5 More Minutes With. . . Barbara Corcoran

Five minutes with real estate maven Barbara Corcoran is definitely is not enough. In this “5 More Minutes With. . .” the diner waitress turned successful real estate entrepreneur discusses selling the business she built for more than 20 years and hiring sales people with NY Report managing editor Daria Meoli.

Daria Meoli: In your first book, you talked a lot about your mother and how you used the advice she gave you growing up in business. What was the best advice she gave you that you didn’t take?

Barbara Corcoran: The best advice she gave me I ignored. She told me when I married my first and second husbands, to sit down and make a list of everything I love about them. And I didn’t do it. She explained that five years from when you get married, you’ll forget what you loved about your husband, but those few things that drove you crazy will still be there. She said to make a list of the all the good things while you know what they are. I wished I had that list.

DM: You sold your business in 2001 for $70 million. How did you come to that decision?

BC: Oh, it was an easy decision to make. I had accomplished my goals. I wanted to be the number one brokerage firm in the city and I did it.

When I started, there was really no way of actually quantifying what business your competitors were doing. So every month, I kept a pecking order based on how many exclusive listings each firm in New York City had. I was adding up who controlled the listing market by what percentage. One happy little afternoon, I realized we were number one, and by a lot—a good 15 percent at least. I realized we had accomplished our goal. That day I said, “Now, what will I do?” And I thought, “I might as well sell the business.”

We had a buyer within a week of putting the company on the market. But it took six to eight months for the due diligence. We finally signed the contract on September 9, 2001.If the contract had to be signed two or three days later, it would never have been sold.

DM: What is your next goal? What are you working on now?

BC: It’s much easier to say, “I want to be the number one real estate company in New York City.” It’s really defined. My goal now is probably not as well defined but, I’m hoping to become is a wiser version of the real estate guru that I am. I think I’ve established myself as a good real estate guru with the answers. I’m jus trying to become really the smartest in the heap.

DM: When you hire brokers and agents, you are essentially hiring salespeople. What tips do you have for small business owners who struggle with hiring the right salespeople?

BC: I thought of great sales people as racehorses instead of workhorses. The good ones were high-strung, talked too much, couldn’t listen, and were all about themselves. Whereas, the ones who didn’t make a lot of money were like workhorses — consistent, nice, secure and always showed up on time. I learned to look for the racehorses versus the workhorses because they always made the money.

It took me a couple of years to erase my old image that a good salesman is a great listener. They’re not. They never shut up. So if someone came in and talked too much, even though I wasn’t liking them, I paid more attention. Then I had my little fail-safe test, which worked every time. I used the same lines for 30 years interviewing people. Near the end of the interview, I would say to the sales candidate,, “Do you know there are two traits that each of my top salespeople here share. Would you mind if I told you that I think you have one but not the other?”

Of course, they were on the edge of their seats, “Please tell me.” So I’d say, “Well, you have tremendous empathy. I think you could size people up and you’re a lovely individual.” And then I’d cite something they said to show them that I had been listening. And then I’d say, “You are amazing.” Flatter them like crazy. And then I’d say, “But I don’t think you have an attitude.”

The great salespeople, mentally or with their words reached across the desk to grab my throat. They were offended. And the people who weren’t going to be any good, said calmly, “No, I have attitude. For those people its like, the words are good but the music ain’t there.

Also, nearly 98% of who I hired had no sales record. But they were are all neophytes because they were the only people that wanted to work for me until we became a powerhouse.