Changing careers: the first year, warts and all
January 2013. I join iad with more than fifteen years of property behind me, an agency, a franchise, experience to spare. And by the end of the year, I can count my sales on one finger. One. I am telling you this because nobody tells it, and it could have spared me a few sleepless nights.
A single sale, even though I knew the trade
I had been an agency director at 21. I had been a franchisee, then a franchisor. On paper, I was the ideal candidate.
Except that changing model means changing reflexes. In an agency, clients walked through the door. Here, nobody walked through anything. I had to build my patch, my visibility, my contact list, almost from scratch.
There was ego too. When you have run an agency, it is hard to go back to being the one who picks up the phone to introduce yourself to strangers. I lost weeks waiting for my reputation to do the work. It did not.
The result: one sale in the first year. I am not writing this to be pitied. I am writing it so that you know a slow start says nothing about what you will become. It only says that you are laying foundations.
Training: take all of it, even what seems obvious
At iad, initial and ongoing training is free and compliant with the ALUR law (the French law governing property professionals’ training). That is an opportunity. You still have to use it.
The mistake I see most often in people changing careers is skimming. They follow the basic modules, then tell themselves they will learn “on the job”. On the job often means a disappointed seller or a badly drafted mandate.
Take all of it. Valuation, legal matters, prospecting, negotiation. Even what seems obvious. Especially what seems obvious. I thought I knew it all, and I had to relearn how to prospect without a shop window. Nobody is too experienced to go back over the basics.
Pace: you are your own boss, and that is the trap
Being self-employed is wonderful on a rainy Monday morning. It is far less fun on Friday evening when you realise you have not made a single call all week.
Nobody will set your hours. So set them yourself. Prospecting slots blocked in your diary, like doctor’s appointments. Follow-up time. Training time. And time off, genuinely off.
A concrete example: many new advisors spend their mornings polishing their social media, their logo, their business card. It is reassuring, it feels like progress. But a mandate is not signed on a colour palette. It is signed after a conversation with a homeowner.
There is a phrase I repeat to everyone I support: “Time is not a resource. It is the only one.” Money can be earned back. A month lost to “getting organised” never comes back.
Consistency beats talent, almost every time
I have seen brilliant people give up after six months. I have seen others, quieter, with no particular network, succeed because they did the same thing every day. A little prospecting. A little follow-up. A little training.
In this business, results arrive with a delay. What you sow in March is sometimes harvested in September. It is precisely during that delay that many give up. They think it is not working, when it simply has not grown yet.
I often advise keeping a small logbook. How many calls, how many appointments, how many valuations. Not to judge yourself. To see, after a few months, that the effort really is producing something, even when your bank balance does not show it yet.
My first year taught me that. My second year showed me I had been right to hold on.
What really makes the difference
Looking back, I see three things. First, a chosen patch that you own. You cannot be everywhere. Second, close support: someone who calls you when you have doubts, and who tells you the truth when you are spreading yourself too thin.
Finally, a real financial cushion or a transition income. I will never tell you that you will make a living from your third month. That would be a lie. Prepare for a gradual start, and you will go into every appointment with a clear head, not with fear in your stomach.
That is the heart of my method: do, get others to do, teach others to get others to do. Everything starts with doing. And doing, at the beginning, is mostly about holding on.
Frequently asked questions
- How long before my first sale?
- Nobody can honestly promise you that. It depends on your patch, your consistency and your network. I made just one in my first year, with fifteen years of experience behind me.
- Do I need property experience to change careers?
- No. Initial and ongoing training is free and compliant with the ALUR law. What matters most is your discipline and your ability to keep up a steady pace.
- How much does it cost to get started?
- There is no joining fee, but there is a monthly subscription. Also plan a cushion to live on while your activity builds up.
Let’s talk about your first year
If you are thinking about a career change, I suggest a simple conversation. You tell me about your background, I tell you frankly what lies ahead, the good and the less good. And then you decide, with a clear head.