For this episode of the Byron Lazine Podcast, best-selling author of The Conversion Code, Chris Smith, joins Byron for a value-packed episode covering the evolution of his professional life, important relationships and how they leveled up his self-awareness and perspective, and the impact of bipolar disorder on his life and career.
They go deep on Chris’s work background from Quicken Loans (nka Rocket Mortgage) to Top Producer to Inman and now Curaytor, which he describes as “an inbound marketing with outbound sales experiment.”
Chris shares the most intense conversation of his life, which was when he had to tell Brad Inman he was leaving. Plus, he and Byron discuss the value of both sales and content marketing skills, with both agreeing that people should learn sales before they learn marketing.
From there the conversation turns to the question of what’s holding so many people back from having a plan for their business, which naturally led to the topic of mindset and mental health. Chris doesn’t shy away from talking about his own struggles with bipolar disorder, how it impacted his career, how he learned to manage it, and what led to a major manic episode.
That segued nicely to a definition of success, how Chris is building his Disney, and what Gary Keller taught him. The conversation wrapped up with the question of what Chris believes will be his peak age in life—and why.
Click on any of the timestamps below to watch:
00:32 Chris Smith’s background
10:29 “I read a ton of stuff; I don’t read a ton of books”
19:22 Quitting Inman—and something Brad Inman told him that he’s never forgotten
27:50 The first time he had to fire someone & what makes it easier (when it’s necessary)
34:18 How Chris is a big reason why FollowUp Boss is a top CRM for real estate
48:25 “People should learn sales before they learn marketing.”
55:05 The chihuahuas of the real estate industry
56:54 What’s holding so many people back from having a plan for their business?
59:48 How being bipolar has influenced his career
01:04:45 “Success in life, my definition, is that your inner dialogue with yourself is positive.”
01:09:11 “Your actions are the only thing that matters when you feel that way.”
01:11:36 “I self-medicated with marijuana my whole life.”
01:23:49 “I’m building my Disney” and a memorable quote from Gary Keller
01:27:38 What do you believe your peak age in life will be?
Click here to watch the full episode.
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