Every wish you could be super productive?
Imagine it. You could be faster than a thousand megabits-per-second, more powerful than Re/Max, and able to leap tall piles of paperwork in a single bound. ?
Just like you, most Canadian real estate agents love their work. But all too often, they work themselves to exhaustion as they strive to produce more sales.
Fortunately, there are several ways to improve productivity, yet have more downtime in the process.
1. Clear Out Mental Clutter
According to a recent article in the Globe and Mail, Canadians would be more productive if we just cut two hours off our average workday. They say we should embrace the Swedish model of a six-hour workday. Nice try.
A six-hour workday is only about half of the average Canadian real estate agent’s day. But then, there’s that productivity carrot. What if it did work?
It turns out that the real reason the Swedes could increase their productivity is that during those six hours, they put their collective noses to the grindstone. They cleared out the mental clutter that serves as a time-waster for most of us.
What if we just…
- Got out our to-do list
- Turned off the phone
- Refused to follow the Facebook popups
- Stayed out of our email inbox
…Until we crossed every item off the list?
2. Focus on What’s Important
One real estate blog recommends agents increase productivity by spending the first part of their day on high-priority, high return on investment tasks.
Start with a list of the most important tasks you need to work on. Number them in order of importance. Cross them off as you complete them.
Don’t allow the phone, the Internet, or your workmate to intrude. Don’t stop until you finish.
You’ll be surprised how much you can carry out when you identify what’s important and do those things first. To really boost your productivity, outsource the rest.
You’re much more productive when you delegate tasks that aren’t your forte—such as photography, videography, and copywriting—to others.
3. Make Slow Times Pay Off
“What slow time?”. Well, real estate is often seasonal. Spring and summer can be frantic, but winter can be quieter.
Use that quieter time to prepare for busy months. We don’t mean you should trudge to organised networking events, handing out your business card to people too sloshed to remember you the next day.
No, we mean you should use that time to:
- boost your Facebook followers
- Revamp your listings so they virtually sell themselves
- Overhaul your work habits to beat burnout before it beats you
You could also take advice from Rachel Hammer of Ottawa’s Royal LePage real estate firm. She recommends collecting a few small, reasonably priced gifts to deliver with thank you notes.
Instead of sending an SMS or a Facebook message, drop by your clients’ homes with your gifts. You’ll find that the smiles—and the referrals—will flow in.
4. Pat Yourself on the Back
Do this only after you’ve completed tips one through three.
Positive affirmations can turn an exhausted, negative attitude into a relaxed, refreshed one if you utter them in the present tense. Tell yourself what you’re doing now to create a better future.
Doing this will make your feel empowered and in control, rather than overwhelmed. And whenever you start thinking, “I can’t” stop and ask yourself, “How can I?”
This resets your mind to get into problem-solving mode!
5. Take a Power Nap
After you finish your positive self-talk, shut your eyes and snooze off for a few minutes. You’ll find you’ll wake up ready to conquer the world.
Be sure to set an alarm if you’re likely to sleep too long. Or try to the Sleep Cycle Power Nap to wake you up BEFORE you fall into deep sleep.
Power Nap uses the built-in accelerometer in your phone to check and analyse your movements in real time to figure out when you fall asleep, or are about to fall asleep.
You’ve Got This
You might not be Superman or Wonder Woman, but you can become super-productive without burning out.
Just clear out your mental clutter and focus on what’s important. Use quieter periods to prepare for busy times, and get into the habit of giving yourself a pat on the back.
You can also boost productivity by using killer apps to save yourself time.
Work out what you do well, and outsource the rest. You’ve got this!
Start now. Contact Pixilink and get them to provide professional real estate photography, feature sheets and floor plans.
When you boost your productivity without burning yourself out, there won’t be anything you can’t achieve!