Real Estate Management Training - Brian Icenhower interviews Professor Raed Elyadi to learn about his "failure resume" leadership training tool.
Real estate is an industry where leadership, adaptability, and the ability to grow from challenges are paramount. To foster these qualities, a unique and transformative tool emerges: the Failure Resume. Unlike traditional resumes showcasing achievements, the failure resume dives into our setbacks and turns them into powerful growth opportunities.
This concept, developed by business professor Rod Eatman, is a cornerstone for real estate management training. By embracing failure as a stepping stone rather than a setback, leaders and teams can unlock their full potential. Let’s explore how the failure resume works and why it’s an essential tool for real estate agents, team leaders, and broker owners.
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VIDEO: Real Estate Management Training – The Failure Resume
Why Leaders Must Embrace Failure
The real estate industry demands resilience. Deals fall through, market conditions fluctuate, and rejection can feel personal. Yet, these challenges offer the richest opportunities for growth. All leaders are coaches, and great leaders help their teams navigate obstacles to rise to new levels.
The failure resume isn’t just a reflection tool; it’s a leadership strategy. By encouraging agents and teams to document, reflect on, and learn from their failures, leaders demonstrate empathy, build trust, and foster a growth mindset. It’s a way to reframe failure as progress rather than defeat.
What Is a Failure Resume?
The failure resume is a structured self-assessment tool. It encourages individuals to document failures across various life categories—career, relationships, education, personal health, or spiritual pursuits—and reflect on the lessons learned. The ultimate goal is behavioral change: shifting from limiting beliefs to a mindset open to growth and opportunity.
Rod Eatman explains, “People often self-handicap, making decisions that hurt their potential. The failure resume helps uncover the root causes of these behaviors, allowing individuals to move forward with clarity and confidence.”
Icenhower Connect allows team leaders, brokers, and owners to become entrepreneurs by adding integrated mortgage and insurance services their customers and agents already need to their existing real estate business.
Key Benefits for Real Estate Professionals
Self-Awareness: Successful leaders are self-aware. The failure resume fosters humility and a deep understanding of personal limitations, which are essential traits for leadership.
Improved Decision-Making: By analyzing past mistakes, agents and leaders can identify patterns, avoid repeating errors, and make informed decisions.
Emotional Resilience: Discussing failures can be emotional. However, processing these emotions helps individuals move past fears and insecurities that limit their potential.
Stronger Relationships: Vulnerability and openness build trust. Leaders who share their own failures inspire their teams to do the same, strengthening workplace bonds.
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Leadership Coaching Program
This leadership real estate coaching program is designed for any leadership position within a real estate team or brokerage. Sales managers, productivity coaches, education chair, etc. Build skills on how to lead others, keep an organization motivated and accountable and become an influential person within your organization.
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Executive Team Coaching Program
The Executive Team Real Estate Coaching Program is designed for a high functioning larger team. These team leaders will build their influence, structure their brokerage systems and growth, recruit, lead internal divisions to operate at a high level and leverage their time. Opportunities to add ancillary services to build wealth.
How to Create a Failure Resume
Follow these six steps to implement the failure resume process in your real estate team or brokerage:
1. Capture Failures
Begin by listing at least 10 significant failures. These can range from lost deals and missed goals to personal setbacks. Encourage honesty and vulnerability to ensure meaningful insights.
Example: An agent might note, “I failed to secure a listing presentation because I didn’t prepare thoroughly.”
2. Describe the Context
Provide brief descriptions of each failure. The focus is on clarity, not detail, so the situation is easy to recall.
Example: “I assumed my experience alone would impress the client. I neglected to research their property history and market conditions.”
3. Reflect and Learn
Reflection is the heart of the failure resume. Guide your team to explore the lessons from each failure. What skills were gained? How can this experience inform future actions?
Example: “I learned the importance of tailoring my presentations to each client’s unique needs and doing thorough preparation beforehand.”
4. Organize into Categories
Group failures into categories such as career, personal relationships, health, or education. This organization helps identify recurring patterns and areas for growth.
5. Reframe with Creativity
Encourage individuals to reframe failures through a creative lens. Use visual aids, journaling, or even role-play to see failures as growth opportunities.
Tip: Incorporate team exercises where members share their reframed failures and celebrate their progress together.
6. Skip and Return as Needed
Some failures may feel too sensitive to explore immediately. It’s okay to skip these initially and revisit them later. Emphasize progress over perfection.
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Success Mindset
Online CoursesLearn how to shift your mindset, go forward sloppy, and fail forward. Brian Icenhower teaches motivation techniques and trains agents of all backgrounds and skill levels to shift their mindset from "scarcity" to "abundance" and live a more positive (and successful) life.
Designed for all learning types
Video Training
In-depth professional video training on every module, presented by the author, Brian Icenhower.
Written Modules
Detailed and downloadable written modules with detailed graphics, scripts, spreadsheets, forms, and so much more.
Audiobook
Since real estate agents are always on the move, your training must be too. This course provides a professional downloadable audiobook.
Course curriculum
Enrollment includes access to the following course materials for 2 years
Module 1: Thoughts Control Actions- VIDEO: Thoughts Control Actions
- AUDIO: Thoughts Control Actions
- Workbook: Thoughts Control Actions
- The Gandhi Circle PDF
- 6 Rules for Controlling Your Words PDF
- Action Steps for Module 1
- VIDEO: Keep Emotions Between the Lines
- AUDIO: Keep Emotions Between the Lines
- Keep Emotions Between the Lines PDF
- Workbook: Keep Emotions Between the Lines
- DISC Behavioral Assessment Image
- Action Steps for Module 2
- VIDEO: Get Uncomfortable
- AUDIO: Get Uncomfortable
- Workbook: Get Uncomfortable
- The Comfort Zone PDF
- Action Steps for Module 3
- VIDEO: Rights vs. Responsibilities
- AUDIO: Rights vs. Responsibilities
- Workbook: Rights vs. Responsibilities
- Rights vs. Responsibilities PDF
- Action Steps for Module 4
- VIDEO: Be Solution Oriented
- Workbook: Be Solution Oriented
- The Solution Triangle PDF
- DISC Profiles Image
- Action Steps for Module 5
- AUDIO: Be Solution Oriented
- VIDEO: Scarcity vs. Abundance
- AUDIO: Scarcity vs. Abundance
- Workbook: Scarcity vs. Abundance
- 5 Steps to Mastery PDF – full page version
- 5 Steps to Mastery PDF
- 5 Steps to Mastery – Social Media Post
- Scarcity Vs. Abundance Chart
- Action Steps for Module 6
- VIDEO: Activities Over Results
- AUDIO: Activities Over Results
- Workbook: Activities Over Results
- Action Steps for Module 7
- VIDEO: Embrace Routines & Rituals
- AUDIO: Embrace Routines & Rituals
- Workbook: Embrace Routines & Rituals
- Action Steps for Module 8
- Listing & Closing Checklists
- VIDEO: Not Calendared, Not Happening!
- AUDIO: Not Calendared, Not Happening!
- Workbook: Not Calendared, Not Happening!
- Action Steps for Module 9
- Daily Schedule for Realtors
- Sample Weekly Calendar for Realtors
- VIDEO: Fail Forward
- AUDIO: Fail Forward
- Workbook: Fail Forward
- Action Steps for Module 10
About this course
- $249.00
- 58 lessons
- 3 hours of video content
Immediate Takeaways
Here is what you can expect to gain from taking this online course.
- Use these real estate training ideas for motivation to help train and inspire real estate agents to stay positive, increase production, and succeed!
- Train agents how and why to control their thoughts and actions to increase their level of professionalism and customer service.
- Train and motivate real estate agents to focus their time and energy on income-producing activities.
- Learn the concept of "Rights vs. Responsibilities" and increase the professionalism of both Realtors and administrative staff members in your real estate organization.
- Learn how to use The Solution Triangle to be self-managed and solution-oriented and ultimately solve your own problems by leveraging your network.
- Become empowered and understand the importance of purposely adopting an abundant mindset to prevent scarcity-based thinking.
- Learn how to embrace the uncomfortable activities required to generate desired results.
- Get Top Producer time blocking tips for real estate agents to effectively manage and protect their time allocated for lead generation activities.
- Use our simple Realtor time management system to overcome limiting beliefs about not having enough time to conduct lead generation activities to get more business.
- Learn how to fail forward in order to get into action quickly to grow your business.
Reviews
"I use ICC systems, the Online Learning Center, and the coaching program to coach and train my team of over 30 agents. I use the ICC dashboard systems to keep my entire team accountable for their activities and set proper expectations."
I use ICC systems, the Online Learning Center, and the coaching program to coach and train my team of over 30 agents. I use the ICC dashboard systems to keep my entire team accountable for their activities and set proper expectations.
Jake Rockwell
Over 500 Units Sold Annually
I have coached with ICC for over five years. ICC has helped me quadruple my luxury business through marketing strategies so that I receive listings and sales through lead generation and multiple pillars of income.
Dennis Adelpour
Luxury Agent - West Los Angeles
When we started coaching with ICC we worked all the time with some degree of success. Now, seven years later, we have grown to have the #1 market share in our area, we more than tripled our income and production, while also improving our work-life balance to enjoy our personal life with family and friends.
Tammi Humphrey
#1 Market Share & 100 Million in Annual Sales Volume
InstructorBrian Icenhower.
I created Success Mindset because there is simply no other training out their like this specifically for real estate agents.
You are in the right place at the right time. This course, to me, contains some of the most crucial training that people in the real estate industry can take part it.
With the ups and downs in the real estate market, and the uncertainty, at times, with regards to commissions checks -- there is a lot of volitility in real estate as a career choice. This isn't he usual 9-5 job where you get the same paycheck every two weeks.
Of course, one positive aspect of choosing real estate as your career is that there is no ceiling on the potential to be successful. The income opportunities are incredible. However, to get to those places, where you reap the benefits of being in the real estate industry, it takes a lot of mental strength.
If that's what you're after, this Success Mindset course is exactly what you need.
The average agent has a negative mindset, and stays "stuck" in their comfort zone. They decide they would rather keep a "flexible" schedule and avoid doing uncomfortable activities. They come from "scarcity" instead of "abundance".
This course I've created will walk you through, step by step, as I teach you how the Top Producers shift their mindset in order to grow their business.
Now is the time to step up your game. You will learn the necessary mindset changes that you need to make, tips and techniques on how to embrace being uncomfortable, and resources to support your journey.
"Why am I in such a negative headspace?"
We hear this all the time. It's easy to get negative — and stay there. Get out of the negative spiral! Learn how to shift your mindset from "scarcity" to "abundance" and change your real estate business (and your life).
It's time to take control. Empower yourself and adopt the mindset of a Top Producer. Add to CartSuccess Mindset
More about this real estate training course
Talk to a coach
If you've been considering hiring a coach, now's the time. Book a FREE coaching consultation session with your purchase of this course! Book Your Call
Leading by Example: Vulnerability in Leadership
As a leader, sharing your own failure resume sets the tone for your team. Brian Icenhower notes, “Vulnerability isn’t weakness—it’s strength. When leaders open up about their setbacks, they inspire others to do the same.”
Sharing a personal failure, such as a misstep in a major transaction or an interpersonal conflict, and the lessons learned from it shows your team that growth comes from imperfection.
Inspiring Growth: The Failure Mindset
The failure resume isn’t just about identifying past mistakes; it’s about cultivating a mindset where failure equals growth. This aligns with the principles of “failing forward,” popularized by leadership expert John Maxwell, which encourages embracing failure as a necessary step toward success.
By normalizing failure within your real estate team or brokerage, you remove the fear of taking risks. Agents become more willing to step outside their comfort zones, try new strategies, and innovate.
Learn more about the Agent Management Portal
Looking for the best way to add value for your agents? The Agent Management Portal is a powerful learning management system. You get access to all of our state-of-the-industry training materials, as well as tools to help you create your own training content for your agents.
Real-World Application: Sara Blakely’s Example
One of the most powerful illustrations of embracing failure comes from Spanx founder Sara Blakely. Her father celebrated failures, asking her daily, “What did you fail at today?” This practice ingrained a fearless attitude toward failure and propelled her to success.
For real estate professionals, this approach translates to taking bold steps, whether cold calling potential clients, experimenting with new marketing techniques, or negotiating deals creatively.
All leaders are coaches, and great leaders help their teams navigate obstacles to rise to new levels.
Brian Icenhower
Conclusion: Building Resilient Real Estate Teams
In real estate management training, the failure resume is a game-changer. It equips agents, team leaders, and broker owners with the tools to grow from setbacks, build stronger relationships, and foster an environment of trust and innovation.
By integrating the failure resume into your leadership strategy, you’ll not only elevate your team’s performance but also create a culture where growth is celebrated, and potential knows no bounds.
Start today—capture your failures, reflect on the lessons, and embrace the journey toward greater success. Failure isn’t the end; it’s the beginning of something extraordinary.
