Five steps to overcome real estate obstacles

When the market gets tough, it's easy to point to high mortgage rates, changing inventory or buyers who just won't budge. But what if the biggest obstacle to moving forward isn't the market at all?

That's the challenge performance coach Nick Klingensmith brought to his education session, Obstacles to Actions: A Simple System to Change the Outcome, at the 2026 Florida Realtors Convention & Trade Expo in August.

His message? You can't control every challenge that comes your way, but you can control what you do next.

Klingensmith, also an ultra-endurance athlete, shared a five-step approach to tackling obstacles, taking ownership and turning frustration into action. And it starts with asking better questions.

Five steps to get unstuck

Rather than dwelling on what's going wrong, Klingensmith encouraged participants to focus on what they can change.

1. Define the obstacle. Don't just say the market is slow. Identify what's actually holding you back. Are leads drying up? Are buyers hesitating? Are listings sitting longer than expected? A specific problem is easier to tackle than a general frustration.
2. Own the circumstances. Mortgage rates, inventory and competition aren't always within your control. Acknowledge those realities, then concentrate on what you can do within them.
3. Determine the shift. Ask what needs to change in your own approach. Maybe it's improving your pricing conversations, strengthening your negotiation skills or learning a new way to connect with potential customers.
4. Create the actions. Turn that needed change into something you can actually do. Schedule a training, reconnect with past customers or develop a better plan for addressing buyer concerns.
5. Execute relentlessly. Don't wait until everything falls perfectly into place. Take action, learn from the results and keep moving.

The system is designed to replace vague goals with specific actions, one manageable step at a time.

Progress beats perfection

One of Klingensmith's strongest messages was also one of his simplest: "Our problem — and our solution — comes down to our willingness to execute imperfectly."

It's a reminder that waiting for the perfect market, the perfect business plan or the perfect opportunity can become an obstacle of its own.

A listing that's taking longer to sell might call for a pricing conversation. A hesitant buyer might need clearer information about financing options. A quiet week could be an opportunity to strengthen connections with past customers.

The circumstances might not change overnight, but your response to them can.

Klingensmith closed with a challenge to identify one extremely specific, simple action and decide exactly when to take it.

Because sometimes the difference between staying stuck and moving forward isn't a major change, he said. It's simply getting started.

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