Ryan Serhant: The Sales Habits That Closed $1 Billion in a Year

Serhant says sales requires putting yourself out there, continuing to follow up and tolerating embarrassment. He describes pursuing a client for years before a first transaction. Persistence should still respect a request to stop; it is a habit of useful contact, not permission to ignore a recipient's boundaries.

People who are bad at sales try to sell the bed. Selling the lifestyle and opportunity comes first, and the product second. Some products sell themselves, while others need experience and staging.

He tells staff, his daughter and agents to act like the person they want to be today, using a camera-crew-follows-the-A-student example. The world is attracted to confidence and competence, so be competent while humbly confident.

To move up in price, he argues for spending time in higher-price situations and cutting distractions. Repeating the same routine will not automatically bring a different client base. Treat that as his sales advice, not a guarantee that turning down work will pay off.

Serhant describes a difficult early year when he made about $9,000 and relied on odd jobs. His rule, "the only way out is through," meant taking it one day at a time rather than waiting for the entire situation to improve. The lesson is about persistence in his career, not a substitute for assessing when a business approach needs changing.

After Million Dollar Listing aired, the phone did not ring, but he saw the power of content to commerce on early Twitter and Facebook and built attention into his business.

After substantial sales and commissions in 2019, Serhant started his own company in 2020. He sees continued growth as part of keeping a business viable when costs rise. That is his view of his circumstances, rather than a universal rule that every business must expand at any cost.