before they start contacting you. So it was me just being really persistent because I wanted to build community because that’s how I thrive. So again, it was just me being consistent and pursuing really friendships. And, you know, over time, it just got easier and easier. And sure, you know, we’ve lived here for eight years now. And it’s just, we just love it. And we have the best friends. So
D.J. Paris 15:14
I was meeting with a newly licensed agent last night or at 430. Yesterday. And she was asking me, you know, she was, you know, interviewing our firm. And she’s like, if you were me, and she was new to Chicago, she’s like, I mean, she’s been here for a year, but she’s like, I don’t really know, hardly anyone. And I said, she goes, What would if you were me? What would you do? And I said, you know, it’s, it’s not easy. That’s a tough position for anybody to be in. And I said, Really, if it was me, I would figure out everyday how to meet like two or three new people and add them to my database. And that’s actually a pretty difficult thing to do. It sounds like pretty simple. But I said, if I go, your biggest problem is, you know, you don’t have a large sphere, but you can remedy that it just, it’s going to take a year or two. And you’re going to have to meet people that’ll be like part of your day, every day is yes, you have to learn the real estate business and develop those skills, and all of all of the normal being a good realtor stuff. But you really need to get out there and meet as many people as you can get their information, and then figure out a way that you can stay in contact with them, and provide value to them. And so that whenever they eventually are ready, but it was this adding people to your database, I’m like, it’s kind of like I call it the push ups of real estate when you’re new, like nobody really wants to do push ups. But it’s a good idea if you want to, like build strength. And you can do it anywhere. That’s kind of how I think about like building your business when he first starts, like just meet as many people as you can get their information, and then start to figure out how do I stay in, you know, in communication and community with them. And that actually leads me to this other thing I want to mention, or talk about, which I think really fits into community. Is this, the podcasts that you do, tell us why you started doing it, and how it’s sort of gone for you.
Brittany Ranew 16:55
Yeah, so I, well, I will say that kind of the initial thought came from Tom Ferry, which a lot of us agents listen to Tom Ferry. So, you know, he’s always been so big on being video first and being like, what he would call a digital mayor of your community. And I got inspired by that. It’s like, Oh, that’d be so fun. Like, I love small business. I love shopping local. Maybe I can be the digital mayor of St. Pete. And then I was like, oh, gosh, I don’t know how like, it wasn’t doing video consistently at that time. So I was like, I don’t know how to do this. This was probably in about 2019. I would say I was really mulling this over. I was like, I don’t know how to have videos and like, go into a shop. And I was thinking like, news anchor, you know, it was just kind of that’s what I was coming to mind. So I tabled it because I felt like a stuck. I don’t know what to do with this. And I, I then started thinking about podcasts. And I was like, oh, wait a second, a podcast is way easier to start. Because it’s just audio, I don’t have to worry about the video. I can just get a business owner on the other side of the mic and ask them questions. And it’s actually inexpensive to start up too with like the hosting platforms. So then I was like, okay, cool. I’ll work on that. Well, I didn’t get into it right away. It was like an idea. I had that kind of set there for a couple more months. And I started 2020 And I was I’ve been working with a business coach since the fall of 2019. So when we started 2020. And I was sharing these goals, he was like, Okay, what are we gonna do for you that you got to get this started, like you’ve been holding on to this for too long. So I’m slowly but surely kind of putting these thoughts together to make a plan to launch the podcast and then COVID happen. So I was like, oh, in our whole worlds change. So then I thought this is definitely a time that people need to be reminded about small business. Yeah, buy local. Yeah, it’s I think it motivated me to, okay, we got to launch this podcast like this is needed, we’re doing this. So that’s kind of how it was born. So
D.J. Paris 19:08
and I and so I love this idea because you interview local artisans, local retailers, you know, just local people in the community who are important to St. Pete And and the surrounding areas. And I love this because just the marketing the marketer, part of me just thinks this is such a brilliant strategy because what you’re what you’re doing is what a lot of these like shop owners are constantly receiving communication from ad agencies, people who want to sell them advertising people that want to say, hey, we we’d like to put you on a billboard or radio ad or whatever. And that’s going to obviously cost money. Whereas you’re basically contacting these retailers saying, hey, I really love your store. I like what you do. I would love to just have a chat with you on my show and kind of introduce you to my audience. And you’re basically giving them free marketing and free advertising and also So obviously, that’s a super generous thing to do. And it’s it’s part of you supporting your local community. Also, you’re probably very rarely going to get a Nam not interested. Because there’s no real downside, right. And then also, when you are sharing these podcasts, you’re I’m sure you’re tagging in the businesses or the business owners, like, Hey, by the way, if you want to promote this to your followers, or your you know, your shoppers, it’s really a brilliant strategy all the way around. I’m curious, not that you’re doing it to get business, you’re doing it to really support these local, these local merchants and, and their services, which I think is ultra noble. And I love that. I’m just curious, has it also resulted in people knowing you more in the community? And has that actually resulted in business?
Brittany Ranew 20:48
Yeah, so it’s kind of like, I think there’s like a two fold answer to that. Because number one, it plays back into the overall brand strategy, you know, I’m been working very hard at trying to build an online presence and build my personal brand. So it it, you know, rolls back into that in a really nice, nice way. So I get, I’ll get referrals from agents across the country, and only because they found me online and saw my online friends. Oh, that’s interesting. Okay, so so there’s that piece to it. But then from like, a very literal sense, the relationships that I’m making from the people I have on my podcast. You know, it wasn’t something that happened right away, because like I said, this is my fourth year, so that, you know, whenever you’re building relationships, it takes time to build that trust, know, like, and trust factor in so this past year, 2022, I will say, I had to say two transactions that I can directly link back from guests that I had on my podcast. So like, a very direct, like, you know, this is the lead source that generated
D.J. Paris 22:00
Hey, listen to your show. I’m reaching out to you that kind of thing. Yeah.
Brittany Ranew 22:04
Yeah, like, actually, those were get two guests that I had on my podcast. So then the indirect part of it from, you know, people that have reached out to me that have been listening to the podcast, you know, more just more relationships. I mean, the more conversations you have, the better chance you have for, you know, bringing, bringing in those transactions. So, yeah,
D.J. Paris 22:25
were any other realtors having a similar type of show another podcast that you were competing enough that I don’t always think podcasts compete with each other? But were you kind of the first person to do that in the St. Pete area? That’s a real estate agent?
Brittany Ranew 22:39
I think so. I mean, I researched it to a degree and I really didn’t see anything like that online. So I believe so. I mean, there’s definitely some other agents that do really good video content in our area. But from the podcast perspective, I’m, I guess I was a pioneer in that.
D.J. Paris 23:02
I mean, it’s, it’s really funny, because so my sister lives in Tampa in a neighborhood, or I don’t know if it’s a neighborhood, but an area called Pomocy. I’m sure you’re familiar. And I was thinking about this like, well, there’s probably Tampa agents that already have Tampa podcast, and I’m sure that’s true. It’s a much bigger area. But is there a policy a podcast? I don’t know. Probably not. And it’s like that would be you could even just be a policy, a podcast host. If someone’s listening, and I guarantee my sister who lives there would would listen because she’s like, I want to know what’s going on in policy. So you can get hyper specific, it doesn’t have to have, you know, 10s of 1000s of followers on every episode, if you’re still meeting the needs of whatever the community is. And I think it’s brilliant that you did that. I just love that.
Brittany Ranew 23:48
Well, and I’ll tell you, this literally just happened to me. So a couple months ago, we were at a at a event and I had someone come up to me. And she was like, You don’t know me, but I’m so and so. And I’ve been following your podcast for a couple of years. And I just love you know, it was just like, she was so excited to meet me. And I was like, oh, okay, wow. So that was such a cool moment to have like a fan in a sense. And anyway, so she’s a lender, and she had recently moved to St. Pete So that was kind of her like connection. And you know, we’re able to continue talking and we recently got together for coffee and just to hear her her say we me and my husband, listen to your podcast, and we have a date, like a date day once a week that we always try to pick places that you have on your podcast and go to so like my podcast is helping them find like a new spot to show. So just stuff like that. I’m like, Oh my God, that’s so freakin cool.
D.J. Paris 24:49
It is it’s like it even if it never resulted in actual business. It’s it’s just a good feeling of like I am providing for the community. I’m supporting the community. I’m doing it because I love live and I love and, you know, I love and I live in this community. So whether or not it ever actually translates into business, I, you know, it’s a grind. Of course, doing podcasts are not easy. But it just hearing one person say, you know, I like your show I listened to that is, is really, really heartwarming. And so I always say it’s kind of one of those things that even if it doesn’t generate, like this huge spike in production for someone, boy, you’ll get a lot of just good feelings, knowing that you’re helping the community.
Brittany Ranew 25:34
Yeah, and you got to do stuff that fills you up, you know, don’t fill ourselves up, we’re not going to be able to be the best for our clients. So
D.J. Paris 25:43
I could not agree with you more. Okay, I want to talk, let’s talk mindset. And there’s something very specific about mindset that we talked about mindset a lot on the show, and a lot of our guests, you know, reference it, and I almost don’t like the word anymore, because I feel like it’s just one of those words that gets used very, very often, without any real clear awareness of like, what does that actually mean? But I you have a particularly like, interesting story about how your minds how you identified a mindset issue, through your coaching, I’m guessing through Tom, the Tom Ferry coaching. But tell us a little bit about what was the mindset that was stopping you? And then how did you identify it? How did you first become aware of it, where you’re like, Oh, I’m doing this thing to myself? And then how did you overcome it?
Brittany Ranew 26:28
Yeah, I kind of fell into coaching it was, which I, you know, I don’t believe in coincidences. So I feel like God was like, Here, here’s your answer. So I, I have I’ve had a history of anxiety. And so when we moved here, that was a life trigger. And I was having a
D.J. Paris 26:48
that’s tough for people with anxiety moving to a new a new city where they know nobody that is brutal.
Brittany Ranew 26:55
I mean, you know, like I said, never lived anywhere else, because I went to school in mobiele. So, yeah, um, so yeah, so I started, you know, well, I went to therapy to help myself, you know, as I make the transition, which I highly recommend therapy. But getting back into real estate, you know, as I said, I started selling again in 2017. And I was just kind of struggling with, I couldn’t get any momentum, like, I just couldn’t get that traction and get over the hump of, like, I know, I can be a top producing agent, like I see it. I see that version of myself, but I can’t figure out how to get there. And I met a local coach through our chamber, because I’m really involved with the St. Pete chamber, and I met him just by happenstance. And he started probing and asking questions, and he made an offer, he was like, I feel like you could really benefit from coaching, would you be interested, and we, and that’s how we got started. And he helped me figure out that I was my own obstacle, like, it was all coming back. To me, it was limiting, limiting beliefs that I have. For myself, I couldn’t let go of that story of, well, I haven’t had much success before. So that’s just gonna be what it is. It’s just those like things that you get on repeat in your mind. I had a fixed I had a fixed mindset, I didn’t have
D.J. Paris 28:17
that sort of, sort of hobble somebody, when they’re, it’s like, I’ve always heard, like, whatever container you think your life fits in, is you’ll fill up that container, but you won’t go beyond it. And so same sort of thing with like, however long a task takes whatever amount of time you set for it, you’ll eventually just go to that whatever amount of time. So this idea of, of not even acknowledging or understanding that there’s this sort of box that’s limiting because, you know, there’s anxiety, there’s fear, there’s, there’s real feelings that are are coming up that are based in reality. It’s not like some people have anxiety that’s not based in reality, but yours obviously, is based in reality. So there’s a lot of reason to, to take that anxiety on because you’re like, No, this is a real thing that’s happening. How did you how did you start to move past that?
Brittany Ranew 29:06
You know, it’s just, it’s really tough work. It takes a lot of time to reprogram your brain. And you know what, like, with anything, you have to be consistent, and I think some people kind of, they’re like, Okay, cool, I’m gonna meditate and do some affirmations but then they don’t stick with it. It’s like you’re never gonna see the results if you don’t do it consistently. So through through my coach and also, I’ve been to ninja selling so I’ve done the ninja selling installation, which mindsets are really big part of what they teach. So learning some of those practices I would say from a daily basis really helped me so that morning morning routine of writing and reading affirmation, positive affirmations, meditation, you know, it’s really just it sounds it sounds so simple, but it’s not. But it’s like this, the basic steps that if you keep doing them over and over again, you will reprogram your brain because that’s how our brains work. You know, our non conscious brain can’t take a joke. So it’s going to whatever you feed it, it’s going to feed back to you. So if you keep feeding it positive stuff, eventually it starts to, you know, reprogram,
D.J. Paris 30:21
agreed, and there’s, most of our programming comes from mom and dad, when we were little, and a lot of it is just not helpful anymore. But it’s so deeply ingrained. And I think that’s where good therapy can kind of say, Okay, I see that you are running this old pattern that doesn’t really make sense anymore. Based on your family history. This makes perfect sense to a therapist, but to an individual, they might go God, how do I keep sabotaging? Or why am I keep? Why do I think I’m worthless? Or why do I think I can’t make it? Well, that’s because somehow you pick that up as a child from something or somewhere or whatever. And it just is unresolved, and it and it manifests and things like anxiety, and you know, certain types of behavior. I didn’t know I was an anxious, I mean, this is so funny, because everyone in my life knows me as an anxious person. I didn’t know that I’ve been in therapy for a million years, I just in the last two or three years have identified oh my gosh, I’m a really an anxious person. And I’ve had to learn how to self soothe and how to cope with anxiety and write it out and, and know that it’s not, it feels real. And it’s, it’s a real thing that’s happening to me, but it doesn’t mean that it’s actually happening in real life. Coming in, you know, so anyway, the point is, is that journey is a really important journey, I think, to go on, because you probably most people probably aren’t that aware of their limiting mindsets, or their limiting beliefs or some of these things. And, boy, if you can get out of your own way, life just gets a lot easier.
Brittany Ranew 31:53
Yeah, it, I always think about that, quote, Jim Rohn quote about, you know, your level of success rarely exceed your, you know, level of personal development or something like that. I’m not saying No, exactly. But that’s kind of what I realized was my spinning time on myself, then I was, you know, like I said, reprogramming, and it’s just, it’s that domino effect that snowball, it just starts to, you know, over time, work its way through, and it becomes like this repeatable consistent thing. And it’s almost like working a muscle, you know, you get that muscle memory and you get, it just becomes more natural to, instead of staying in the negative, you automatically flip to the positive. So it just, it just takes that repetition over and over and over again.
D.J. Paris 32:48
Yeah, it takes a tremendous dedication and a commitment. And a lot of you like you said, I, I consider it harder than digging ditches. But it’s it really is. I mean, it’s it takes a turn, and it’s exhausting to do. That being said, it’s really the most important work anybody can do. You know, take care of your feet, you take care of you’re not you I’m saying in general, we we think we want to take care of our physical health, I’m sure you do that as well. But you know, we don’t always think Well, I am going to the gym three times a week, what am I doing? For my mind? What am I actually doing to sort of explore and, and, you know, look, nobody’s mom and dad were perfect. So there are lots of wounds that every single person on this planet has, and you can start to identify and go into, and there’s, you know, all sorts of professionals that can help you sort of navigate those waters. But I’m glad you’re talking about it. I think that’s really, really important. And I every single person on our podcast deals with a some sort of level of anxiety, especially when they’re new to the business or they’re meeting you know, maybe they’re, they’ve never done a million dollar sale and they have their first listing presentation with, you know, somebody that seems like it’s Oh, I don’t think they’re gonna choose me. There’s a lot of that, that is totally normal. Totally. Okay. And there’s, there’s solutions that help through that. And then once you get through it, you realize, oh, that didn’t swallow me up. It didn’t kill me. Oh, I might actually be able to tolerate some of these. These these challenges. Let, I would love to talk about so you talked about the morning. And I know that Realtors there’s a book Miracle Morning that like every realtor loves yes, you’re a fan as well. How al Ron’s book, I have yet to meet anyone who was like, yeah, that just doesn’t work. So I’m going to assume on the 90,000 people that have told me about this book, and I’ve read it as well. That it is a really good idea. Can you talk a little bit about how you structure your mornings you talked about meditation, journaling, things like that, you know, are you still doing those things?
Brittany Ranew 34:48
Yeah, so with the ninja selling installation, it did. It taught me a lot about starting the day with gratitude. So gratitudes and affirmation was kind of my first, you know, way into having a morning group tene and I saw immediate results with that. Because again, you’re getting yourself out of a negative state by waking up watching the news or being on social media, but staying in a positive state. And then I would say in the past year, I learned about Hal Elrod and the Miracle Morning. And that took it to a whole nother level for me. So I’ve been doing the Miracle Morning for, you know, several, several months. And like there’s an app. So it’s, it’s easy to stay on top of, and, you know, just combining like a commitment to the gratitudes and affirmation, which was already important to me. But the silence which, you know, having like a daily devotional, reading my Bible praying, that’s another really big aspect for me, and the reading a book, you know, which is usually a personal, something personal development wise, and exercise. So it’s like, putting all that stuff together, was definitely took that to another level for me. So,
D.J. Paris 35:58
yeah, I think we’re talking about process, right? So we have now a process that you can follow each morning, it’s not wake up, and what do I feel like doing as much as before I start my day, I have these things that really help ground me, center me, and, you know, look, people’s look, all of our lives are chaotic, right? We have, we have things going on in our personal lives, we have things bouncing around in our heads, you know, with spouses, children, other financial situations, you know, all sorts of conflict and challenge. And those are things that just that’s just what happens, that’s just part of life. And those things can bounce around in my head at least, and I can wake up. And I, if I’m not intentional about what I’m focused going to focus on today, those anxieties about all of those things that are uncomfortable or scary to me really take the forefront and jump in front and kind of run the show and color, the way that I approach the rest of the day. So having this process in the morning that says it’s not that I’m avoiding those things, I’m going to take care of those things I’m going to you know, I’m not, I’m not being Pollyanna. But I’m also by the way, even though I don’t feel like doing it, right now, I’m going to journal or I’m going to meditate, or I’m going to pray or read or whatever it might be to help sort of you realize, you know, life has all sorts of ups and downs, and you, you can structure some some self care in that in that morning, and then you can tackle the anxiety and stuff later. So I just think that is such a brilliant strategy. So I applaud you for I need to start doing the Miracle Morning, I need to start doing it.
Brittany Ranew 37:38
It’s wonderful. And it helped me get get up earlier, because that was I struggled with that just like I don’t have kids. So I didn’t, you know, didn’t have that motivator to get up earlier with kids. Sure, I would find myself you know, sleeping in too long, just not like sleeping in really late, but just to where you feel like you’re starting the day behind, you know. And so that was, you know, getting up earlier than I had been, you know, like 645, which is to be able to get up way earlier than that. But for me, 645 was like, Alright, this is a milestone, I’m gonna do this. So that’s been that’s been great, because it’s just giving me time back, you know, I’m getting, getting my day setup, like you’re saying being intentional. And I think it does help. I think when you get your get your day started like that, it just helps the whole rest of the day, go way better and be able to tackle as they come comes your way.
D.J. Paris 38:31
I could not agree more. I told my girlfriend if she ever sees me or hears me and she hears me do this a lot. Go into like a negative rant where I’m like really fired up about something. If I’m going on too long, like it’s one thing to have an expression of anger or whatever or be upset about something that’s perfectly okay. I’m not here to tell people, they can’t have negative feelings. Because of course, you should have negative feelings that are really important. But if you’re if you if I said to my girlfriend, sometimes I get swallowed up a little bit in them. And I don’t realize that I’m really like, Okay, I’ve been going on for 15 minutes about something that’s like, just not that important. So I said, If you catch me doing that, can you just put your finger up in the air, and that’ll be my, my, my cue to stop what I’m saying. And immediately say, as bad as things seem right now, I got to list three things that are going really well in my life. You know, and it doesn’t mean the other thing that’s not going well is gone. It just means I’m trying to balance it and realize it’s not all bad. And it’s not all good. It’s kind of in the middle and I can acknowledge both things, but I have to get out of that repetition because I grew up, you know, in, in, you know, my family, lovely, amazing people, but they were more critical than you know, I would have preferred so I’m just kind of used to being super critical. So I have to have these little interruptions that go Hey, okay, you can be critical in a minute. But for now, let’s at least think about some things that are out actually going really well. So those are,
Brittany Ranew 40:02
you’re giving power to I mean, you’re right, you’re giving power to that, that negative negativity. And then it just becomes this monster, he’ll like, take takes over
D.J. Paris 40:14
can Yeah, it’s really awesome to be able to acknowledge something without giving it power. Like you’re like, No, I know you’re still there. And I know that still a problem. And I know we’ll we’ll figure out a solution, but it’s not going to swallow me up, it’s not going to take over my day, and it’s not going to ruin my day, I’m going to try to, you know, you know, try to keep persevere in the face of, of any sort of obstacle. And, and that’s where a good coach can come in, right? Like a therapist, a coach, somebody who can say, hey, I noticed you’re not doing this thing that would be really helpful for you what’s going on? What’s stopping you? Well, I don’t want to do it. Okay. And then you can start from there, you know, and kind of identify what’s what’s been what’s been missing. So I love all of this. I think this is so well said a quick. So I’d be remiss if I didn’t talk about 2023. Because so I have a little bugaboo in the industry, because anyone who’s paying attention, not every market is this way, but most markets in the country, I just want to be really honest about it. I think this is going to be a tough year for realtors, it just as rates are high inventories low, let’s just, you know, for a lot of us, it’s it’s going to be a more difficult year than it was a year and a half ago. I think most of us would agree that’s a reasonable statement. It doesn’t mean it can’t be a great year, it’s just going to be a tough year. At least I think so. I am curious, what are you doing this year, to stay on top of it to stay active? Just you know, the markets shifted? And it’s changed? What are you doing to sort of stay on top of things so that you’re not like, again, just taking in all this? Oh, it’s gonna be a brutal year, and then sort of letting that not let you, you know, sort of take action?
Brittany Ranew 41:57
Yeah, I mean, I think one of the biggest things that I’ve learned last couple years is what what am I in control of, versus what am I not in control of? And we’re always in control,
D.J. Paris 42:07
or St. Francis, speaking back to prayers. Yeah.
Brittany Ranew 42:11
So we’re, we’re always in control of our thoughts and our actions. And what I fall back to, whenever I started to feel some of that negativity, like when we hear, okay, hey, it’s gonna be a tougher to Premier, you’re going to need to double down and do more to get kind of the same same results, is just getting an action. All right, I’m gonna get super focused on what I need to be doing. And I’m going to double down on which for me, I’m just focused focus on having more conversations. While that’s kind of my you know, that’s my focus for this year, and I always break things down into like, months and quarters. So because, again, want to be like super intentional and focused, and I don’t want to have like this overarching goal for the year and then not know what to do, I want to like strategize and make that actionable. So, you know, just having, having more conversations getting in front of people. And I think that also goes back to that brand, brand strategy. You know, I think some people when they hear negative news about the market, they just kind of stick their head in the sand, and then they stop doing things. And I choose to have an abundant mindset, I mean, so I’m going to keep moving forward, and I’m going to keep, you know, pursuing my marketing channels, I’m gonna have my podcasts gonna make videos, videos is a big part of that strategy for me this year, so I’m gonna keep putting myself out there. And there’s a there’s always a market and every market, there’s market, you know, like, there’s always people that are out there that have to buy and sell, it’s, it’s life, people move, you know, gotta live somewhere, location, people move, you know, obviously, marriages and unfortunately, negative things like divorce and, and people have passed away. So, you know, it just can’t stick your head in the sand, you got to get out there and take action. And it’s that it’s that snowball effect. Once you get that momentum, once you get going, it starts to, you know, roll roll faster and faster. So
D.J. Paris 44:13
and yeah, and I’ll give everyone who’s listening a couple of predictions that I pretty sure are gonna come true. That will make you feel a little better about this year number one, lots of agents are leaving will lead the industry. I know this because we own a holding company, which is for agents who are leaving the industry. And and we had within the last year, we’ve added 250 new agents to the whole, I mean, used to have 500 agents in it. And now it has almost 800 agents. And that’s just been within the last year and as much as that pains me to see people leaving the industry for people that are committed and still working in the business and on the business. It’s actually a really good thing for everyone who stays in because you can pick up some market share. Of course, lots of people will I have realtors that are still in the business that they, you know, there’s a lot of people that want to be up for grabs. And so if you can double down, especially and I love that you broke it down into the most sort of basic activity for you, which is probably the most important activity for all realtors, like, I would imagine, is having conversations. So do you have like a certain goal, you talked about having, you know, a certain amount per quarter or per month? Do you also have like a per day goals, like I really want to have X number of conversations per day?
Brittany Ranew 45:29
Yeah, I kind of have it by week. And really, I’ve always had that in the back of my head. But this year, I was like, I’m gonna track this, like, I have whiteboards in my office. And so I put up on the whiteboard, like, you know, these are the number of buyer and buyer and seller, like, you know, buyer consultation, seller listing consultation appointments that I want to have for this year. And then these are the amount of conversations that I want to have per week. So I’m like, just, you know, checking those off on the board, and for each week. So I you know, what gets measured gets managed. So it’s like, just having that in front of me. And a really visual way, I think it’s gonna help because I just like I said, it’s kind of known that’s there. And that’s a metric, but I’ve never really tracked it. So that’s, I want to
D.J. Paris 46:18
dive just a little deeper into your conversations, because I know, whenever we would we’ve ever we’ve had guests on the show, and they talk about conversations, I’ve always failed to ask this question. When you say conversation, what specifically are what what defines a conversation in your mind? Since you are measuring it?
Brittany Ranew 46:37
Yeah, I mean, to me, it’s just a meaningful conversation. So whether that’s me calling a client, a past client, and I have to leave a voicemail, because it didn’t answer, it still counts, because, you know, touching them, and it’s just having a meaningful conversation. So that or if I go to a networking event, I’m getting like 10 conversations at one time, you know, for the whole evening.
D.J. Paris 47:00
So it I’m sorry to jump in, does it have to be a real estate conversation? Or could it be anything related to just life in general,
Brittany Ranew 47:08
just having, you know, talking to someone like you care, they’re a real person, you know, hey, what’s, what’s going on with you? Do you have any vacation plans this year? Oh, okay. Your your daughter’s graduating, like just diving into life with people, because that’s how you build that rapport. I mean, in real estate always comes up at some point, because people love to talk about real estate, so you don’t have to worry about bringing up come up. Yeah. So just being a human, I think that’s what it comes down
D.J. Paris 47:41
to. But is it but isn’t that the best news of all that that is, all you have to do is show interest in someone demonstrate that you care about them? And you should, obviously, you should only do it authentically. If you do it authentically, it’s not going to work. But but it doesn’t have to be it doesn’t have to be this pressure of like, well, I know everything about the St. Petersburg real estate market. And I know every fact and figure, you know, maybe you do. But you know most agents don’t feel that way about their you know, the area they work and maybe they are like, Oh, if I talk about him, I might not have an answer for you. You don’t have to talk about real estate, right? Like you should know enough to be able to have a conversation that’s to keep to keep that going. But you can also, you know, I always love social media, I think is particularly good for this. Because if you see somebody who’s gone on vacation, you know, instead of just being the realtor that’s like, I just listed this home and I just sold this home and look at how cool I am. I personally that’s that’s that’s that doesn’t speak to me that sort of advertising. And I’m not putting people down. I’m sort of sounded like I was putting agents down who do that i really i that that is not what my intention is. And I think you should absolutely brag about your accomplishments. I think that’s an okay thing. But I like the idea of social media to go the other way where you could be like, Oh, I saw you just went on this vacation. Tell me about it.
Brittany Ranew 48:59
Yep. And people love that. Because then they course Oh, you care you actually paid attention. You know, people always want like, people want to talk about themselves, you know, they want to know that you’re interested. I mean, that’s how we work. So just showing interest in people and to your point of saying, like, do it authentically. I mean, that’s a huge part of it. And I just, it goes back to building a brand. It’s like, just be yourself. Like, you gotta be yourself. You can’t be afraid to be yourself. Because if you put yourself out there authentically, you’re going to Your vibe attracts your tribe, you’re gonna get people back, that are like minded like you. So I agreed,
D.J. Paris 49:39
and you’re right, there’s enough business for everybody. Even if agents aren’t exiting the industry this year, which they will be, but even if everyone was flooding into the market this year, and it was going to be twice as many agents. You know, people can still have incredibly successful years but I think this is the year of action. I think action will overcome on some of these, you know, again, to quote the prayer of St. Francis like things we can’t control, market conditions, etc. Those are things outside of our control. But what we can control is our effort and our action. And all all we really ever have to do as real estate agents is get people to know like, and trust us. That’s not an easy thing to do. But that is your goal. If you can, if people know like and trust you, they will choose you as their agent. Or they’re going to choose somebody they know like and trust and you want to be on that shortlist. So I think this is is just amazing. And so for everyone who’s listening, I want you to check out Brittany’s podcast. And if you’re like, Well, I don’t live in St. Pete, I don’t really care about the, you know, restaurants in St. Pete, that’s not the reason I want you to check it out. I want you to check it out to see what she’s doing and how she’s affecting her community. And why that might be something that you may want to consider for your local community. It is a brilliant strategy. This my podcast was based out of a very similar principle, which is I just want to provide value to other agents by talking to top agents like Britney, that was five years ago, I never I wasn’t sure if anyone would listen. And here we are now all these episodes later. And thankfully, we have incredible listeners and people who are really, really appreciative of what we do. And that’s not to put a feather in my cap. But it I will, what I will tell you is it is it has helped me in my business of recruiting agents. And I don’t use this to recruit agents. But obviously, we have almost 800 agents in our company here and a lot of them come over because they listen to our show. So yes, you will likely see a benefit to your business down the road. But boy, you’re going to help the community along the way. So check out Brittany’s podcast. Also, you know a lot of people retire to Florida why because state taxes are really really impressive. A lot of people move to Florida at some point in their in their lives. I’m in Illinois, so we have a lot of people who spend their like my parents, they spend basically their winters there now, and will probably eventually move moved down there for those tax benefits as well. So a lot of people move to Florida. And you probably know people in your sphere that are also moving. And you can connect with Brittany because you can say not only do I have a great Realtor in St. Louis, she actually hosts like this great podcast, where she’s like super connected to the whole community. She knows all the best areas, the best places to go and visit and she would be a great resource. So this could be a great referral source for you. So if you have clients that are considering making that transition, Brittany, what’s the best way an agent should reach out to you?
Brittany Ranew 52:47
Um, I would say shoot me an email if you’re an agent that will see it faster. So that’s Brittany dot renew at Premier ser.com. So that’s premier ser SAR short for sup dummies International Realty. Yeah, shoot me an email, follow me on Instagram, you know, send me a DM, any, any, any way. I would love, love to connect.
D.J. Paris 53:11
Yeah, and I just think I always love this idea of when you make a referral, you really want to know that the other person is going to take great care of the client. And you know, with the fact that you’re so integrated with the St. Pete community with, you know, different boards and just also with your podcast, I would be very comfortable without ever knowing how you’ve treated a client. I would be comfortable sending a client to you because I’m like, Oh, she’s really dialed in. She knows stuff. And she’s an important person in that community. Whether Brittany, whether you think you are or not, you know, I know that you are so so guys, this is how you can build you can build this exact same brand for yourself in your local community. And you can use things like podcasts video doesn’t have to be a podcast, you could do just video stuff on Facebook, but whatever you want to do be of service to your community. And, and you will find that over time people really really appreciate it. And you know, more business so if you have somebody that’s looking to move to Florida, Southern you know or Tampa, St. Pete Edgewater or Clearwater, rather, you know, any anywhere around that area. Definitely reach out to Brittany. And if she can’t help, she’ll know who to send you to. But she would be the first place that I would go. So everybody visit her website, you can find all things Brittany at Brittany renew.com. Again, that’s b r i t TANYRANEW. I’ll have a link to that in the show notes. also linked to her Instagram and social which is Brittany and renew Brittany renew realtor. And yeah, guys, check out what she’s doing. You can do this too. So, Brittany, on behalf of our audience, I want to thank you for your time you were an amazing guest had a lot of fun with you. And think I’m really grateful that you came on. So on behalf of everyone we say thank you to Brittany. And on behalf of Brittany and myself want to thank the audience for continuing to listen, support our sponsors, support our guests. And also please, the best way you can help us grow is just tell a friend. Think of one other realtor that is this is Look, guys, it’s a tough year 2023. I’d love to tell you it isn’t, but I think it is. So people need help this year. Let’s send them a link to our podcast. Obviously, it’s complimentary. We just want to get in front of as many ears or eyes as possible. And so we would appreciate that. So just send anyone you know, maybe you have somebody in your office that’s being feeling a little down right now, this would be a great opportunity to send them a link to this episode, haven’t send send them over to keeping it real pod.com Every episode we’ve ever done can be streamed right from a browser there. Or if they’re a podcast listener, just search for keeping it real, hit that subscribe button, we would appreciate it. And also support our sponsors are the reason we can do our show. So keep check out their goods and services and buy them all right, Brittany, thank you so much. It was a pleasure chatting with you and I am going to come and see you because I go down to that area three to four times a week. So our three to four times a week three to four times a year. And I go to St Pete every almost every time I go down there so I will definitely come by and say hi in person, I can take you to all the cool spots. So I apparently you can Yeah, I am excited for that. So anyway, Brittany, thank you so much. We will see everybody on the next episode.
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