A few months ago, we finished up a home renovation that required some bedrooms to be shuffled around in our home. As a side benefit, it turned into catalyst for my wife to clean out her closet and reevaluate her clothing strategy. I’m noticing my clothes and shoes fall into two categories—the things I love and the things I like. I tend to wear the things I love most of the time and I rarely wear the things I like. From now on, I’m only going to buy clothes and shoes I love. Surprisingly, she has stuck to this commitment. She sends a lot more stuff back to Amazon, and I’ve seen her come back from several shopping trips empty-handed saying: I just didn’t find anything I really loved today. I would encourage you to approach new agent hiring in the same manner. NAR just reported that 2021 saw the greatest one-year increase in individuals entering the real estate market, and the NAR membership is also at an all-time high. As the volume of available agents increases, you must be more selective. After each agent interview, ask yourself: Is this an agent who has a high chance of quickly growing into a top 10% producer in our office? Is this an agent who truly has the characteristics needed to succeed (large organic SOI, money saved to launch their business, demonstrated grit and resilience, etc.)? Is this an agent who I’m going to love working with in the future? If you’re not able to answer ‘yes’ to all three of these questions, pass on this hire and wait for ones you love.