Business is all about generating income. You can have tons of busy work and potential deals, but unless you turn those into revenue it doesn’t make a difference. In the world of real estate being efficient with your time is a must. If you blow it on tasks that don’t move the needle you will be left behind your competition. On the flip side, if you know how to work smart you will get more done in less time. Most investors have the best intentions for their business, but few truly know the best way to make it happen. Intentions are great, but action is what produces results. Here are five things you can do to jumpstart your productivity and improve your bottom line.
- Stop Multi-Tasking: There is a perception in business that doing more is a badge of honor. The ability to deal with three important tasks at once must make you busy. While this may make you busy it doesn’t necessarily make you productive. In fact, it often has a negative impact on your business. You have probably heard the adage about the jack of all trades and master of none. When you deal with several tasks at once you don’t give your full attention to any of them. Instead of knocking out one task at a time you are left with several unfinished ones. You are much better streamlining your focus to one task at a time all the way to completion prior to moving onto the next one. What you will find is that by finishing a task it will motivate and springboard you to the next one. You will be more organized, efficient and ultimately productive. Multitasking is great, but not everyone is suited for it.
- Set Daily & Weekly Goals: You don’t have to be a business major to understand the importance of goal setting. Without something to reach for every day you will be scattered and pulled in several directions. Some of the countries most powerful CEO’s use daily lists to motivate and increase productivity. Every investor should prepare a list of tasks they want to achieve for the next day before going to bed at night. Start with the most important ones first and work your way down from there. By making your list before bed you eliminate procrastination when you wake up. You can simply hit the ground running and start knocking out tasks. What you will find is that completing one task will propel you to the next one and before you know it you will have several items checked off. Small tasks lead to big ones and your daily accomplishments will help you achieve your monthly goals. This is especially important if you invest without a partner. Your goals give you accountability and something to strive to achieve every day.
- Avoid Distraction: As great as investing in real estate is, there are several items that can stop your progress. A handful of new investors start out working by themselves somewhere in their house. They either have a dedicated office, set up shop in their dining room or find somewhere to plug in a laptop and get started. If they are not careful they can succumb to the distractions that are everywhere. The TV in the other room can be on mute and then something interesting comes on and ten minutes is lost. The refrigerator in the kitchen can call you and the next thing you know you are snacking. Your phone can buzz, and twenty minutes is lost searching social media. It is essential to avoid all distractions when you are working. It is ok to take periodic breaks but when you are in the middle of a task put your phone in the other room, turn the TV off and put your full attention to the task at hand.
- Stop Overthinking And Act: There is no question that preparation is an important part of success. As we stated, without preparation and organization you will be pulled in too many areas to ultimately have the success you desire. However, as important as preparation is at some point you need to put your head down and act. Action is the key to getting things done. Too many investors put off taking action because they don’t think they are as prepared as they want to be or use it as an excuse for procrastination. You will never know everything or feel fully comfortable about a situation. It is ok to take a leap of faith and act, even when you it puts you outside of your comfort zone.
- Build A Solid Team: It is difficult, if not impossible, to do everything yourself. If you want to get things done in real estate, you need to surround yourself with a solid team. Even if this means taking a small step back and using capital to pay for tasks you will take a huge leap forward. Think of how much time you spend on mundane tasks every week. There is a good chance you can find someone to handle these for you, much cheaper than you may think. Lead generation, marketing campaigns and sending emails is time consuming and eats away at your productivity. By building a team and support staff you can focus on what is really important and get much more accomplished in your day.
Being busy is not what business is all about, it is the productivity that really matters. Everything you do every day should be about accomplishing tasks and getting things done.
