In this episode of The Property Mindset Podcast, I’m getting personal—sharing how goal setting, persistence, and strategic action led us to achieving ICON Agent status at eXp Realty in 2024.
But this episode isn’t just about awards and stock. It’s about the power of clear goals and how setting intentional, structured plans can transform both your business and life.
🔹 The journey from running a restaurant to real estate success
🔹 How we overcame financial struggles to build a thriving career
🔹 The 5 key strategies we used to achieve ICON status
🔹 Why goal setting is the #1 tool for long-term success
Whether you're a real estate agent, entrepreneur, or just looking for motivation to hit your next big goal, this episode is packed with valuable insights on mindset, discipline, and growth.
🎧 Tune in now and start setting goals that drive real results!
#RealEstateSuccess #GoalSetting #eXpICON #MindsetMatters #FernieRealEstate
👉 Schedule a consultation with Phil today
🔔 Don’t forget to subscribe for more real estate insights and Fernie lifestyle tips!
Show Sponsor: First Tracks Real Estate Group - eXp Luxury
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Episode Transcript
So, today Something different.
(00:02):
A little bit more personaltoday.
We're going to be diving intohow setting meaningful goals
helped us achieve this beautyhere.
We got ICON Award last year hereat eXp.
And why it's more about just theaward.
Welcome to the property mindsetpodcast, where we explore
(00:22):
everything real estate frommarket trends to practical
strategies for success.
Whether you're a buyer or selleror an inspiring investor, a
seasoned professional, or simplysomeone who loves real estate.
This podcast is for you.
So welcome back to the Property Mindset podcast.
I'm Phil Gad and today's episodeis personal.
(00:43):
we're discussing the Icon Award,at EXP Realty.
not just what it meansfinancially, but how goal
setting, clarity and motivationtransformed our journey.
(01:41):
For those unfamiliar, exp is areal estate brokerage, started
in 2009 by Glen Stanford.
he was a bit of a disruptor tothe industry, very agent
centric.
like most, real estatebrokerages, agents are given
sales awards.
for their achievements inproduction.
(02:04):
For agents at EXP you get iconstatus by hitting a certain
level of production, youbasically are entitled to 16,
000 back, given back to you incompany stock.
It has to vest for three years,but at the end of that three
(02:26):
years, you will be able to, toget that money and it's broken
down into sections.
So when you hit icon, initiallyyou get the 8, 000 in stock and
then you can earn an additional4, 000 by giving back to the
company culturally, by mentoringothers, sitting on expert
(02:48):
panels, and, things like that.
And finally, there is another 4,000 you get from attending
company events, encouragingprofessional growth and
community.
this year.
We're heading to both Montrealfor the Canadian eXp conference
and Miami for the general eXpconference in October.
(03:12):
Amazing opportunities to learn,network, and even earn more
stock.
But today's episode isn't reallyabout stock.
or awards.
It's about goals.
goal setting has been pivotal,for myself and Claire, achieving
this award.
(03:32):
I don't share this too much onthis channel, but, people who
know us knew we ran, a verysuccessful, restaurant in
Fernie.
And we sold that restaurant twoyears ago.
But it wasn't a restaurant whenwe started.
When we started, it was aartisan bakery with a small
(03:56):
little cafe.
And, we were very successful.
Pretty much straight away.
And grew very quickly.
Despite our best efforts in thatgrowth, About 10 years ago, we
found ourselves very close tobankruptcy.
we were struggling financiallyand myself quite emotionally.
(04:20):
something needed to change,drastically.
So, I asked myself, how can Irealistically generate more
income in this area?
my background is film.
My wife is museums.
our previous careers were inLondon, the UK.
So we couldn't really draw onthose careers to fill the income
(04:47):
gap.
real estate stood out.
it was accessible, somethingI've been always interested in.
I had experienced success withpreviously buying and renovating
properties.
first house in London completelyrenovated it mostly myself, was
the, catalyst for affording,immigration to Canada.
(05:12):
I bought my first home in Londonin my late twenties.
and built up a lot of equity.
My wife, Claire, also had aproperty in London and when she
sold that in 2007, we were ableto buy our first home here in
Fernie.
real estate wasn't new to us,but becoming professional
(05:34):
realtors was.
initially I joined, anotherbrokerage, not eXp, because at
the time eXp wasn't on theboard, even though I wanted to
end up at eXp, I couldn'tphysically be an eXp agent,
until about a year into my, realestate career, just before COVID
hit, I joined eXp in January of2020 which turned out to be a
(05:58):
pivotal moment our goals werecrystallized and becoming an
icon agent, became the numberone goal, a symbol of being a
professional, and, a realtorwith financial success.
So we got off to a pretty goodstart in 2021.
I narrowly missed.
Achieving icon status just byfour transactions.
(06:22):
That was very disappointing yetquite motivational the following
year Myself and Claire bothturned 50, and our priorities
Temporarily shifted towardsfamily travel and more of a life
balance important reminders thatgoals must align with your
(06:43):
personal values Not justprofessional ambition.
We had good years financially,the next couple of years, but
the ICON war just eluded us.
But it taught us the value ofbalance and refocusing to
achieve the goal of hittingICON.
So How did we actually end upachieving ICON in 2024?
(07:08):
Well, it required, intentionalstructured goal setting.
And here's how we did it.
One of the big things thathelped us meet the goal was,
Claire, my wife, got licensed,the same month we sold the
restaurant business.
So in November, 2023.
(07:29):
So with her being licensed,really set us up for success for
2024 where we actually achievedicon status.
So how did we do it?
Well, number one, we had a veryclear vision.
We defined exactly whatachieving icon meant to us
beyond the financial reward.
(07:51):
Number two, actionable steps.
We broke down the annual goal,into monthly, weekly, and even
daily actions, clearly outlininghow many transactions we
actually needed.
Number three, consistency.
We showed up.
We showed up daily.
Even when we didn't want to makethose calls, even when
(08:13):
motivation was fading away, Weshowed up.
And did the daily actions thatwe needed to do.
our daily actions, became theweekly actions, became the
monthly actions.
Number four, we really trackedour progress.
We had regular check ins once amonth, meetings with myself and
(08:34):
Claire, which kept usaccountable and allowed us to
adapt quickly if we needed tomake any changes.
And number five, we leaned onothers.
Mentorship and support.
We learnt from others who'dalready achieved ICON.
asking for their advice andnever hesitating to adjust our
(08:55):
strategy.
with those five steps, itculminated in us achieving Icon
award in 2024, which were, bothincredibly proud of achieving.
So Icon though, isn't just aboutawards, money, stock, it's
(09:16):
actually real proof that clear,intentional goal setting
combined with consistent actionleads to success.
Whether you're in real estate orany other career, defining your
why, setting realistic goals andadapting along the way is key.
If you're inspired to set biggerand clearer goals in your life
or business, share your thoughtswith us.
(09:37):
What's the one big goal you'repursuing?
leave a comment, subscribe formore insights.
And remember, stay focused, stayinformed, and keep building the
property mindset.
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