February Education Newsletter

I wrote an article years ago about the horse with wet legs.  It was an extension on the whole “leading a horse to water, but can’t make him drink.” premise.  My article went into the how the horse was thirsty and the water was cool and clean and the horse was standing in the very middle of the water, but wasn’t drinking.  

Sometimes I think of education as being the water and the horse representing our culture — or even our profession.  We all agree that education is a good thing.  In fact, it’s so important to us that we spend our first 12 years of life doing it full time, and then, often, a bunch of years to after that.  We agree that more of it makes us more marketable.  We agree that more of it tends lead to more income.

So, why don’t we do more of it?  Why do we not just dip our face forward and drink from that clean stream?  Regarding our specific profession, it often can’t be a result of a financial burden because much of the education is free.  Take TIGAR’s Education Committee, for example.  YOUR Education Committee allocates thousands of dollars a year to fund Realtor designations, yet there always seems to be money left over at the end of the year.  Additionally, the Education Committee puts together many events and programs designed to elevate agent’s knowledge, making them more professionally competitive and marketable to buyers and sellers.

And then there’s the highly successful, Education Committee-sponsored Leadership Development Program which will kick off in March.  This 9-month-long program has been attended by most of TIGAR’s Board of Directors and decision makers.  It’s a program that has proven to transform agents and make them far more successful.  What’s more, it’s free.  We invite you to participate. We would love for you to find out more about how this program can benefit you. 

Continuing education and industry knowledge are cornerstones of a real estate profession.  Time and time again we see those who leverage their intelligence are the major players (and money makers) in the industry.  Yet, there only a few who actually take the initiative to make a difference to themselves and the industry they serve.   Benjamin Franklin probably said it best:  “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.“

The Education Committee is the stream of cool, fresh water.  All you need to do is drink it.

John Lillywhite
Education Committee