This week, our team at Heard Newman Real Estate took a proactive step in our journey to success—we hired a productivity coach to help us get our act together, once and for all. As expected, reaching new heights in the real estate business meant that our old systems no longer fit the bill.
Let’s be honest; we’ve faced some significant growing pains this year. However, after reading “Who Not How” by Dan Sullivan and Dr. Benjamin Hardy, I realized exactly who our “who” needed to be—Susie Adamson , A Productivity Coach. What’s incredible about Susie is not just her expertise in productivity but also her experience as a real estate agent. She truly understands our unique challenges and isn’t afraid to call us out on our excuses and misguided ways!
The Secret to Massive Productivity
Achieving massive productivity boils down to discipline, especially in how we communicate. One of the biggest obstacles we face is allowing distractions to pull us off task—whether we’re working on a CMA for a client, crafting social media content, or preparing a listing presentation. Susie painted a vivid picture for us:
Imagine standing in line at the post office for an hour, and there’s always that one lady who skips the line, exclaiming, “I just have to ask a quick question!” This is how our brains can derail our focus. Every time we get distracted, it takes up to 20 minutes to regain that focused flow state. Think about how much more you could achieve daily without these interruptions!
Keep Your Focus: Tips to Stay in the Flow
Here are some quick tips from Susie to help maintain your focus and keep those pesky distractions at bay:
- Prioritize Your Day Make a list of 3-5 must-dos for the day and tackle these first. Not having clear priorities can leave us overwhelmed and prevent us from achieving essential tasks. Focus on what is both important and urgent, followed by important but less urgent items. Anything outside these categories should be reconsidered for your to-do list.
- Capture Distracting Thoughts Distracted by random thoughts or ideas? Instead of switching tasks, jot them down on a post-it (or use a virtual sticky note if you’re on a Mac) and return to your task. Once done, incorporate these notes into your to-do list.
- Designate Email Times Set specific times to check your emails, like morning, lunchtime, and end of day. Remember, emails are often others’ to-do lists for you and aren’t inherently urgent.
- Document and Systematize Stop reinventing the wheel! Document your repeating processes and create systems to avoid rewriting the same emails or explanations. Investing time now to establish client workflows, including email templates and questionnaires, will save you invaluable time in the future.
By implementing these strategies, we’re excited to see how our productivity—and, in turn, our success—will soar to new heights. What productivity strategies work for you? Let me know here!
