Assessing for Cognitive Flexibility–Part 2

by | May 8, 2025

Yesterday, we touched on the correlation between high performance and cognitive flexibility.

Cognitive flexibility provides a person with the ability to see that what they’re doing is not leading to success and to make the appropriate changes to achieve it.

Some people remain rigid and stick to the original plan, but more flexible people adapt to the unexpected event and problem-solve to find a solution.

How do you assess if a recruiting prospect has a high level of cognitive flexibility?

Focus a few of your interview questions on this topic:

Are you the type of person who sticks to a plan or adjusts along the way?

Tell me about a time when you got stuck trying to complete a project and how you resolved the situation.

When working with a difficult person, can you tell me about a time where you had to switch strategies to maintain the relationship and make progress?

If you want to grow in your own cognitive flexibility, here’s some good news:

It’s a skill, and it’s something that can be learned.

Start by reading the second half of the reference article and visiting some of the linked resources.

Great leaders think on their feet and solve problems in many different ways.

Seeing you exercise this skill will inspire your agents to do the same with their clients.

 

The Simple Psychology of Real Estate Recruiting [2nd Edition]

Unlock the secrets of effective real estate recruiting. Revised to include actionable frameworks for sharper execution and to help you turn psychological theory into a repeatable recruiting system.

The Attrition Variables

The Attrition Variables

While these attrition constants still have the greatest influence, there are some emerging attrition variables worth noting. People also tend to leave companies when: They feel like they’re not doing as well as others in their peer group outside the company. They feel like they’re not as far along as they should be at a certain point in life.

The Attrition Constants

The Attrition Constants

If you’re not focusing most of your retention effort on these issues, you’ll miss the mark. If you’re not focusing most of your recruiting effort on exploiting these weaknesses among your competitors, you’re missing the best opportunities.

The Persistence Mindset

The Persistence Mindset

A leader equipped with this mindset can have a profound effect on the life and career of each individual they engage. It works because an agent is getting a real-time glimpse of what it would be like to work on your team. But it only becomes believable when it is persistently applied over time.