Get Organized for the Fall

Revisit both sides of your business plan.

There has been a lot of talk in our industry about a pending recession in 2023. I can’t communicate strongly enough how important it is to manage your expenses and realistically forecast your revenue to ensure you remain profitable and don’t end up on the wrong side of the balance sheet. It is time to recalibrate. Revisit your business plan to make sure your goals are still relevant and are truly accomplishable. The goals you set in January were a result of how you felt about your business in November and December, but the market has shifted with longer days on the market, higher rates and declining sales. When we ignore the data points and don’t recalibrate as the market changes, we end up in trouble.

Once you’ve recalibrated your goals, you need to update your budget. Where are you in relationship to where you wanted to be by this time of the year? How much do you expect to invest in your business for the remaining four months of the year? Is that feasible given the income you are earning in the current market? If not, you will either need to cut expenses, prospect harder to increase your revenue, or decide to tap into your credit line to fund the deficit.

Next, you need to revisit your goals in your Agent Success App. How many transactions have you closed so far this year? What pending transactions will close prior to Dec 31? Are you on track to achieving your annual goal?

Organize your workspace – both physical and digital.

Over the summer we have the tendency to let documents pile up on our desk, promising to review or file them later. We let emails clog up our inbox saying we’ll get to them at some point, and we have an office full of crap that we’ve collected all year. When our workspace is disorganized, our mind is disorganized. There are two areas of your business you need to organize and declutter: your physical workspace and your digital workspace.

This week I want you to clean up your office. When it comes to paper, the golden rule is touch it once, deal with it, then file it or throw it out. Much of the clutter in our offices is stuff we’ve collected over the year, promising we were going to read, review and research it. Let’s be honest…you didn’t. Let’s be honest…you’re not going to. Adding to the pile only creates anxiety. In fact, I would argue most of the stuff you’ve been holding onto isn’t even relevant any longer. Grab the blue box and do yourself a favor; throw it out.

It is also time to do some digital housekeeping. First, all of your files should be stored in the cloud (e.g. OneDrive, iCloud, Google Drive) so they are automatically stored online and you can access your files from any device. Second, you need to clean out the Downloads folder on your computer and save those documents to a subfolder for future reference or delete them if you don’t need them. Third, you need a password manager to ensure your hundreds of passwords are saved in a secure place. We recommend Dashlane.com. Forth, you need to install a Virtual Private Network (VPN) on your devices so when you are working remotely at Starbucks on public Wi-Fi your information is encrypted and hackers can’t see anything. We recommend ExpressVPN. Last, you should backup your files (even if they are stored on the cloud) so that if you ever accidentally delete a file and you need to restore it, or if a hacker puts ransomware on your computer, you have everything you need backed up in a safe place. We recommend Carbonite.com. Good digital hygiene will ensure you work efficiently and effectively, you stay on top of the details, you never lose your files, and you can maintain your sanity.

Coordinate your Fall marketing plan.

There are several opportunities to market yourself in the Fall. It won’t happen by itself. If you want to get the most out of your marketing spend, it is time to start planning. With the market slowing down, most agents turtle and cut back on all their marketing and they create a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you cut back on marketing, your business WILL go down. If you want a bigger piece of a smaller pie, you must make wise investments to keep your name front and center in your geo farm and with your sphere. The Fall is a great time for holiday marketing: Halloween, Yom Kippur, Daylight Savings Time, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah, etc. What do you plan to do to stand out for each holiday? Perhaps you want to send out daylight savings time postcards. Where will you have them designed and printed. Is your database organized and ready to go? How much will it cost and when do they need to go out by? Making the most of your marketing takes planning. If you start now, you won’t feel overwhelmed at the last minute.

Prioritize your activities in your calendar.

If your priorities don’t live in your calendar, you won’t do them. Make a list of everything you need to get done, and commit to blocking time in your calendar every day to complete each task. Good businesspeople spend time planning and organizing, but let’s not forget that all of this is only good if we have clients. You can have the most organized office in the world, but it won’t do you any good if you don’t have prospects. Your number one activity every day is to find saleable listings. Every day you need to put 90 minutes of prospecting on your calendar. What prospecting activities are you committed to doing this Fall on a consistent basis to ensure you meet your targets?

Take care of your health.

Over the summer most of us got off track with our diet, sleep, and exercise. It is time to get back into a disciplined mindset, and that includes both business and personal. The Fall is a great time to ramp up your business again, but if you don’t look after your health, you’ll never operate at peak performance levels. Investigate a meal delivery service for a healthy diet on a busy schedule. If you haven’t been exercising lately, it is time to start building in a 30-minute brisk walk every morning to get the blood pumping. When the body moves the mind grooves. Lastly, get to bed at a reasonable hour every night. There is nothing good on late night television. You won’t be able to get your butt out of bed if you don’t go to sleep by 10 pm.