Melissa Machat founded Re-Align Coaching and Consulting. She also has over 10 years of experience in sales.
Besides, Melissa Machat is also a “certified Neuro-Linguistic Programming Master Practitioner and Mental and Emotional Release Specialist.”
Her certifications and skills help Melissa Machat diagnose “what’s truly preventing someone from reaching their goals.”
Before Re-Align, Melissa Machat also found success in real estate. She has earned more than $100 million in volume sold in residential real estate.
As an entrepreneur, Melissa Machat has also received eight years of coaching and education from “multiple coaching organizations and mentors.”
These accomplishments, together with her sales experience, have given Melissa Machat the ability to “build and grow a business in any market.” She can also show you “how your mindset can control your outcome and results.”
In 2009, Melissa Machat started out in real estate. She had gone to Las Vegas after earning her degree in Theater from the University of Southern California.
From working in real estate, Melissa Machat used her tenacity and work ethic to build a business despite having no experience or knowledge.
After 12 years, Melissa Machat now has “firsthand knowledge and skills or sales, entrepreneurship, leadership, hiring, recruiting, and mindset which are all crucial to running a successful business.”
Check out more interviews with leading entrepreneurs here.
What makes us stand out is we listen. Melissa Machat, Re-Align Coaching and Consulting
Jerome Knyszewski: What do you think makes your company stand out? Can you share a story?
Melissa Machat: Knowing how to listen to a client and understand their goals and what they are trying to achieve is crucial if you want to know how to best serve them and help them get what they want.
I have always been known for authenticity, tenacity, and commitment to caring about my clients needs and putting them before my own.
In Real Estate I would compete against other agents for listings and sellers would interview 5–10 different people, and they would choose me because I actually cared about what they wanted and was willing to do whatever it took to get their home sold.
With consulting, it’s the same attitude and really being able to understand your clients pain points so you can help them with a solution.
What makes us stand out is we listen.
With consulting clients I am listening to their situation and helping them come up with a solution that’s in alignment with them instead of providing a one size fits all solution that usually is not as effective.
I help entrepreneurs with money blocks and whatever is holding them back and they aren’t sure what it is.
I’ve had multiple clients that had big goals and they kept falling short.
By really taking the time to listen and understand their pain points I could see what was actually blocking them and help them uncover what was holding them back.
After our sessions they were inspired to take action and left all the doubt and fear behind and made immediate changes to their business and started seeing results they originally didn’t think was possible.
Jerome Knyszewski: Often leaders are asked to share the best advice they received. But let’s reverse the question. Can you share a story about advice you’ve received that you now wish you never followed?
Melissa Machat: I wish I didn’t believe that there was one way to be successful and listened to everyone’s opinions and advice about what I “should” be doing.
It’s really easy to fall into the trap of comparing yourself to others and there are coaching companies out there that teach their models and their way which make you fit into their mold of how it should be done.
I find most entrepreneurs are following someone else’s rules or advice and it’s not working because it’s not in alignment with what they are trying to build and create.
I was taught that you had to get up extremely early and be the first one in the office and the first one on the phones.
“If you weren’t first, you were last” was the mentality and that was really hard for me to follow and all of the rules to be successful left me feeling behind, beating myself up, and feeling like I must not be motivated or disciplined enough.
When you start your day feeling guilty because you aren’t doing enough or you are behind, what kind of results will you find when your mindset is already focused on the negative?
I truly believe you are rewarded for effort and as long as you are taking action and doing your job, it doesn’t matter when or how you are doing it.
Jerome Knyszewski: You are a successful business leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?
Melissa Machat: Adaptability, Ownership, and Empathy.
Adaptability- I embrace and accept change.
I look at external circumstances as a guide for what needs to be done to achieve our goals and what we will need to change in order to succeed.
I am always evaluating what’s working or what is not working and I am not stuck in my ways.
This has allowed me to make changes that were necessary instead of resisting and fighting and being stuck in what was comfortable.
An example of this is my real estate business.
When I first started everything was owned by the bank or a short sale and I saw agents leaving the industry because they didn’t want to deal with it, yet others had the best years of their career because they adapted and helped the banks sell their properties or helped homeowners who were in financial hardship and had to short sale their home.
As the market improved we transitioned back to a traditional market and I also shifted my business to go where the trends were taking us instead of being stuck and confused why things were evolving.
Ownership- I take ownership and responsibility for my businesses and successful leaders do the same.
If things weren’t working then I needed to take ownership and see where I can improve or what my DNA was in the situation.
An example of this is if something isn’t working or you are falling short on your goals, take ownership and see where you may have let your team down or not set them up for success.
Empathy- Great leaders have empathy and can listen to their customers and their employees which sets them apart.
I am extremely empathetic and understanding which keeps me a few steps ahead because I can sense when things are off.
This is about a deep understanding of your customers and your people and caring about their goals as well as your own.
When you have a team working together with the same mission and vision in mind and it supports their own goals as well you will see the results that come from going in the same direction.
At the same time if someone is off or makes a mistake or is going through a hard time, having empathy and understanding will allow them to feel heard and also not be afraid or hide from their leader.
Great leaders have empathy and can listen to their customers and their employees which sets them apart.
Jerome Knyszewski: Which tips would you recommend to your colleagues in your industry to help them to thrive and not “burn out”?
Melissa Machat: Make sure you are working in your strength zone and you allow time for rest and recovery.
We are conditioned as a society to work harder and push through and grinding it out is almost rewarded and celebrated.
If you are not taking the proper time to rest and recharge and take days off, then you will end up burning out.
Pushing through only makes it worse and we have to train ourselves to slow down to speed up.
Another major cause of burnout is not having leverage or trying to do it all yourself.
If you are drowning and there is no end in sight then delegating and leverage might be the answer to sustain and maintain your business.
Jerome Knyszewski: What are the most common mistakes you have seen CEOs & founders make when they start a business? What can be done to avoid those errors?
Melissa Machat: Spending money they don’t have, not being prepared for growth, and listening to everyone else without listening to themselves.
I was taught to lead with revenue, and how do you lead with revenue if you aren’t making money yet?
There is a difference between investing in your business and investing while expecting a return.
If you are not measuring what you are spending or the return you are expecting then that money can disappear fast.
To avoid this, measure and track your expenses.
Review your P&L every month and before you spend, have an expectation of the return you want to see and a timeline of how long you will test it for.
Don’t be afraid to cut expenses if they aren’t helping your bottom line.
When businesses grow too quickly they usually suffer in customer services or the customer experience, teams can burn out because there is too much on their plate, and the worst time to hire and find help is when you are drowning and desperate.
To avoid this mistake, make sure you are building a solid foundation and set yourself up to scale.
Hire before you think you are ready if the revenue is there and makes sense, and a great hire will also bring a return on their salary.
It’s really easy to listen to everyone else’s opinions and follow what everyone else says you “should” do.
Be careful who you are listening to and is it someone who has built what you are trying to build?
It’s easy to follow someone who might have found success, but if they are doing it in a completely different way than you are, it might not be the best person to get advice from.
I believe in having mentors and coaches as long as they help you listen to your own intuition and your vision and they can help you achieve your goals.
Jerome Knyszewski: In your experience, which aspect of running a company tends to be most underestimated? Can you explain or give an example?
Melissa Machat: Having a team that is in alignment with the mission, vision, and values of your company.
When you are clear on your mission, vision and values then it becomes easier to hire and attract talent to your world.
Leaders spend so much time trying to change someone’s characteristics when they were never the right culture fit to begin with.
An example is when I was building my real estate team and recruiting at a high level.
I was not taking the time to make sure the values matched, I was just trying to hit my recruiting numbers.
This caused a revolving door, low morale, zero culture, and I wasted so much time and energy trying to force people to do their job and improve their customer service.
Once I learned this valuable lesson, I now understand that I cannot change someone’s attitude or force them to be friendlier, I will only hire someone who values customer service to the level that I do and is in alignment with our company.
Leaders spend so much time trying to change someone’s characteristics when they were never the right culture fit to begin with. Melissa Machat
Jerome Knyszewski: You are a person of great influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
Melissa Machat: As a true entrepreneur at heart I would love to help animal rescues become self funded by creating a business to support the rescue.
This is part of my vision and why I own multiple businesses and invest because I’d love for rental properties to pay for my lifestyle and the businesses can give back to foundations and those in need.
Jerome Knyszewski: How can our readers further follow you online?
Melissa Machat: Instagram is where I spend the most time and would love to hear how this helped you! @melissamachat
Jerome Knyszewski: This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for the time you spent with this!
