So you've made it! You've got your license and you're all signed up with the NAR and your local board. You've even made a decision and hung your license with a local Broker. Congratulations you're on the team and have actually made it to home plate. Now you're about to experience your first at-bat. Question is, do you have the skill set required to actually hit the ball, I.E. succeed in the real estate business?

With the advent of new marketing techniques (like social media), it seems rather obvious that we should inject the personal skills we learned way back when (when we actually began learning to better communicate and cooperate) into our current business goals. We're going to go out on a limb here and suggest that all Realtors embrace the following skills and absorb them into both their personal and business lives.

Integrity - Just be yourself. Strive for authentic people-to-people engagement by being the same person you are online that you are offline. Instead of trying to sell what you do, try sharing who you are. When it comes to posting your profile picture, be a person, not a real estate logo. People connect with people, not signs, buildings or logos.

Active Listening - While it's important to share your interests, it's much more important to pay attention and actually listen to others. Listening is the only way you will learn what your sphere is interested in and will only help you ask better questions, provide better resources, and become a better advisor.

Effort - Add value to the equation! Develop your expertise and passion that will allow you to identify resources that may be helpful to your sphere. If you're not sure where to look, check the Internet; it's full of valuable information on just about anything. Subscribe to blogs and other news sources that will keep you up to date with current trends in the business. Monitor these resources daily and share your incites with your sphere on a regular basis.

Respect - R-E-S-P-E-C-T, that's all most folks want, just a little respect! This applies to EVERYONE, Rodney Dangerfield and even your competitors. When it comes to connecting with new people on social networking sites like Facebook or Linkedin, send a brief authentic message explaining why you'd like to connect or how you know them. Don't bombard people with spam. Social Media is NOT for hard-selling, it's about developing contact's and sharing mutual respect.

Caring - Reaching out to others, be they colleagues or clients not only cements a relationship but makes you feel good as well. Pay-it-Forward should be alive and well here. Random Acts of Kindness is the term I like. In social networking it's about doing good things without being asked like retweeting others tweets, liking or commenting on Facebook posts, or commenting on or praising blog articles you enjoy. Connect with and "friend" local clients and business owners online. You can join local interest or business based Facebook groups that you care about or want to get involved with, or even create your own. Join or volunteer your time for a local cause. All of this will show how much you care about the city and neighborhood you work, do business and live in.