My real estate partner, Chris Speth, has always reminded me of a character played by Harvey Keitel in the movie Pulp Fiction. That character is called “The Wolf”. Technically, the Wolf is a cleaner, which is a person that is brought in to fix a messy situation in a hurry. You call them to do the job that you personally don’t have the skills to do. Cleaners are specialized people who remove incriminating evidence from a crime scene (usually one involving murder) in order to make the legal consequences of the crime go away. Cleaners flip a scene, shake things up, and transform a space so that it is whole again. The house with stained carpet ✔ (taken care of), the house with the car that needs to be removed from the garage ✔ (hauled off), the filth and decay ✔ (bleach does the job), lastly, the multiple dump runs to clean the scene ✔ – done (by Chris personally- using his trailer). Being a great REALTOR® is one thing, but being a combo ‘cleaner/realtor’ is something so incredibly special; it’s like having a bad-ass Tinker bell sitting on your shoulder protecting you at all times.
Elite cleaners, like my partner Chris, often work for agencies (government or boutique firms). You rarely hear about them because they are quiet and humble – stealth-like. You might hear a whisper about an event that ‘might have’ happened, but you will never know who cleaned it up because the cleaner never leaves a trail. Not only does he manage to get the job done, but he gets it done with grace and style. He’s the epitome of cool under pressure. Chris uses a checklist, and then he delivers. He doesn’t over-promise to his clients, nor is he cocky—instead; he surveys the scene, gets the facts and then confidently states what his plan is. Rather jumping-the-gun and diving in to the “the really messy parts”, Chris will often come up with a plan to delegate tasks. He understands that the goal can’t be met if he attempts to do it all himself, so he has a secretive team that he calls on: Clark, Jeff, and Jimmie often divvy up the work.
When all of the tasks are completed with the highest level of attention by the team members, the results can be extraordinary. The key is to stay calm, cool, and collected throughout it all— and no one does this better than these guys. The ‘situation’ that was once needing dire attention, is now cleaned up and transformed.
A Wolf understands that he must treat his help with encouraging words and celebrate all successful clean-ups at the Space Room. Setting a holistic approach from the start of a clean-up, to consistently not loosing sight that whiskey is the perfect ending for all involved in the job. This assures everyone that the situation is under control. With a clink of glasses its done. Cleaned, listed, ‘BOOM’ – Offer in the next day!
The Wolf/Chris Check List:
- Introduce yourself to your new client
- Identify their needs
- Survey the scene
- Take notes – make a list
- Assess the situation
- Identify all of the shit that can go wrong
- Prioritize tasks
- Get to work and delegate if needed
- Always have a backup plan. Always have a bag packed.
