Real estate coaching for new agents presents many unique difficulties. Watch as Brian Icenhower explains where most brokers & mentors fall short & how to correct it!
When it comes to real estate coaching for new agents, most leaders fail because they don’t align coaching strategies with personality strengths. New agents aren’t all wired the same way. Some thrive on rejection-heavy lead generation methods, while others completely shut down. As leaders, brokers, and team owners, our job is to recognize these differences and coach accordingly.
I’ve seen too many leaders apply a one-size-fits-all approach. They push new licensees into cold calling or door knocking without considering whether their behavioral style is suited for that path. The result? Frustration, paralysis, and ultimately, agent turnover.
This is why effective real estate coaching for new agents must be customized. It’s not just about telling agents to “make the calls.” It’s about helping them operate in their strengths, holding them accountable, and giving them a path to succeed without burning out.
VIDEO: Real Estate Coaching for New Agents – Where Most Leaders Fail
The DISC Factor in Coaching New Agents
The DISC behavioral assessment is one of the most powerful tools leaders can use to coach new agents. DISC breaks down into four main profiles:
D – Driver: Assertive, direct, thrives on challenge.
I – Influencer: Outgoing, people-oriented, fears rejection.
S – Steady: Loyal, dependable, prefers relationships over conflict.
C – Compliant: Analytical, detail-oriented, likes structure and accuracy.
Most people are a blend of two or more, and the secondary profile makes a huge difference. For example, a high D with a high I is a different animal than a D with a high C. That’s why coaching must take nuance into account.
Where leaders fail: they ignore DISC altogether. They shove every new agent into the same activities, regardless of personality type.
Why 80% of New Agents Fail
The real estate industry already has a high failure rate. Conversion rates for online leads can be as low as 1%. Door knocking takes 30 doors for one potential lead. Cold calling expireds or FSBOs often means dozens of rejections before one “yes.”
Here’s the hard truth: 80% of agents quit because they never make it through that initial rejection curve. Without coaching, accountability, and proper alignment with strengths, they get discouraged, bounce between strategies, and eventually give up.
Matching Lead Generation to Personality
Here’s how DISC maps to common lead-generation activities:
Drivers (D): Can tolerate rejection. Best for door knocking, cold calling FSBOs/expireds, and circle prospecting.
Influencers (I): Thrive socially but hate rejection. Better suited for SOI marketing, networking, and events.
Steady (S): Relationship-builders. Strong with SOI, referral marketing, and long-term nurturing.
Compliant (C): Analytical and task-focused. Often excel with online leads, database management, and systems-driven prospecting.
Coaching new agents means guiding them into activities where they’ll succeed faster. This doesn’t mean avoiding hard things altogether, but it does mean starting with a plan that builds confidence instead of crushing it.
The Dual Strategy for New Agents
One of the biggest failures in coaching is focusing on either:
Long-term business building (SOI and referrals) OR
Short-term lead generation (door knocking, FSBOs, expireds, online leads).
The truth is, new agents need both.
SOI should always be the foundation. Building relationships and staying top-of-mind creates a steady pipeline for the future.
Immediate income requires active lead generation. That means getting uncomfortable, pushing through rejection, and finding motivated buyers and sellers today.
As coaches, we must teach agents to move both balls forward at once. SOI for stability, prospecting for immediacy.
It’s about helping them operate in their strengths, holding them accountable, and giving them a path to succeed without burning out.
Brian Icenhower
Why Leaders Struggle With Coaching New Agents
Most team leaders and brokers are high Ds or high Is. These personalities make them natural starters, but poor sustainers. Ds push hard but lack patience and systems. Is love people but often lack organization.
That’s why so many teams plateau at 100–200 transactions per year. Without leadership coaching, leaders get stuck. They haven’t built the systems for onboarding, accountability, and scalable growth.
Where leaders fail with new agents:
Forcing them into activities that don’t fit.
Lacking the patience to build proper systems.
Jumping from tool to tool or strategy to strategy.
Neglecting accountability once the initial excitement fades.
The Coaching Solution
If you want your new agents to succeed, you must:
Leverage DISC. Assign lead-generation strategies that match their strengths.
Set accountability. Track metrics and require reporting, or they’ll stop after the first wave of rejection.
Balance long-term and short-term. Push them to grow their SOI while also prospecting for immediate business.
Provide systems. Scripts, checklists, CRMs, dashboards—don’t make them reinvent the wheel.
Coach the leader. If you’re a D or I, get leadership coaching yourself to avoid burning out your people.
Conclusion: Real Estate Coaching for New Agents
Real estate coaching for new agents isn’t just about teaching scripts or lead-generation techniques. It’s about aligning strategy with personality, providing accountability, and creating scalable systems.
Most leaders fail because they either ignore these differences or lack the patience to implement systems that support growth. If you want your new agents to succeed—and if you want your team or brokerage to scale—you must coach smarter, not harder.
