First Things First

You’ve heard it for years: first things first. In real estate, it’s the same thing all the way through. This is not about following your contract or your client’s concerns all the way from start to finish. This is about your entire Real Estate Career, and how it interlocks with the rest of your life.

Sit down with your calendar, your family, or your significant other, and look at the days and weeks ahead. Plan to take time off first. Put the kids’ games, recitals, and so on, on the calendar. Put the anniversary, birthdays and ‘just because’ days on the calendar. Put them there in big letters, red marker.

Now, once you look at your prior obligations – that’s what you’ve just done — decide which days you will be in the office and which days you expect to do legwork. Legwork can be the basis of your business. Walk in the community, talk to business owners, and do what the experts call networking. Leave other days blank for flexing the schedule for emergencies, closings and the like.

Why put your home life first? Instead of asking this question, you should ask if there is a valid reason to not put your home life first. After all, you are doing your job to make money so you can support your family, be able to be with them, be able to do things with them, aren’t you? So why wouldn’t you schedule their needs first?

Your clients are necessary to your business, but they are not the only people in your life that take care, concern and attention. Remember, if you succeed in business but fail at home all you have is another empty house to sell at the end of the long unbroken calendar of closings.