To build a thriving real estate business, every real estate agent must make certain short-term sacrifices to find long-term success. Sometimes we must give up certain things to make room for our desired results.

Sacrifice is a word we don’t like to dwell on, but it is critically important if we are looking to build a business that will last. The following are seven sacrifices every agent must make to find success.

1. Agents must sacrifice their comfort

Growth and comfort cannot coexist. If you are going to find success, then you must get uncomfortable. The activities you fear the most are probably the very activities that will lead to business growth.

Are you uncomfortable making phone calls? Make the calls. Does the thought of door-knocking or calling for-sale-by-owners make your palms sweat? Door-knock and call for-sale-by-owners. Does the thought of shooting and publishing video content make you nervous? Shoot and publish videos.

The business of your dreams is right on the other side of your comfort zone. Get uncomfortable, and watch your business grow.

2. Agents must sacrifice their money

A portion of every check you receive should be invested back into your business. The definition of an investment is the placement of money in a business venture so that it will produce a future income or appreciation.

If your business is to grow into all that it can be, there will need to be a short-term sacrifice in the form of an investment of money into your business to produce more profitable results in the future.

Most top producers decide to forgo expensive vacations, expensive cars, or status possessions like watches or handbags during times when they want their business to grow.

This doesn’t mean these items should never be bought. It means that agents who are serious about growing their businesses will sacrifice certain purchases to increase the investment in their businesses at critical times.

Have you sacrificed money through investment in coaching, marketing or hiring an assistant recently? If so, your business is poised for future growth.

3. Agents must sacrifice their time

A lot of times, we see top producers and think that they don’t seem to work as hard as everybody else. Don’t be fooled by their current workload. At some point in their career, nearly every top producer was the hardest working person in their area.

They sacrificed their time to produce more results. They worked long hours, weekends and holidays to ensure their business grew quickly.

• How long has it been since you were the first one to your office or the last person to leave?
• How long has it been since you made more outbound calls than anyone in your company in a day?
• How long has it been since you called every expired listing that popped up in your MLS for a day?

Time truly is money. The more time you invest in your business, the more money you can expect to make.

4. Agents must sacrifice their ego and pride

Are there any real estate-related activities that you feel you are above? Maybe you’ve had a great past couple of years, and you feel you are above hosting an open house. Be careful. Your ego and pride may be leading you down a path of destruction.

The fundamental activities that helped you build your business are often the same activities that will help you survive in a difficult market. Instead of moving away from the activities you did to initially grow your business, now is the time to circle back and double down on those same activities.

Pride comes before the fall. Swallow your pride, and humble yourself to do whatever it takes to put your business in a position for growth.

5. Agents must sacrifice their passivity

Being passive is not an option in this business. Success doesn’t just happen, and transactions are the result of purposeful actions taken by an agent to add value to a seller or a buyer. Are you waiting for the business to happen, or are you making it happen?

Passivity is one of the clearest leading indicators of failure in real estate sales. The opposite of being passive is to be active, and activity is a leading indicator of future success.

Here are a few ways you can be active in your business:

When you stop waiting and reacting to whatever happens, the world begins to react to you. Sacrifice your passivity, and the business you desire will appear.

6. Agents must sacrifice some relationships

We all have relationships with people who are holding us back instead of lifting us up. Maybe it’s a friend who loves negativity or someone that simply doesn’t want to see others succeed because it reminds them of their unwillingness to do what it takes to become an above-average agent. Do you have someone in your life who is holding you back from being all you can be?

If, after reading that previous line, you immediately thought of someone, that is a relationship you must consider sacrificing if you truly desire to succeed. But success doesn’t just involve sacrificing relationships, it also involves cultivating new, healthier relationships.

Spend time with agents who have a growth mindset, a desire to serve clients at a higher level, and a clear vision of where they want their business to go. Surround yourself with people who have the traits you desire, and you will move in that direction.

7. Agents must sacrifice their limiting beliefs

Les Brown once said, “Life has no limitations, except the ones you make.” What do you believe is possible for your business? Your business will never go further than your mind believes possible for you.

It is hard to become something unless you first see it in others. Who is it that you know or that you follow on social media that has achieved what you desire to achieve? If the answer is no one, expand your search and find that person. Study what they did and what they are doing now. Be yourself, but model your activities after the activities they did to achieve the level of success you desire.

If you are going to build the business of your dreams, you must sacrifice your limiting beliefs and expand what you believe to be possible for you.

Life is all about choices, and the need for sacrifice comes sooner or later. Making sacrifices now leads to a future full of satisfaction and opportunity. Choose today to make decisions your future self will thank you for.

Jimmy Burgess is the Chief Growth Officer for Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Beach Properties of Florida in Northwest Florida. Connect with him on Facebook or Instagram.