Changing your mind is a right, and it's a right that people exercise often, frequently much to the frustration of others. When you're in a people oriented business like real estate, you have to accept that people will change their mind, but that doesn't make it an easy thing to deal with. When someone tells you what they want, you're not crazy for presuming they mean what they say. But the number of people who change their minds partway through the real estate process can be incredibly challenging.
Of course I'm not saying people should be so rigid in their thinking that they can't reconsider the backyard pool or the spa bath in the en-suite if they've seen a few properties that have shattered their illusions of said features. But that's a very different thing to starting out asking to be shown warehouse apartments and then deciding you want a farmhouse. But amazingly, this type of thing happens in real estate all the time.
As a buyer or a seller, it's important to have a focus from the start. Of course you can change your mind and maybe you'll end up thinking you can cope with three bedrooms instead of four, and real estate professionals are there to help you with those sorts of decisions, but when you get into property mode, it's important to have a clear list of desired outcomes. This way both you and your real estate agent can focus on getting you what you actually want.
I know real estate agents who have started work with a customer looking for a home near a particular school – location has been key – with a few other must haves such as room to renovate and a fairly tight budget. After the first outing with the agent who had lined up several properties matching their criteria, the customer decided that maybe the school wasn't that important after all and other suburbs should be added to the list, so should new developments, and the budget could probably increase a fair whack. Now, all this is fine. After all, the customer gets to choose where they want to live and what they want to live in, and the agent's job is to assist them with the search to find it. But when everything changes to such a great extent, it makes it difficult for everyone.
As a real estate agent, it's important to get your customers to narrow their focus as much as possible so you can do the best possible job for them. But on the flip side it's important if you are a customer to know your focus also. After all, if you know what you want, you're a lot more likely to get it.