Avoid this mistake when evaluating your real estate business (& life)

Comparison can steal from you. 🤬

I have a confession...

I started skipping mandatory sales meetings when I was a mortgage banker.

These were weekly meetings where all the loan officers would take turns announcing to the group how many new clients we signed that week.

This was a measuring contest designed to create competition and push us to achieve so we could proudly announce our production each week.

And it worked…in the beginning.

When I started out in the career, I'd look on with awe as my colleagues would announce numbers I could only dream of.

Then, after a few years and a lot of hard work, I started to proudly announce my own larger numbers — pushing into the top 5 of the office.

It was awesome!

I felt more worth (personally and professionally) because I was achieving.

But then something happened...

Some weeks I'd show up to the meetings with a number I was really proud of, only to leave disappointed in myself when everyone else produced more than I did.

You see, I'd give that week my best effort (which is all anyone can do) and because it was compared to someone else's results, the joy would be destroyed.

I was doing well objectively but compared to the others, I felt like I wasn't doing enough.

And after a number of weeks like that, I decided I had to make a change.

I stopped the comparison and found ways to skip the meetings.

And guess what?

I started enjoying my business again.

Turns out, it's easier to be happy when you aren't constantly comparing.

And as we come to the end of the year and plan our businesses for 2026, this lesson stands out as something we should remind ourselves of.

Compare with (the right) context. 💡 

Now, comparison by itself isn't all bad.

Ultimately, comparison has the power to build you up or tear you down.

It can be useful or dangerous depending on how you do it.

One big mistake we make is comparing the entire us to the highlight reel of others. 

You see, I didn't tell you this earlier, but the reason my production didn't measure up as well back then was because my priorities changed.

My daughter, Peyton, was born in 2018 and suddenly I wasn't entirely focused on making calls and doing more.

That little bit of context changes the entire story.

In real estate, we usually compare our businesses to those with the highest total volume and units — which can make us feel down on ourselves.

But we don't account for those people's goals, profit, hours worked, relationships, or quality of life.

It's also not helpful to only ever compare yourself to the top of the list.

So, before you judge your business, take a look at how many sales all Realtors in Florida did in 2024 (which should be similar to 2025):

If you felt like your business wasn't great this year, how do you feel about your business now?

You might look at your results a bit different when you have the full picture and aren't just comparing to top producers.

The bottom line. ✅

The beauty of real estate (and life) is you can make it whatever you want.

The challenge is getting sucked into the comparison game that robs your joy if you're not careful.

We've got to make sure that if we compare, we choose the right context for the comparison.

It's more than just volume and units.

And as you're planning out next year, remember that you don't have to do what everyone else is doing.

You get to pick the adventure you go on and define what success looks like FOR YOU!

And the truth is, you're probably doing way better than you give yourself credit for! 🚀

Dr. Alex Stewart
Founder