Connie Goodrich, CRS (McKinney Realtor) Texas

Have you prepared for the spring season? Did you have faith that although things seemed a little bare and challenged that things would come to bloom. That the seeds of effort and vision of tomorrow would slowly take hold and come to life?

For those who built for tomorrow, it is spring and time to realize the rewards for your hard work. For those who wonder if the cloud of economic challenges will still hang over them, time to roll up your sleeves, dive in and seize the moment. The season is heating up and so is our opportunities.

A big fish in a little pond, how is that defined? Is that an individual that is a top volume producer and consistently dominates the market? Could it be more than just an individual that lists and sales a lot of inventory? When asked who are standouts in your community do you think of those leaders that inspire us by their professional example? Those who involve themselves outside of just production but give their time to charitable efforts, teach classes, are leaders with our Association of Realtors. Being a big fish in a little pond should be the one who takes time to mentor others and those who we hold high for their values.

Don't get caught up with the masses. Be the one who all enjoy working with, looking up to and inspiring by example.

Its spring and you know what that means? Increased business opportunities! As the heat turns up on our business our attention to organization and clean up tasks tend to get ignored. Also our attitude can be tested as the stress of being the Velcro to keep the transactions together takes place and the testing interaction with the less professional Realtors wears our patience thin. We need to clean up our thinking and pre-judgmental thoughts as well.

Now is the time to start the cobweb attack and clean up within our business and our mindset. Get rid of the old and bring in the new. Take a few minutes over the next week to get yourself positioned for the wonderful spring and summer selling seasons.

•· Start with your desk - do a surface clean. Put things up in the right place, discard old reminder notes, messages and copy any important phone numbers in your contact base.

•· Develop a trash tray - one that you can toss items that you are not sure that you want to throw away just yet. Commit to looking through the tray once a week to eliminate any trash you may decide should go. This includes announcements, flyers, etc. Start at the bottom of the tray, that is your oldest dated items. Do not let this turn into a mountain.

•· Purge your files that have just closed. Remove any repetitive information, items not needed; retain critical pieces including research for a home analysis. Ask yourself - If I were to have to go to court and need my file what material will I need? Also ask yourself - If I were to receive a subpoena, what information would I not want to be in the file - then remove it!

•· Make sure your file cabinet is set up, clean and ready to go for all your listings, pending and closed properties.

•· If you do not have check lists to keep you on track, develop and make copies. This includes a set of questions to ask a buyer potential if they should call on a listing.

•· Develop a book that has all your listing information, business cards of your vendor partners, and contact information for your current clients to have at your fingertips. Carry with you in the car to have handy.

•· Adopt an attitude that all business is opportunity and all agents you interface with may end up working with you on a transaction. Polite professional communication is the right tempo to maintain. Even under the most challenged personality conflict or interaction with an unprofessional agent flirts with sparks of challenge - be the agent who is gracious, appreciative, firm but professional. Strive to be the agent all wish to work with in a transaction.

•· Keep your car ready to go - clean of debris, stocked with essentials (tape measure, flashlight, etc).

Most important - clean out those negative thoughts that this will be a bad year. It may be a year that you are challenged to work different to retain and build business. It is an opportunity to meet new people, be the one to succeed. Clean out all those cobwebs of yesterday, feel fresh and be ready for the great adventure that today and tomorrow will bring.

To be a winner at the top of your profession, the very best you can be, to deliver in the moment. Those are the traits of our finest athletes. This also describes our top industry professional, the successful REALTOR. To be at the top one has to commit to the level of excellence that is demanded of an Olympian.

•· Is learning based. Always look to improve, lay a solid foundation and layer strength to build. To commit to education, knowing that we are always students to reach higher and go further.

•· Keep up with the latest techniques. Wisely purchase programs and equipment that will enhance our business and commit to learning to use them and place them into action.

•· To rise above our most disappointing moments. Know that we must accept that there will be moments that are disheartening but to put that aside and focus on the positive outcomes.

•· Focus - learn to keep your eye on the goal and not waiver. Block out distractions and keep the target in sight.

•· Hard work ethic - nothing comes easy and you have to continue to work your systems, keep up those touches to your sphere, and keep the pipeline fed.

•· Know that you do need rest and proper balance to maintain your top form. Plan wisely your day, take time away to re-energize yourself.

•· Surrounds yourself with winners - only the positive people to keep you upbeat should be in your circle of friends and those you associate.

•· Get a good coach - the top professionals know that they need to be accountable to someone and be brought to their absolute top excellence. Someone that can catch you when you fall and tell you where you went wrong and how to improve.

•· A great PR partner - keeping visible to the public in the most professional level. Great marketing materials and plan.

•· Strict schedule - keeps an organized schedule - plan for success or is prepared to fail.

•· Goals - know where you want to go, when you want to arrive and how you will get there.

•· Be a hero - with all the top professionals comes respect for success. Share your path and encourage, be a mentor and pass on the baton to others. You see we all have a team that takes us full circle and to the finish line. Like in a relay, each business partner you associate (mortgage lender, inspector, home staging service, etc) can help us build momentum as they hand off to you to take it in. Surround yourself with like minded partners.

An Olympian is about excellence, commitment and earning the ranks among the highest achievers. The great thing about real estate, we all has a chance to be an Olympian.

Feel like you had a day where you were stuck in molasses, everything taking forever and just stuck in slow gear? Putting in so many hours but not productive use of your time? This is the ideal time of year to bring more purpose to your productive day and maximize the results. As the spring season hits it stride we need to utilize our time wisely and limit the quantity of hours to the quality use of our time.

A few suggestions to give you positive results.

•·First step is to select a day and time that you will honor to write your tasks & weekly goals.

•· Make a list of the activities you need to do during each week (call clients, visit your listings, graphics out, networking meeting, office meeting, etc.)

•· List the big rock activities that are critical for result to your business (phone calls to sphere, note writing)

•· List all personal activities that you will need to place on your schedule (dental appointments, family events, etc.)

•· Look over your lists and add any activity necessary to help you achieve a goal that may have not been included.

During your planning time plug in all you need to accomplish, dates and times on your schedule. Make sure that each day you have a productive time set up for the business generating activity to reach your goals. Leave times open for flex time to allow you to plug in things that unfold like showing a listing, etc. that gives you a time to either move an activity or set the appointment. Divide up your tasks and spread it out over a period of days. Tasks like writing a personal note, 5 a day for 25 a week. Make sure your goals are attainable and realistic so that you can get it done with success.

Each day start your morning out looking at the task of the day, prioritize the most important and layer in new activities. Make sure you have bullet points and a way to check off each task as accomplished. At the end of the day look over you list for results. Make sure each day you have take care of the priority ones and re-evaluate if any tasks do not get done if you need to take care of it the next day. Ask yourself if the task is one that is really important if you tend to shove it off again and again. If it is then do it!

Remove distraction - this is key. If you tend to chat to your assistant then make it a point to have a quick review of the day, be polite and visit briefly and then hit the work. Both of you will be more productive. If necessary, have a discussion of time and use to set the ground rules for your comfort. If you office in the company office then learn to shut the door at times. Put a sign up when you will be available. Refrain from being a slave to your email and cell phone. These can be huge distractions. Those that feel you have to be tied to these 24/7 probably give distraction a new name. Select a break time that you will take to get back to callers, and email. Remember once you pull off task you lose time to re-focus. On your cell have a message that thanks the caller for their patience and you will get back to them as quick as possible.

The key is to respect your time. Fill your day with on purpose tasks. Be accountable of your time use. Give yourself permission for flexibility but also be responsible for making up for the task you put off to be completed. You will find that a quality day will give you positive results, make you feel a sense of achievement. Just spending time in the office and lots of hours of distraction is just wasting your time and adding to frustration. Be on purpose and you will love the benefit of accomplishment