Take Flight Weekly | Jim Miller

Summary

Not every touch carries the same weight. A text and a lunch both get filed under staying in touch in most advisors’ heads, and they are not the same thing. Not to the client, and not to the business. This one lays the ways you communicate out as a ladder, ten rungs, and makes the case that the art is not picking the most convenient rung. It is picking the right one for the person in front of you. This continues the 2026 teaching series inside Pillar 3, CRM and Relationship Management, and it is the practical half of the work. The database tells you who. The ladder tells you how.

It starts with an email from someone in the ecosystem, and the question is a fair one. He built his top 100 and came up light. Five names, maybe ten, maybe thirty-five that felt real. That is normal and it is not a problem. A healthy Top 100 runs roughly 20 percent platinum, 30 percent gold, and 50 percent silver, meaning prospects and the people who have not fully gelled with you yet. Most advisors who have been at this a while land between 35 and 75 and build toward 100 from there. I had 11 in 2009. His second question was whether ten reach outs a week would burn through the list too fast. It will not, because the next 10 was never only the top 100. Prospects, referral partners, vendors, transaction partners, and the rest of your sphere all live in that rotation.

The ladder itself runs from most human to most automated. Rung one is the one on one in person meeting. Two ears, one mouth, and no business talk unless they bring it up. Rung two is a phone call. Five minutes, no agenda, they simply crossed your mind. Rung three is FaceTime or Zoom, which costs you a scheduling step. Rung four is the handwritten note, and it lands the way it does because almost nobody receives more than a couple in a year. One shows up on a counter and stays there. Rungs five and six are the video note and the voice note. Rung seven is the text, which we all use constantly and which is exactly why it is not special. Rung eight is an email you actually wrote yourself. One human, one recipient, one reason. Rung nine is a segmented and tagged newsletter. Rung ten is the broadcast. Direct mail, the mass email, the social post to everybody. The middle rungs move around depending on the person, and social media DMs sit right in that range.

Here is the line to carry into your week. You cannot automate thoughtfulness. A newsletter is not a touch. A social post is not a touch. Neither one counts toward your next 10, no matter how good it looked going out the door. The work is to know how each person wants to hear from you, note it in the CRM so you stop guessing, and then get on the rung that matches. Your Platinum's should see your face in person once or twice a year. Everything else follows from that.

Listen for more.  This is your coaching session.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to the hierarchy of communication
01:58 Building your top 100 client list
05:49 The communication ladder explained
07:43 First rung: In-person one-on-one meetings
08:43 Second rung: Phone calls and personal check-ins
09:42 Using FaceTime, Zoom, and scheduled meetings
10:40 The power of handwritten notes and video messages
12:06 Text messages, voice notes, and social media interactions
14:02 Email, newsletters, and segmented communication
15:57 Broadcasting via direct mail, email, and social media
17:50 The art of personalized communication and CRM notes
19:48 Summary: Matching communication methods to individuals

Follow me at @askjimmiller on Instagram

Summary

There are two types of real estate advisors and entrepreneurs. One of them builds a network on purpose. The other waits for the phone to ring. Episode 335 puts those two side by side and makes the case that the distance between them has almost nothing to do with talent, market, or timing. It comes down to intention. This episode continues the 2026 teaching series inside Pillar 3, CRM and Relationship Management, and it goes underneath the technology to the thing the technology is supposed to serve. The tool is not the point. Cloud-based system, spreadsheet, index cards on a desk. Your clients do not care which one you use. They care whether you follow up, and whether the follow up feels authentic to them.

The parable in this episode is a map. There is a map of North America on the wall of Jim’s office, and it has been there for ten years covered in pins. Blue where there is a relationship he trusts. Light blue where a relationship still needed to be built. There are not many light blue pins left, because filling that map became a deliberate practice rather than a hope. The same practice shows up in how he walks into a large industry event. Research the room in advance. Identify seven to ten people who operate the way you operate and who serve markets that feed yours. Reach out before you arrive. Set the coffee. Follow up after. Walking out of a room of three thousand people with ten names you will actually nurture beats walking out with a stack of handouts and nobody to call.

Then the math. Roughly 85 to 90 percent of an elite advisor’s business comes from the network. Attraction marketing is real, it matters, and plenty of people do very well with it, but on average it accounts for 10 to 15 percent. Effort should follow those numbers, and for most of the industry it does not. The episode also makes a harder point about ownership. When you eventually step back, the only thing in your business that still holds value is the network of names and people who trust you. Everything else is activity. This is also where the referral bench earns its keep. The plumber who takes your call, the contractor who moves your client to the front of the line, the vendor who owes you thirty introductions and is glad to return one. Robert Cialdini named that dynamic decades ago in Influence. You open a door, they open a door, and the client is the one who wins.

Two books anchor the episode. Influence by Robert Cialdini, and Rich Relationships by Selena Soo, where the research puts one true connector who believes in you on par with a thousand to ten thousand social followers. Sit with that before you post again. The close is the question worth carrying into the week. Am I networking, or am I observing? A network does not get built in a year. It gets built across a career, and the only day to start is the one you are in.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Networking vs Observing
00:29 The importance of active networking
00:59 Networking as an active, intentional process
01:27 Content layers in the Take Flight ecosystem
02:24 Purpose of relationship management
02:54 Building operational excellence in business
03:23 Technology vs relationship-based client follow-up
04:20 Passive observers vs active networkers
05:21 Long-term value of your network
06:17 Networking at industry events
08:19 Building a strategic referral network
11:51 The influence of relationships and the book Influence
15:10 Rich Relationships book and connection rings
17:36 The law of compensation and network value
18:36 Summary and key takeaways on networking
19:01 Call to action: Be intentional in networking
20:00 Closing remarks and next steps

resources

"Influence" by Robert Cialdini 
"Rich Relationships" by Selena Soo  
Jim Miller on Instagram:  @askjimmiller

Summary

Most advisors treat social media as a broadcast channel, and that is exactly why it is not working for them. In this episode Jim reframes Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn as one enormous cocktail party. Your Top 100 is in that room. Your referral partners are in that room. Your competition is in that room, shaking hands and remembering names. If you have decided the room is too loud, too vain, or too far outside your comfort, you have not opted out of the comparison. You have only opted out of the relationships. This is Pillar 3 work, CRM and relationship Management, with a thread of Pillar 5  - Marketing, Lead Generation and Personal Branding, running through it, and it starts with a decision about which kind of person you are going to be when you walk in.

There are two kinds of people at that party. The first walks in and says look at me. Look at my listing, look at my numbers, look at my video. They post and they leave. The second walks in and asks how they can be useful. Jim gives the practical build for becoming the second kind on Instagram. Use the favorites and close friends settings so your top 100 has its own feed instead of the algorithm's. Comment on five posts a day and five stories a day, with twenty or thirty seconds of real thought behind each one, because a comment on a story puts you in the direct messages where an actual conversation can start.

Facebook gets the same treatment with a different tool. Friends lists, built from the desktop, let you sort three or four thousand connections into the groups that matter and read only those. LinkedIn earns fifteen or twenty minutes a week if your clients work in industries that live there. Google Alerts do the quiet work in the background, telling you when a client is promoted, honored, or written about. All four of these do the same job. They convert scrolling into intelligence, and intelligence is what lets you act before someone has to tell you anything.

The heart of the episode is a story about a loss in Jim's own family and the note and book that arrived from someone in his network who simply noticed a post and did something about it. That book still sits out in the house years later. It is the cleanest illustration of the definition Jim gives here: thoughtfulness is taking the time, putting real thought into something, and then acting on it. Awareness without action is not thoughtfulness. Tools can surface the moment. They cannot supply the care. Next Sunday takes this into a live room, where the same principle has an entirely different set of do's and don'ts.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction and overview of social media as a networking tool
01:58 The importance of being present at the social media 'cocktail party'
03:53 Two types of social media users: broadcasters vs. value-adders
05:51 Using Instagram for relationship intelligence and engagement
09:13 Managing your Instagram feed with favorites and close friends
12:08 Commenting on posts and stories to build relationships
14:11 Managing Facebook with friends lists for targeted feed viewing
16:02 Using LinkedIn and Google Alerts for professional networking
17:55 The power of thoughtful actions and recognizing major life events
20:03 The mindset shift: adding value vs. broadcasting
21:03 Engaging actively and responding to comments for better visibility
21:57 Final tips and next steps for social media networking

Resources

Instagram:  @askjimmiller

Website:  askjimmiller.com

Summary

Most real estate advisors were taught the wrong job. The industry says we sell homes. That framing screwed me up for years, because the product is a home but the work is people. What we actually do is put buyers with sellers and sellers with buyers, and that only happens through relationships. Episode 333 continues our Pillar 3 journey on CRM and relationship management, and this week the focus is the best call you can get in this business, the one where your ideal client finds you first.

There is a term for this. Return on Network (RON). Just like a return on time or a return on investment, your network pays a dividend when you have put yourself in the right rooms and maintained the relationships you built there. For elite level producers, 85 to 90 percent of business comes from network. Once you do that math, the conclusion is not complicated. The area of your business that deserves the most intention is the one most advisors treat as an afterthought. This ties straight to the law of compensation from chapter five of The Go-Giver by Bob Berg. Your income equals the number of people you serve and the way in which you serve them. Notice what is not in that sentence. It says nothing about houses.

I walk through four situations from my own network to make it real. An advisor gets a call from a parent at her school who needs a private, confidential move, and she already has the buyer, so the seller shows the home to one person and everyone wins. An advisor fields a request from another broker, works his own database, and finds a client sitting on a property who names a move-me number. A couple relocating to Chicago in 2011 call me because a past client told them I was the only option, and I close a $1.6 million sale in thirty days when I need it most. An advisor drags himself across a restaurant to greet a past client, meets two more empty-nester couples at the table, and that one walk turns into $25 million in production. None of these are lucky. Every one of them traces back to a relationship that was built and then maintained.

Here is the hard part. This is not Instagrammable. It does not go viral. Nobody talks about it but it is the foundational principle of a successful brokerage business, and it is the only real equity you have. The industry keeps telling us to go find new people. In reality the new people are already connected to the clients in your top 100. The work is two to three hours a week, maintaining your network one brick at a time, and once you lay a brick in that foundation you never remove it. It does not matter whether your CRM is analog, a spreadsheet, or something sophisticated. What your top 100 cares about is that you are invested in them and that you are their person. Build the systems and the rhythms to hold those relationships, and the business gets easier, more predictable, and more enjoyable. That is the business we all want. This is your coaching session.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction and overview of relationship management
00:30 The value of the network and return on relationships
01:28 The professional purpose: helping you win in real estate
02:10 What is a broker? Beyond selling homes, creating relationships
05:02 The true role of a real estate advisor: putting people together
07:10 The law of compensation and serving more people
08:19 Examples of relationship-driven transactions
16:23 Creating momentum through relationship systems
18:18 The importance of maintaining your network
20:40 Building a foundation brick by brick
22:37 The joy of your ideal client finding you
23:11 Closing remarks and next steps

Find me on Instagram at @askjimmiller and online at askjimmiller.com.

Summary

In 2013, I made a decision that on paper looked like career suicide. I moved into leadership at Jameson Sotheby's and agreed to wind down my personal real estate business. My strategy was to cut my Top 150 in half, push the bottom 50% down to fringe, and go all in on the 68 people who mattered most. I was concerned my production would suffer. The opposite happened. 2014, 2015, and 2016 were some of the best brokerage years I ever had. This episode is about why, and it is the real start of Pillar 3, CRM and Relationship Management.

The heart of this episode is the referral tree. Your platinum clients are the seed and the trunk. They introduce you to the person, who introduces you to the next person, who becomes three more branches. Picture ten or fifteen of those trees, nurtured over years, and you start to see why I still know I had exactly 68 clients. I know that number the way you know your own kids' birthdays, because I looked at it every single day. That daily attention is the entire reason my business doubled four times in five years. A CRM organizes the relationship. It does not make the call. You cannot automate thoughtfulness.

Listen for more details.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to the importance of CRM and relationship management
01:00 The value of CRM in generating millions in revenue
01:59 Categories of clients: platinum, gold, silver, fringe
02:57 Jim's personal story and business growth through CRM
03:59 The law of compensation and serving more clients
04:56 Creating a top 100 client list for business success
05:59 The importance of staying top of mind with clients
06:58 The referral tree concept and its significance
08:06 The impact of relationship nurturing on business growth
09:04 Starting with platinum clients and personalized communication
10:03 Practical steps to build and maintain your CRM
11:14 The cost of neglecting CRM and relationship strategies
12:14 Creating momentum through consistent client engagement
12:54 Expanding your client base through relationship management
14:09 The importance of regular CRM audits and pruning
15:08 Jim's final advice and encouragement for listeners
16:11 Closing remarks and next steps for building your CRM

Resources

The Go-Giver by Bob Burg  
Jim Miller - Instagram - @askjimmiller
 

Summary

June was a month of reflection on Take Flight, a mid-year audit of what the first two quarters delivered and where the cracks are hiding. Episode 331 closes that arc and turns toward the second half of the year. Jim opens on the farmer's logic that runs underneath everything he teaches. You plant in the spring and harvest in the fall, which means the work you do right now lands six to nine months out, not on next month's paycheck. Real estate is not a business of selling properties. It is a business of building relationships and compounding them over a long career.

Borrowing the structure of Brian Moran's The 12 Week Year, Jim frames this moment as Week 13, the point where you celebrate the wins, count the near misses as learning, and plan the quarter ahead. He is candid that Q3 is a trap. You are tired, the year has been long, and the pull to pump the brakes is real. His answer is not to grind harder. It is to be intentional and surgical, taking one project per week and knocking it out, whether that is a couple of hours, thirty minutes, or a single phone call you have been avoiding.

The quarter's teaching focus is Pillar 3 of Take Flight, CRM and Relationship Management. Jim makes the case that this is where all real success comes from. Your income is the number of people you serve times the level at which you serve them, and you cannot afford to lose people from your network because they are so hard to replace. 85%-90% of most advisors' business comes from their network, which is why offline marketing, reputation and relationships, outperforms any digital tactic over time. Across Q3 he will get detailed on building a Top 100, setting cadences for platinum, gold, silver, and fringe contacts, and retaining the network while expanding it.

Jim closes with the question he puts to every client. Are you interested in being great, or are you committed to it. He points listeners back to the June episodes, 327 through 330, and to episode 254, Think Like a Farmer, as the groundwork for the season ahead. The challenge is simple and singular. This week, name the projects that need to get done in Q3 and commit to running them one at a time. Do the heavy lifting now so your network is in real shape heading into Q4 and Q1.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Take Flight Weekly
02:54 Reflecting on Q1 and Q2 Results
05:48 Preparing for Q3: The Trap Quarter
09:06 The Importance of CRM and Relationship Management
11:49 Commitment to Success and Building Your Network


Ask Jim Miller - Email List - mailto:[email protected]

Instagram:  @askjimmiller

Summary

June is the month to stop and look. A six-month audit is the most valuable two hours an ELP can spend right now. Step out of the business, look at it from the outside, and answer three questions. 

What does winning look like? 
What plays work every time you run them?
What is broken that I can fix in Q3 and Q4?


This episode is the answer to the second question, the 7 plays I would run over and over to stabilize a business and most often add real production over the next twelve months. The weekly planning session. The next 10. 1=3.. The pipeline at 150% to 200% of goal. The post-closing process. The three rocks of marketing. And boundaries. Each one maps to a pillar of Take Flight, because this is not a list of tips. It is the framework boiled down in one podcast episode to what actually moves a business.

Different advisors sit in different places. The purpose is the same. Build the business so it fits into your life. Filter out the noise. What I give you in this episode are the signals. You just have to run the plays.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction and Purpose of the Audit
04:54 Seven Plays for Business Success
15:56 Conclusion and Call to Action

Resources

Jim Miller's Website - https://askjimmiller.com
Instagram - @askjimmiller

Summary

Jim Miller shares a strategic approach to business reflection and planning for Q3 and Q4, emphasizing the importance of defining what success looks like, focusing on basics, and addressing cracks in your business. This episode provides actionable questions and tips to optimize your business performance.

In the episode, Jim walks through why Q3 is the heavy lifting quarter and Q4 belongs to your people. 

If you do one thing this week, book the meeting with yourself before July.

Listen to Episode 329 here.

Chapters

00:00 Reflecting on the First Half of the Year
02:46 Setting Goals for Q3 and Q4
06:10 Defining Success and Basics
09:01 Identifying Areas for Improvement
11:53 Utilizing Tools for Better Engagement

 

Summary

Jim shares a change he made a year ago that reframed his whole year. He moved his vision cycle off January first and onto July first. The reason started personal, tied to his daughters and a three-year path, but it exposed a better way to run a vision cycle for most real estate markets.

January is a no fly zone, with no momentum coming out of the holidays. Starting the cycle where the season actually turns puts the heavy lifting in Q3 and Q4, where it belongs, and turns June into a true review month.

Jim connects this to last week's message on the basics. The advisors truly winning know what works, build SOPs around it, and run it consistently. The ones without momentum chase everything except the network. A vision cycle is how the basics get rebuilt and reinforced, one quarter at a time.

This episode is the bridge from reflection into action. June to review, July to set the cycle, Q3 and Q4 to do the work that makes trapped become free.

Inside this episode:

1.     Why it's hard to build real momentum in January, and what to use instead.

2.     How to pick a vision cycle start date that fits your season.

3.     Using June as the review month, the 13th week in 12 Week Year terms.

4.     The quarterly rebuild rhythm. Tear apart, put back together, let it run.

5.     How the basics and the network sit underneath the whole cycle.

This is your coaching session.

Chapters

00:00 Reflections on June and Personal Milestones
10:14 The Importance of Vision and Planning
20:13 Operational Excellence and Business Growth
24:01 Philosophical Insights and Future Directions

Resources

Find me on Instagram at @askjimmiller

12 Week Year by Brian P. Moran - https://www.amazon.com/12-Week-Year-Focus-Execution-Discipline/dp/1118509234

Traction by Gino Wickman - https://www.amazon.com/Traction-Get-Grip-Entrepreneurial-Operating/dp/1936661837

EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating System) - https://www.eosworldwide.com/

Summary

Recorded early on the last Sunday of May after a month of travel, a wild Chicago market, and the kids finishing school, this is a reflection episode. Jim steps back and shares what the month and YTD validated. One phrase anchors the whole hour. 

"Seven figure earners master the basics that six figure earners are too advanced to do."

Inside this episode:

1. Why the business exists to serve the network, and why 85%-90% of top-producer business comes from it.
2. The shift from “know you, like you, trust you” to being the one call your network makes.
3. Boundaries as decisions made before the question is ever asked.
4. What winning looks like, and how knowing it filters the noise.
5. The three phases every advisor moves through, producer, operator, and the business that fits into a life.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction and Reflections on May
06:31 The Importance of Mastering the Basics
16:12 Building Strong Networks for Success
24:51 Phases of Business Development and Operational Excellence

Resources

Find me on Instagram -@askjimmiller and at askjimmiller.com