This article was originally published in Real Estate Agent Magazine Twin Cities, written by Charity Malmberg, Founder and President of Trademark Title
Every career has its stressors. In real estate, those stressors take on many forms. Whether it’s the feeling of never leaving work; the pressure of having to appease a variety of clients; or the nagging sense that you need better balance between work and family life, stressors can sometimes feel like they’re stealing your sanity, robbing your joy and hurting your business.
With the busy season upon us, it’s important to proactively handle stress in a way that helps and doesn’t hurt your business or home life. Take a look at these tips to help you deal with stress and stay sane in real estate’s busiest season.
6 Tips to Keep You Sane
Tip No. 1 – Schedule in time for your priorities. Often, we say something is a priority in our life but our calendar does not reflect our words. Though it may feel strange at first, start scheduling in time for family, friends, exercise and even rest. Schedule in time for reading about the industry and meeting with a mentor. If you know it needs to be done, create a slot for it in your calendar. It’s crazy how balanced we can feel when we make time for our priorities and schedule in time to complete tasks.
Tip No. 2 – Stay savvy. With constant access to emails, calls and texts, technology can feel like it adds stress to your life. But as strange as it is to see someone using a paper map instead of GPS, it’s uncanny how we forget the time-saving apps and programs that can help our business. If used right, technology can be a tool for organizing your tasks, improving your efficiency and much more. Looking for a few new ways or ideas to help? We will be releasing our mobile app to help with net sheets, buy vs rent calculators as well as timely transactional reminders.
Tip No. 3 – Surround yourself with true business partners. Stay around the people who truly want to help you succeed and have a proven track record of doing so themselves. The well-timed advice and encouragement of trusted individuals can help you find ways to improve your business practice and build balance into your life.
Tip No. 4 – Hold loosely to incomplete transactions. If you have a big sale in the works, it can be tempting to start planning that dream vacation or visualizing those new kitchen cabinets. But until a transaction is final, avoid getting too attached to what it could mean.
Tip No. 5 – Take a stress-free vacation. Seems simple enough, but taking a vacation that reduces your stress can be trickier than it seems. According to an article in the Harvard Business Review, “When a Vacation Reduced Stress—And When It Doesn’t,” not all vacations are created equal. Travel stress is a real thing and can prevent your vacation from doing what it should, helping you to relax and feel happy. Their findings suggest that a stress-free and effective vacation is possible if you (1) plan ahead, (2) focus on the details (or have a travel agent do it for you), (3) get as far from home as you can, and (4) ask a friend or local about things to do in the area.
Tip No. 6 – Embrace change. Plan on things changing – laws, regulations, and even your own business. Think of it this way, if you anticipate change, then it can’t catch you by surprise so easily, leaving you drowning in stress and searching for higher ground.
Beyond just anticipating change, make it an intentional part of your life and career. Take an audit of your marketing materials every year or so; update your photos (lose the ’90s up-do); refresh your website and revamp your bio. You will appear more relevant to your buyers and sellers and get used to embracing change as a lifestyle.
Hopefully these tips help you combat stress and stay sane during the busy season. The important thing to remember is to find what works and do it – and, of course, to enjoy the business while it thrives and take advantage of the sunshine season.