[Antonia]
We're joined today by Amy Bennett, sales professional with McGrath Caloundra. Welcome, Amy.
[Amy]
Thank you Antonia, how lovely to be here.
[Antonia]
It's wonderful to have you with us. Now I want to start by talking about the role that music plays in your life and how that is critical to your ability to switch off. Tell us a little bit about that.
[Amy]
Yeah so music has always played a really big part in my life. All genres, but from concerts to getting ready in the morning, it's kind of there all the time for me. It's a constant for me, various different styles, for various different reasons. Generally, with uplifting positive messages often delivered in a very heavy and inaudible way.
[Antonia]
So nice and loud?
[Amy]
Nice and loud. But yeah, I've always had a really great tribe of people that appreciate the same music. And yeah, I just had that collective consciousness of, I guess, the alternative music scene. Yeah, it's been great.
[Antonia]
So your morning starts with music?
[Amy]
Always. Yeah, absolutely. I do like a little bit of ABC News. I'm a bit of a nerd for what's happening in the world, but yeah different music. So I have a ton of different playlists. So even on my drive down today, it was sort of positive hardcore, empowering - get ready to beat the traffic. Yeah, right through to Icelandic quiet relaxing music. I have music before I go to an appraisal or a listing, and just so that I arrive with a smile on my face, you know, a pep in my step and just feeling really confident in my conversations.
[Antonia]
I love that. And how important is that? Is that about setting and creating the right mindset? Is that the objective?
[Amy]
Yeah, absolutely. I think, you know, in that situation, you really control the conversation. So I find that often clients - it's a really nervous process for them. But it's our day to day, so we don't realize for other people, you know, this is a huge transition for them. So I think if I come in confident and in a happy disposition, you know, it can be a really tough time for them. But really, just bringing a stress free approach is what I try and always do.
[Antonia]
That's wonderful. And I want to talk a little bit about moving into a sales role. You've been with McGrath for a long time, but of course, recently you've transitioned into a sales role. So you've obviously observed some very successful sales people. I guess we've talked a little bit about how you de-stress, but what have you observed over the years? And I guess one of the things that moving forward, you're going to be looking out for to make sure that you are able to keep those stress levels and the pressure that comes with being a sales person in check?
[Amy]
Yeah, it's a great question. For me, the last six years, I've really observed the people that I admire in the industry, whether that be in our office or collectively throughout the industry. What I've done is cherry picked what works for me and obviously aligned to what my beliefs are and what's really important to me. So whilst there are, you know, 24 hours of the day, 7 days a week that I could be doing real estate, there's other things that are really important to me as well, so finding that balance. What I have observed from my team is holidays. So make sure you have a goal in mind of where you're going to go. Switching off, relying on your team to support you in that process is really important to me.
[Antonia]
So how important are - so I think it's about setting parameters and making sure you allow for some personal time. Is that something that you're very disciplined with? Does it come naturally or is it something that if you're not careful, you default to bad habits?
[Amy]
It's absolutely something you have to be disciplined. Am I disciplined on it? Not every day. So I have what I would call my accountability partners. So my husband and my mum are the two people in my life that say, that's enough. That's enough real estate talk… I think you have to be flexible in a sales agent role with where that time is. So that may be a 3:00PM movie with my husband because he's asleep by 8:00PM and then that means I do all my social content once he's asleep. One of my non-negotiables is Sunday afternoon on the couch, in my pajamas with my husband, my dog…
[Antonia]
No working on a Sunday?
[Amy]
I do work. Yeah. I'll always do my Sunday morning opens and then my callbacks. It's not a non-negotiable. It's my dream to be able to do that each week. It doesn't happen every week, but we do try and make that our special time together as a family.
[Antonia]
That's lovely. And I guess just finally, you live on the beautiful Sunshine Coast, where, you know, being able to unwind, you've got wonderful beaches, you've got some amazing, beautiful food there. I guess have you intentionally stayed in that sort of an environment, do you think it plays a role in how Zen you are? Or is that just something that you could achieve irrespective of where you live?
[Amy]
Great question. So I grew up on the Sunshine Coast. It was not a comfortable place for me being, I guess, a little bit different. So I, you know, took myself off to the city and lived in Brisbane and Melbourne and followed a different path. But then I realized at my heart, actually the coast, that collective community was most important to me. A relaxed way of life. So definitely when I'm in the city, it's a sort of heightened state in traffic. I think definitely the coast is a really relaxed environment, and it's really conducive to making sure that we've got our feet in the sand or having a mountain hike. And I think that's our responsibility to live in paradise to make sure that we're utilizing what we've got there.
[Antonia]
Absolutely and so I have to ask you, does a walk along the beach? Is that something you do on a regular basis? Make us a little jealous Amy…
[Amy]
I love nothing more than taking my little pug to have a play in the sand and doing it. Do I do it every day? No, but absolutely. I love having a walk along the beach with my loved ones.
[Antonia]
Well, you do live in paradise. You're very lucky. We love the Sunshine Coast. Thanks for joining us, Amy.
[Amy]
Thank you so much for having me. It's been a really nice treat.
