There’s a famous story about an African farmer who sold up and went abroad in search of gold. After limited success, he returned home to find his old farm had become the largest diamond mine in the world. Too busy looking elsewhere for riches, he had failed to search for the acres of diamonds already in his own backyard.

Similarly, many real estate professionals spend thousands prospecting to strangers but neglect  to "mine the diamonds" in their database of past vendors, buyers and appraisals—people who already know, like, and trust them, but can't remember their name!