Some days you wonder where the time went. Those are good days. If every moment is going towards your next listing, next sale, keeping your sellers and buyers happy, you are a busy person. There are some tricks that work really well to keep your business running, and not having that “frazzled look” at the end of the day.

Keep a Journal

You do not need anything fancy, but you need to have all your notes in one place. You know, the notes you took on your listing, the names of buyers you just met, the names of people who came to your open house and what they are looking for, the notes on your open sales files about things that need to be done, your “to do” list, etc. You get the idea. You can put all the information in one area—a simple 5 x 10 ruled spiral binder that you can pick up at any store that sells school or office supplies. I put the date at the top of each page and then keep all my notes in there. If I need the information for a sales file, I make a copy of that page and put it in my file. It has saved me more time in being able to find information. I have these journals going back over 20 years now. And, if you wanted some information from a seminar I attended 10 years ago, I could find it. Keeping the information by date and year is simple, simple, simple.

I put phone call information in my journal and notes about what was decided or discussed during the phone call. Nothing elaborate, but so that there will be no misunderstanding later. When I handle the telephone call, I put a check mark through the message so that I know it was taken care of.

I have my “to do” list in my journal. I start my day by handling whatever I did not finish the day before. I don’t have pieces of paper all over the place and if I do have a note on another piece of paper, I tape it into my journal.

Use your plan

You cannot grow your business without having a plan. You need to know how you are going to get business. Maybe you plan to hold 3 open houses a month; mail 700 pieces of mail to your farm; send every past client a card; call 10 people per week; send 10 personal notes per week; mail 10 absentee letters out per week; make 100 cold calls a week. Whatever is your plan to get business you need to actually do it.

Calendar in your activities and then do it! Every moment that you are not in front of a buyer or seller should be used to get you more business or close the business that you do have (sales files and listing files). When you have accomplished the prospecting item on your list for the day and you find yourself with more time, use it! Call some more.

Challenge Yourself

When all your activities become habit, you do them faster and consequently have more time. Use that time to get more business or to truly enjoy yourself. I like to challenge myself to see how many more calls I can make in a half hour. Or, how many past clients can I stop in and visit with to gain more referral business. If you have been successful sticking to your plan, business is coming your way, you need to add a little challenge to make your life interesting.

When you meet the challenge, reward yourself. Take a day to visit a spa and get the “full treatment”—your know, body massage, facial, pedicure/manicure, and hair style. Or, a day of fun with your kids going to the park for a picnic and leaving your cell phone behind. Whatever turns your fancy is what your reward should be. Maybe you want to own a new Harley Davidson Motorcycle—put $5,000 towards it when you have met your personal challenge.

Results

Don’t sit around wondering what to do with your time. When there is a free moment, pick up the phone and call someone. Talk real estate. See a new listing that just came on the market that day. Plan your next mailer. Send a personal note to someone. Buy some tickets to the theater and surprise a past client with them. Actions will get you results and at the end of this yea, those moments will add up to more sales.

Published: September 2, 2002

Use of this article without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws.