The Myth of “Busy” | The DASHcast Podcast with Jason Gardze and Derrick Taylor

Episode originally aired: April 21, 2026

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In this episode of the DASHcast Podcast, the DASH Carolina team dives into In real estate, being busy can feel like success — but activity doesn’t always lead to results.In this episode of the DASHcast Podcast, Jason Gardze and Derrick Taylor break down the myth of being bus…

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Episode Overview

In real estate, being busy can feel like success — but activity doesn’t always lead to results.In this episode of the DASHcast Podcast, Jason Gardze and Derrick Taylor break down the myth of being busy in real estate and why many agents confuse constant activity with actual business growth.From endless showings and follow-ups to lead generation that never converts, they explore how Realtors can get trapped in cycles of motion without momentum. Jason brings a training perspective on the habits agents develop early in their careers, while Derrick shares real-world experiences from deals, negotiations, and the day-to-day realities of working with buyers and sellers.They discuss how real estate agents can evaluate where their time is actually going, identify the activities that truly move deals forward, and focus on the conversations and strategies that create consistent closings.If you’re a real estate agent looking for practical business advice, productivity strategies, and honest insigh

Full Episode Transcript

The following is a lightly edited transcript of this DASHcast episode. Some portions may be condensed for readability.

Foreign. Well, welcome to the dashcast Podcast. I’m Jason Gardze. I’m Derek Taylor. And today we’re going to talk about a number of topics. I know we’re going to start specifically with where agents are spending their time, Energy, emotions, things like that. Right, Derek? I mean, honestly. So I lived side by side with you throughout your first year in real estate, so I feel like you and I can speak. Great work, by the way. Uniquely. I’m very

proud. Right, Yes. I think you and I can speak uniquely about a scenario where a guy who’s just been really great at everything he’s picked up in life decides, you know what I’m going to try? I’m going to try real estate. Like that looks fun. Right? And I’m going to keep doing these few other things that I need to, to, you know, support myself and pay my bills while I’m getting launched. Right. And so you were

hustling, right? Absolutely. I mean, out of the gate. Out of the gate, yeah. And the best thing that I loved about you throughout the entire time is there was no such thing as fail. There was never going to be a fail. I don’t know if that word’s ever been in your vocabulary. You were going to find a way to win regardless of the circumstances or the odds or anything else. Right. I appreciate that. I really do.

Because I. I didn’t get in this to play around with it. I got into it to make it my living. And when you think about basics, as far as I got to eat, you take it a little bit more serious. 100%. Right. And I think, again, so many people don’t understand or appreciate what they’re getting into. Right. And there’s so many things that you can do. Look, there’s a lot of great systems out there. There’s a

lot of great teachers and tools. Look, any good CRM is going to tell you who to poke and how often to poke them. Right? Yes. But I think for me, and what I go back to is this. We used to, once upon a time, we had nicknames for everybody. Right. And your nickname was Sticky, right? Right. Why was your name nickname Sticky? Like I was given that name? Because there is something that you need to do

in real estate, and that is stay with your client through the entire process. When they tell you go away, you don’t. And then when it’s time to buy a house, you’re always at the top of mine. So hence the name Sticky, because I stuck to my clients and wouldn’t let them get away from me until they actually said, you know what? Fuck off. Then I was gone. And what I don’t think many people appreciate is this,

the idea that you were willing to meet people where they were. Right? We’re in a sales role, right? We’re not selling houses for a living. We’re selling our services, Right? Absolutely. And your services are far and above most. Right. But what I, like, loved is that you took it beyond the CRM, beyond the touchpoint, beyond the, oh, it’s been a few weeks. I should send him a text or a phone call. Right? You took to heart

who these people were, right? What drove them, what motivates them, and you met them where they were. And sometimes that was simply, I’m gonna blow your ass up until you fucking respond to me. That was my thought process. And then sometimes it was like, look, I captured something that first time we met. And I’m gonna remind you that I loved you every few weeks, right? Because I’m gonna talk about that one thing, right? Like, if it

was me, I’m a big Hurricanes fan, you know, you would have given the old, like, hey, you see the game last night? That was awesome. Absolutely. You know, and so I think what I love most and what I think anybody could take away from you and what you’ve been able to accomplish thus far is simply this, like, meet them where they are, right, and continue to bang your head against the wall until they give you some

sort of answer. Right? That whole go for the no thing. Right? But you didn’t get many no’s. You saw people that you love what you do, you loved what you did, and you were willing to work for it. And I think, again, sticky was the funny name that stuck with you for the longest time. Absolutely. And people are still calling me that. However, I just. I look at it as. Or I say to people, sometimes you

have to become a chameleon, but you also have to really, really listen when you’re taking someone on that first date or when you’re on the phone with them, because there will be that one thing that they say that you can hone in on and make them feel comfortable. Comfortable. You’re not lying about it. Of course, it does help to have life’s experiences and to have moved around and to have had several different jobs, because all of

that encompasses being a real estate agent, which will then help you to succeed in this profession. Like, there were things that I did one time. I had Indian food once. But because I’m dealing with some from that, someone from that culture, I May hone into. You know, I had some Indian bread one time. It was really good. That’s a conversation you can start having with someone and open them up. It could be the most minute thing

that you may think is really stupid, but it may not be stupid to someone else. That might be their life. Well, you nailed it. People like people who are like them. And utilizing your life experience allows you the space and opportunity to meet people where they are, to find a commonality that they can then gravitate towards and they can then wrap their arms around. I mean, honestly. Look, people got to like you first, right? I don’t

give a shit what, you know, if I don’t like you, if I don’t want to spend the next 17 Saturdays showing houses with you, it’s a done deal. I’m not going to work with you. Right? But if they first like you, because people like people who are like them, and then they trust you because you’re good at what you do and you speak the language, right? Stats, data, numbers, right? All that, all those things, they matter

to people. They absolutely do. And funny little thing, when I first started, and of course, you know, you don’t know how to be a real estate agent. If I had five houses to show someone in my mind, and I’m not laying on anyone’s couch to talk about this, it doesn’t affect me that much, do I need to get my legal patent? But I thought I’d bring it up. Tell me how that made you feel, Derek. I

know. When I had five houses to show them, and after that first house, if. If I said, okay, I’ll meet you at the next one, they didn’t show up, I probably would have been devastated. But that’s a way for you get to know whether or not they like you. Pretty simple. How often do people leave you with that first house? Big guy, are you okay? You might need a couch. Okay. I’m working through. Are you sure?

Tell me how you feel now, Derek. Well, you know, let’s talk about that role. All right, look, I think, again, what a fantastic perspective because again, you and I live through it. I mean, I remember the phone calls I got from you, the frantic phone calls, because, again, the fear of the unknown is the scariest thing for anybody. And you were the guide. You were the expert. You were the person telling other people what’s going to

happen. And you didn’t know yourself sometimes, right? And so the frantic phone calls as you were out doing X, Y and Z, because you were still hustling to Kind of get your business off the ground. And we were hand in hand kind of working through those first several deals, those first several contracts. And what I loved most is this. You asked a question. Once you got your answer, you knew what it was. The next time you

came with something, you proposed a solution, you came and you said, hey, we did this last time. What do you think? Think it’s gonna work? You think it’s gonna work out? What do you think? And you were able to grow in such a short period of time by taking every single experience you had. And then everybody you talked to, a lot more people than just me, right? Every individual that supported you. And then you continue to

evolve and grow your ability to support people to where by the time that you were done with that first year, What’d you done? 25 plus deals or so, helped all these happy people with all these five star reviews, figuring it the fuck out as you went along. Right. And that part is what is really surprising to me. To not know what you’re doing and then come out on top. That’s just a matter of throwing yourself into

it. But I really like, I would like to hear your first experience, how you handled that. We don’t talk about that that much. We don’t talk about it that. No, I think mine is all a level of confidence. I think one of the things that I’ve been blessed with in life is a level of confidence. You know, I joke about being the captain of my soccer team from the time that I was ever on a soccer

team and speaking with level of confidence and starting this business when I already had a few of these gray hairs in life already coming out of another profession that served me very well for many years. It allowed me the space and opportunity for people to gravitate towards me. You know, when I spoke with the level of confidence I needed, I too, very much like you called several people to say, shit, what’s going to happen now? Yeah,

what do I need to tell them next? How do I open this lockbox? Oh, God. It’s the old school locker ones that still give me a hard time. I mean, you know, it’s like three this way to which way? I’m not real sure I know, honestly, I mean, we have these fancy things that our phones just kind of. I mean, here you’re standing outside of a house trying to open up a locker and talk at the

same time. It’s like you’re. No, they didn’t do that shit till six, right? You know, I mean, they only give us four Minutes to open it up and get to the class. But anyways, you know, let me, let me do this. Let’s transition a little bit because what I’d love to hear more about is how you’re able to keep a level of consistency. Okay. So most agents right now, they do this and then they do this

and then they do this. Right. You get three or four contracts, one month, you’re on top of the world. Life is good. Right. You know, and then you stop prospecting a little bit and then you stop keeping up with people because you’re busy and you’re comfortable and next thing you know, shit, when am I getting paid again? Right. And so how are you able to work yourself through to the point that, look, you had ups and

downs. We all do. Right? Yeah. How were you able to keep a level of consistency throughout your career thus far? Well, I mean, I think that it’s mainly because there is a period of time where the market gets slow. And for me, those times are Thanksgiving and Christmas. Any other holidays I’m fine with. But those scare me because I need to make it through them. So my level of consistency, it doesn’t stop or start or slow

down or become less. I treat people the same every single time. The follow up is always as consistent as I can make it because it is hard to keep up with the follow up sometimes because I’m so busy, which we’re going to get to, how we can utilize or when do you think you might need someone to work with you? But sure. Another story. I think the way that I’m able to stay consistent is just be

consistent myself. Like, I get up, I do the same thing usually every single morning, Coffee being one of them because don’t talk to me before. But you just have to stay consistent. And if you stay consistent and you treat people the same throughout your real estate endeavor, you will get the, the benefits of being consistent, if that makes sense. Like you never slow down. Like, I’ve not taken a real vacation. But even if you take vacation,

you should be able to still pick up the phone or send an email, send a quick text. And yes, you’re going to want to have some downtime. Sure. But if you’re in this for the long haul and this is your job, you treat it as such. Sure. And I think it’s the magic of making people feel like you’re always available for them too. Right. When you’re not. Yeah. I mean, I’m able to get to know soccer

games and things and I’m able to pick him up from school and do the things that I want to be. But my clients still feel like they’re my everything. Yes. And they’re not. Right. I mean, my family’s up here and everything else is far, far behind. Right. That’s so important that you said that is making them feel like they are the only client. The only client. I don’t talk about other clients. I don’t talk about anything.

I mean, when I’m able to proactively schedule things with people, I think that’s one the neat things that I’ve been able to do for quite some time. I know when Noah’s got a track meet this week. Right. I know what Noah has going on for soccer this week. And so when I meet with a client and I say this, you know, look, unfortunately, you know, we saw this first house and of course, I mean, they don’t

zoom in on the old H vac or those weird cracks upstairs or all the other things. Thank God I was here. And so this one probably isn’t the one for us guys. Right? But hey, assuming that there’s some more things out there that, that sound like a lot of what you’re looking for, what are you guys doing tomorrow at 3 o’, clock, right? Or what are you guys doing Friday at 4:30 or 5, right? Or what

are you guys doing Saturday at 9:00am? Like, I’ve given them these three times where me, my busy schedule allows it, right? And so I’ve treated you like you’re my everything. I’ve made sure that you feel like, you know, everything revolves around you and when you’re available, but not making it sound desperate, never. There’s a very fine line like, oh, I need this sale because I’m buying a car as opposed to, oh, this is not the right

one. Or you know, I really like that, like, don’t come out of that character. Always talk them out of it. Don’t look at what you need and want from the transaction. You always have to look at what they want and need 100%. And that’s simply because we as real estate agents, unfortunately are generally speaking defined by our worst and not our best. Right? And there are a ton of terrible agents out there who are very self

motivated and selfish in the whole thing. Right. And so it’s almost hard for us to have to work through the idea that I’m out for you and your best interest. Right? I do this because I love people, I love helping people. I believe in supporting people. I believe in the goal of homeownership. Right. There’s so much that goes into ensuring not just that I’m doing all the right things the right ways, but helping then someone to

understand that. Right. And getting past the stigma of, you only get paid when something closes. Right? Right. And don’t get me wrong, that’s the truth. But there is still this idea of how we’re able to help you emotionally understand that I care more about you and your best interest than me and my paycheck. Right. You’re hitting it right on the hammer, on the nail. It’s like, I feel like we love what we do in different ways,

but we still have that same feeling about real estate. And if you have that feeling, there’s nothing that you won’t do to be successful at it and still have a personal life. I loved one time you told me, go do something for yourself, because you saw that I was going bananas because I had been, like, out there on the pavement, driving all over the place, and I just was, like, at wit’s end because I was exhausted.

You said, go do something for yourself, and I went and got a foot massage and a pedicure, and I felt so much better. It’s amazing, those little things when you feel like you’re in the rat race trying to get things done, taking a minute for yourself, you always have to look at that and take time for yourself. You have to. You have to take care of you first. I mean, the old adage of, you know, I’ll

eat last and whatever’s left and whatever, like, but if I’m the breadwinner for me and mine, right? Like, I need to take care of me, and if I don’t take care of me, how on earth can I take care of those that I love most? Right. And so you’re really doing those you love most in the world service if you don’t take care of you and your needs and yourself, right? If you’re not getting the rest

you need, if you’re not getting the fuel you need, if you’re not getting the energy, if you’re not doing things to fill your cup, right? Then how the fuck am I supposed to go out and do my best for those that I love most and you feel better afterwards, you want to go and do things for other people when you’ve taken care of yourself. We’re all in the mindset of, oh, I got to do for this

one, I got to do for this one, I have to do for that one. Just like you said, how can you better them if you’re not Better you have to take care of yourself in order to make other people happy because you’re going to go into it with a negative attitude. And that’s unfortunately the idea that so many people get their mind wrapped around is that in order to succeed, I’m going to have to forego certain

things. And that’s probably an okay thought process, right. Are you going to miss some time with friends or family? Are you going to be out nights when you don’t want to or showing houses? Sure. Going to be in the rain show. Yeah, yeah. There’s going to be a lot of things you don’t want to do. But the idea of taking care of you is the wrong thing in our business, Right. I mean, again, you’re selling your

services. I have to be on my A game. If I haven’t slept the night before, if I haven’t fueled myself, if I’ve been to the gym, right. If I’m not walking with a little extra pep in my step, right. How the am I going to have to. How can you get them excited about something if you’re not? Yeah. Love it. So let me ask you this then, and we’re going to switch gears again because here’s what

I want to hear. Understanding that you’ve been a 25 unit plus a year producer throughout your career, that takes a level of dedication and effort that many just won’t put in, let’s be honest. Right? There’s a level of servicing each and every one of those contracts, but there’s a level of continuing to prospect as you live through everything that you’re doing. Right. I mean, again, many agents, the reason they do this is because, you know, I’m

prospecting and then I’m servicing and I have nothing else coming in. And then I’m prospecting again. And you do this roller coaster, right? So you’ve been able to find some consistency in your career that most still struggle with. And so what I’d love to know is who supports you, like what team members do you use? Because you’re not a, you’re not a team lead, right. You don’t have an assistant or a virtual assistant. You don’t have

so many of the traditional support staff members that a lot of agents at your level of business would have at this point. Right. They do tell you in different books, go hire an assistant. Go have somebody cold calling for you. Right. Get a virtual assistant somewhere. Right? Right. So I’d love to know more of how your business continues to thrive with you spending less time in it now. Than you did when you first got in. So

I think again, it’s persistence and repetition. Like, I mean I could take you through my day and it changes sometimes, but when I’m up in the morning and I’m having coffee, the first thing I like to do is go and do my follow up really quick because it’s a fast email, a fast text. I look at my calendar for what’s going on that day. I’m like clear on what I’m doing and then I’m hitting the pavement

and I’m going to show houses or I’m doing something for that day for my business. At night, before I fix dinner, I may go through my computer again and do a recap of what happened that day. It’s I, I look at this, the only other way I can put it is a full time job that never stops. I don’t have Saturday and Sunday off. Monday is kind of a slow time for me, which is fine. But

of course I’m still doing stuff on Monday. My life revolves around real estate. Basically. Yes, I have friends, yes, I go out to places, yes, I go to dinner, yes, I travel certain places, but that still doesn’t take away. I have a 24 hour 7 day a week job in order to take care of myself because at some point I won’t be able to do it. So I’m doing it now. So I get that. Yeah. And

the level of persistence that you have is above average to say the least. But let me ask you this, you, I know it works. There’s no nine to five. You don’t get to clock in the morning and then say no, cool, I’m taking off my real estate hat now and putting on my party hat. Right. And so my question to you is this, like what sort of support members do you have in your corner right now?

Like who are you leveraging to help you continue to have this business flourish? I have to say that one of the tools that has consistently helped me close deals is the PSP report. What is that that we have? This is telling my clients about the comps in the area. This is telling them about different businesses in the area. This is telling them about parks and, and pricing and things like that for that property that they’re interested

in. Because I hype this PSP or probable sales price report up so much, they are anticipating on receiving this 17 page report full of nuggets that they can help to decide whether or not they want this house. Which it does help. It’s not always correct. It’s not always all the information that they want. But, but that coupled with me finding out the age of the roof H vac and hot water heater and sending that along in

the email with the probable sales price report is golden because then they come back to me and they say, oh yeah, we want to put an offer in or no, we’re going to keep looking because they’ve had a chance to look at the numbers, look at the comps, look at the age of different things in the house. And, and that’s where you can push them over the edge and say, yeah, let’s write a contract. Or you

know what, let’s keep looking because these numbers don’t make sense to me. And so let me ask you one question first and then we’re going to dive into this probable sales price report a little bit. Who prepares those reports for you? These are done by the market analysts in our office. And I don’t have a favorite fair because you want to make sure that they all keep working hard for you. No, no. Yeah, but here’s what

I should. So we should explain what that is, right. Because it is a report exclusive to us that we’ve created. Right. And it truly is an opportunity for us to do. You know, it’s a CMA on steroids. Right. A comparative market analysis done into, turned into a probable sales price report where again, we take both everything we can find anywhere on the Internet, anybody that’ll give you a valuation on your home. Right. We incorporate all of

that, bring it all together into this expansive report. Then we cherry pick the best apples to apples comparison homes using the same mindset and methodology that any appraiser would. Right. Because again, most people are getting lending on these things. And so we’re taking the same mindset and viewpoint and helping our buyers by way of preparing them with, hey bro, here’s what an appraiser might find. Right. And then you’re adding into it things like the age of

major systems that are expensive. Right. I think you’re looking at it from an investment standpoint for these buyers, right. They’re going to do the whole can I call this place home or not? Right. Only an investment standpoint, but I’m also giving this to them and pointing out the make sure you look at the top of page four because that’s where the range is that we can put our offer in. Always leaving them with that because then

that gives them real numbers to look at. Like if you go low that might be a little like I talk about that I want them to Pay attention to that range out of everything else in that report, because that means we’re going to put an offer in if they’re thinking about it. Sure. And so that range being again, using the same mindset and methodology that an appraiser would. Right. It’s the range or the realm of possibility

to where that appraisal may come back in terms of price per square foot. Now, an appraiser’s job is not to tell you you’re wrong, dumb or stupid. An appraiser’s job is simply to justify the asset for the bank, right? And so their job is to come out and say, oh, you guys want to pay this much? And I kind of see it, right. And so 90% of the time, where does it come back? Right. Spot on

contract price. But this tool helps people to understand and really takes them out of that emotional buying decision and into the rational, right. Buyers buy emotionally, they justify rationally. Right. They’re going to walk in, does my couch fit here? Do I love the backyard space? Does this have the bedroom count? And would the kids be happy here? Great. Emotion, emotion, emotion, Right. If I can interrupt. Sometimes when people go into a house and they start decorating

it with their furniture, it doesn’t necessarily mean that that’s the house that they’re going to buy. They could just merely. That’s all they know at that point. Especially first time home buyers, they know to go into a house and see where their furniture fits. They don’t know to look for other things. I just bought a couch, sure as shit I’m gonna find a house that fits my couch. You know what I paid for that damn thing?

I mean, but seriously though, you’re exactly right. But I think that’s how we all, we help understand the moment in so many ways is they decorate it emotionally, right? And then decide, okay, does this work? And then you come around with this little hit over the head of here’s the rationale of the whole thing, right? I mean, this is the age of the roof where an appraiser may find. While you’re there, you’re pointing out things that

are gonna cost you money. Now, maybe in the long run. And I think the biggest you do great is this. Hey, guys, when you call me in three to seven years and you say, hey, Derek, you wouldn’t believe it, but it’s, we outgrew this house. It’s time to move again. You’re going to tell them exactly what may help or hold them back when that time comes. Yeah. Not knowing what the market will look like not knowing

what interest rates will look like not knowing anything about anything. But what you do know is this. You make your money when you buy, not when you sell. You buy right at the right price. Correct. The rest of it’ll take care of itself. And it’s happening right now that I’m getting these clients who have bought with me, and they are outgrowing their homes or they want to get somewhere. They want to move somewhere else in the

city or something like that. And it. And it’s happening right now. Like I always say to them, at some point, you know, this may not be your forever home unless it’s over a certain price point. Then I’m like, okay, you’re probably going to stay here forever. Well, so you have to really look at your. Your customer and what they’re spending. That’s. That’s fair, right? I will tell you that I helped someone build a new construction, and

we had the most fun in the world at the design center, and we did all the cool little whatnot and then even said, you know what? Y’ all don’t bother doing some of those things because she’s just gonna hang some mirrors and stuff afterwards and everything. You know, this was forever. Forever and ever. And I told her, I said, you know, we still need to look at this from a. An investment perspective, right? Because you never

know what’s going to happen. You never know in a few months later. Wow. Literally three. Three months after we closed on her new construction. No way. She called me and she said, well, Jason, you told me so. In a very sheepish. Yeah. Conversation said, yep. It’s not it for us. You know, we. We love the home. We don’t love where we’re at. It’s just not what we need right now. Right. We’re ready to sell this one

and buy another one. So we just built another. Had the most fun. The design center a couple of weeks ago, but it may not be forever. And I said that a couple of times, and she almost slapped my hand like, you stop it. You’re not allowed to say that again. She might think you’re putting a whammy on her or something. No, no. We had a wonderful time going through it. But regardless, I think we got away

from a little bit. Like, who else is helping you? So we got market analysts. Do you have anybody else that helps make your wheels go around here? Derek, I mean, my team captain. He assists me whenever I’m stuck with something. You. I call on you still. That’s your service. My leash in a Rut or if there’s something that I’ve not ever dealt with, I can always get answers. The point of the matter is I have a

support team behind me that is just a part of dash, and that’s what makes it so great, because I can call on these people without any attitude, without any. Oh, you’re bothering me again. Because we work as a team, and I know that might sound corny to anybody who’s not with DASH and watching this, but trust me, it’s the place you want to be if you’re starting out in real estate. Let me help define team, though.

Wait. Yeah. Do you share your commission with those people? Absolutely. No. Okay, fair. Because I think that’s an important distinction. Right. I think, again, there’s a right firm and a right place for everybody with the right level of support. And honestly, sometimes that shifts throughout your career. I think the hard part is remaining sticky for a great agent. Right. And I’m saying that from a brand perspective or a broker perspective, your business might not need the

same level of support that you did several years ago. It’s grown, it’s evolved. And so I think that’s what’s important, is to understand that today you’re still getting the right support that you need to support your growing business. Couldn’t do it without them. No way. Fair enough. All right, well, Derek, I think that’s all the time we got for today, so I appreciate you sitting down and having a conversation with me. Keep kicking ass, dude. Thank

you. All right. All right, sir, thank you for watching the dashcast podcast. You can, like, subscribe, send questions, comments about what you’d like to see on the podcast. Thank you again for watching.