There are over one million active realtors in the United States. Most of them survive by sheer tenacity. Few truly succeed and attain the income levels promised during recruitment events. What are they doing wrong, and what can you learn from their Top 3 mistakes?

1) Have a 'Winning' Personality: Many salespeople believe that their natural charms, gregarious natures, and 'can-do' attitude will inevitably lead to success. The evidence is clear - that is Wrong!

Selling is a skill; you're born with aptitude, but you need to acquire and refine a skill set in order to attain sales success.

2) Make Your Own Luck: Neophyte realtors tend to rely on open houses, work their "farms," and cultivate circles of acquaintances to acquire leads. Their mistaken belief is that sooner or later, they'll be in the Right Place at the Right Time.

Being in the right place at the right time is not a matter of luck: A good salesperson knows that the only viable prospect is one who is actively in the market - now - and is willing to do business with you already. Top salespeople only spend time with High Probability prospects.

3) Excellent marketing materials will overcome prospects' natural resistance to sales techniques.

Elaborate graphics, presentations, and ad campaigns can't compensate for ineffective salesmanship. Slick marketing is inherently disrespectful. It implicitly sends the message that prospects are too dumb to understand real estate.

People want to do business with people they trust and respect. A winning sales strategy is to develop relationships of mutual trust and respect - immediately. That is the best foundation for closing sales.

Here's what you can learn from struggling realtors:

• If what you're doing isn't working well enough for you, it's time for a change.

• It's time to develop genuine confidence and self-esteem, based on utilizing a highly effective sales process. Learn how to treat prospects with genuine respect- and require them to treat you with respect.

• It's time to stop envying others' 'natural sales talent' and develop true competence in selling.

©Jacques Werth, High Probability® Selling - All rights reserved.

Jacques Werth, author of "High Probability Selling," is an internationally respected Sales Trainer and Sales Consultant. HPS graduates are excelling as Top Producers in over 70 industries. Visit http://www.highprobsell.com to read more articles, preview the book, and learn more about High Probability Selling.