Virtual Voice

Here we are in the last week of January 2020 already!

I have talked to some Realtors® who have been surprisingly busy already listing and showing homes. Locally, we have had a mild start to our winter, and that helps tremendously. Normally, we are not so busy in January, which is a good time to work ON your business.

We get so busy working IN our businesses, working with buyers and sellers, that we don’t spend enough time working ON our business. Did you set a goal and create action steps that will help you achieve your goal? Are the deadlines for those action steps on your calendar? Do you have an accountability partner or coach who is checking in to see if you have met those goals?

What did you want to accomplish in January? Organize your digital files, create systems, or update your listing presentation? Have you accomplished any of your action steps?

Real estate sales is a very reactive business. We fall into the trap of answering every call and email immediately. We let busy work take over our day, and before you know it we haven’t accomplished anything.

It is understandable, but not excusable. You need to think like a business owner if you are going to create a thriving Real Estate business. You are solely responsible for the success you experience in your business. You can have great support from your broker/manager and all the training in the world, but if you don’t do the work, you will not reach the level you desire.

If you haven’t achieved your January goals yet, take some time right now to review your intentions for January. Set new deadlines and add them to your calendar. Block off sacred time for working ON your business as well as working IN your business. Block out your most important activities like lead generation, listing appointments, and buyer appointments. Fill in the open time slots with those activities that will help you meet your goals.

Next, guard your time. Are you spending time on social media productively, or did you take a deep dive down the rabbit hole? Do you have to spend an hour talking to another agent in the office about their crazy client? Choose how you spend your office time wisely.

Having an accountability partner is crucial in meeting your goals. It is very easy to let deadlines slip if you do not have someone to update with your progress. It is just human nature. We start to let other things replace the time allotted for our action steps and before you know it, we don’t get anything done.

Having systems in place will help you reach your goals. Block off time on your calendar to take a deep look at your business and see where you can improve procedures. Real Estate Virtual Experts has a new offer coming soon that will help you identify areas you can improve and areas you will need to implement new systems.

Stay tuned for more information coming soon! Or contact Cindy now to be one of the first to find out! Cindy@RealEstateVirtualExperts.com    www.RealEstateVirtualExperts.com

I thoughtfully set my 2020 goals. After setting my main goals I broke those down into actionable steps for the 1^st quarter. I had a lot due this week that I felt I could accomplish when I set them knowing that things are slower in January. However, things were busier than I expected this week and I only met one of the 5 deadlines I had set. Now, what do I do?

• The first thing I will do is forgive myself. Working in the real estate field, things pop up that are time-sensitive and take priority. And that is what happened this week. I was cleaning up the delayed items that another person was supposed to handle, but deadlines had to be met to get the job done.
• Then I will review my goals and determine if it was realistic. Setting 5 deadlines in one week may not have been the best idea. Lesson learned.
• The next thing I will do is adjust. My deadlines have been moved. I have to accomplish these items to get to my financial goals this year. I will be working some this weekend to get some things off my list. I have extended some deadlines to next week which was not so deadline heavy.
• I will then check-in with my accountability partners. I have a coach who works with me on setting deadlines and then checks in to see if I met my deadlines. I also have a colleague in my coaching group that is an accountability partner. I will let them know the deadlines I did not meet and the new deadlines I have set.
• Lastly, I will re-set my mindset. The disappointment of not meeting my goals this week can affect my mindset going into next week. I will review my goals and read the mantras that I have created for myself. I will prepare my schedule for next week to carve out time for the work I need to do to meet my new deadlines.

Having a plan to work through the disappointment of missing my action item deadlines is crucial. In the past, I would fall into the negative self-talk trap until not only do I continue to miss my deadlines, but I abandon the goal entirely. This year I am equipped with tools to work through any setback.

We are not always going to hit every deadline. However, that is no reason to give up. If the goal is important to you, you may need to delay a task but you do not have to abandon the goal. If it takes me a few weeks longer to meet the goal that is ok with me. No blame or shame is required.

How do you handle missing your goals or deadlines? Do you beat yourself up or extend yourself some grace?

For real estate support services, contact Cindy Winslow at Real Estate Virtual Experts – Cindy@RealEstateVirtualExperts.com

Real Estate is a continual roller coaster ride. At times it is exciting and exhilarating; think of when you won a negotiation with multiple offers! At other times it can be frightening, not having any closings on the books. This roller coaster ride can play a toll on your mindset, like nothing else you have ever experienced. If you do not work on maintaining a positive mindset continually, you will want to quit this business every six months or so.

January is a time that we set goals and start freshly into the new year. As you set your goals and add your action steps to your calendar, add at least one thing a month that is just for you. You need to set aside time on your calendar to do something that fuels your soul. When you see your day set on your calendar, try not to schedule appointments for that time unless it is necessary. If you must schedule over your personal time, you MUST replace it somewhere else on your calendar for that week. Gary Keller’s philosophy on scheduling is, “If you erase, you must replace!” This philosophy not only should apply to your task list, but also your personal time.

Think about things that fuel your soul. Maybe you have always wanted to learn to paint or sing in the church choir. Perhaps getting out into nature whether hiking, sitting on a beach, or taking up fly fishing, would recharge your spirit. There are so many things you can do just for you. Come up with a list and try one a month if you have no idea what you would do for yourself.

Also, don’t forget to calendar your vacation time early in the year, so you do not work your way through your vacation again. Try partnering with an agent who can cover for you when you are on vacation, and you can do the same for them when they are on vacation. If you are working through your vacation, you are not recharging nor are you providing your family with the attention they deserve.

When you set your goals, be sure to break them down into actionable items and set completion dates to the goal. Checking off these small accomplishments towards a big goal is so rewarding and also contributes to a positive mindset.

A daily practice that can help you maintain a positive mindset is gratitude. Spend time either at the end of the day or start of a new day and write 3-5 items of gratitude. Some days it is the mere fact that you got out of bed, other days it could be you sold a million-dollar property. The little things are as important as the big things.

We are usually the first to speak poorly about ourselves. Watch what you are saying to yourself. I heard someone say recently that she will sensor herself by asking, “Is that something I would say to my friend?” If you wouldn’t speak to your friends like that, why do you speak to yourself like that? It is a hard habit to break, but it is so important to strive to break it. Be honest with yourself, but also be kind. You could have been more persuasive with your clients to structure their offer to beat out competing offers, but you also do not have a crystal ball to know what those other offers would be. Do the best you can with the knowledge you have at the time.

Try stepping out of your comfort zone. If you stay safe all the time, you are not going to grow. If you are not growing, especially in your business, why are you working so hard? Take chances, and you will be amazed at how it impacts your self-confidence, which ultimately impacts your mindset.

This only scratches the surface of the mindset game. You need to take care of yourself as well as you take care of your clients. Get your personal time on your calendar and then protect it so you can enjoy some time to relax and recharge as necessary!

If you are spending too much time on your administrative tasks, contact Real Estate Virtual Experts to discuss how we can help you leverage your time. Contact Cindy at 412-294-8335 or Cindy@RealEstateVirtualExperts.com.

I attended two separate retreats only a few weeks apart recently. Both of these retreats were business development based. Although they were both led by different leaders with different methodologies, there were similarities and many lessons that gave me new perspectives.

By all accounts, I am an old dog in the business world. I am not ready to retire, but I am no spring chicken either. But, I am not too old to learn, implement new ideas, and grow a successful business.

I wanted to share a few of the things I learned during these retreats that may also help you as you grow your business.

1. Incidents in our past may be affecting our future. Even though you think you have dealt with the issue or just weren’t affected by it, you may just find out that it is an underlying trigger for you. I was able to make connections to my past that affect my present. Some of these incidents I had repressed and not even thought of for years. But the good news is this deep work doesn’t have to be dark or earth-shattering. It can be freeing to understand why you react to certain things the way you do.
2. You can break down your income goals into manageable chunks by working backward. (This actually was something I was aware of but haven’t practiced lately.) Start with your income goal and divide it by your average cost per service (or average commission for my real estate friends). That determines the number of transactions you will need per year. Then you can figure out the number of contacts you need to make based on your conversion ratios. Break that down into a weekly number of contacts and viola, a simple, manageable plan is ready for you to set into motion. Almost everyone in my group who worked on this exercise was shocked after seeing how doable it was to achieve their goals.
3. Spending time with like-minded people is soul food! One of the retreats I attended was with a group of women I had known for a couple of years and had spent some time with in the past. My heart was full the days we were together. We were all working on common goals even though we offer different types of services in different industries. The second retreat was with a group of people I did not know. I had joined the group less than two months before the retreat. However, we were all like-minded entrepreneurs who had more in common than we could have imagined. Not knowing anyone prior to attending took me way outside my comfort zone. But my soul was filled with connections and the common threads that ran through us all. It is possible to fill your soul while working on your business.
4. Genuinely connecting with people is not painful. If you don’t know, I am an introvert. An exercise we did at one of the retreats required us to walk around the room and silently connect with others by looking them in the eye. This was hard for an introvert like me and I was exhausted at the end of this exercise, but I survived! It was an amazing experience and helped me step out of the self-imposed isolation I create as an introvert.
5. Taking time out of your day to day business is hard when you are running the show. It is, however, necessary to work on your business and not always in your business. Although both of these retreats were focused on business, it truly became part of my self-care. There is a renewing, refreshing and recharging that occurs at these events. Include a retreat or two in your self-care plan.

I am back in my office more excited about my business and what I will be doing moving forward. My soul is full, my wheels are turning, and I am looking forward to the future. This old dog has learned a new trick (or two)!

To see how Real Estate Virtual Experts can help your real estate business, call Cindy at 412-294-8335.

Please indulge me as I detour from my normal business blogs to speak from my heart.

This morning as I was praying for my friend Becky and her daughter Marissa I started reflecting on their loss and the lessons that have been revealed to me through the death of their beloved husband and father, John. Today Becky and Marissa will be embarking on what I can only imagine will be one of the hardest journeys of their life. John was working in the Virgin Islands when he passed a couple of weeks ago and today, they will be headed there to collect his belongings and close his temporary home on the island.

It all started on a Saturday afternoon. After a full day of getting things done, I sat down to relax. For some reason I checked my email, which I normally wouldn’t do on a Saturday afternoon. There was an ominous email from a friend asking me to call her because John had died. Not wanting to believe this and recently having had my account hacked, I really wanted to believe it was a hoax. I reached out and connected with this friend. She was on her way to pick up our friend so they could take her to her daughter.  I was asked to let our mutual group of friends know what had happened.

Becky and I met in a Moms group sponsored by our church probably close to 27 years ago. There was a core group of us that became fast friends and spent so much time together raising our families. There are 9 of us who regularly get together now even though many no longer remain in Pittsburgh. We have shared every facet of our lives with each other over the years.

As I made these phone calls, the first lesson struck me. We regularly communicate through Facebook messenger as a group. However, when my friends saw my phone number pop up on their phones they were immediately alarmed. Lesson 1 – do a better job of staying truly connected with those you love!

Although I was spreading the news as requested, in the back of my mind I just couldn’t believe that it was accurate. On Sunday morning, my sister-in-law sent me a text saying they announced John’s death in church, and she was shocked. That is when I realized that this was actually true.

It took about a week and a half for his body to be returned to Pittsburgh which I know had to be excruciating for his wife and daughter. During this period, I was full of questions. How could this have happened to John? Why is it taking so long to get him here? All the questions led me to the next lesson. Lesson 2 – all things happen in God’s time for reasons we may never know.

When I found out that John’s cause of death was a pulmonary embolism, I really started to question everything. You see, 10 years ago I survived a pulmonary embolism. As I started to wonder why I would survive such a thing, I learned my next lesson. Lesson 3 – you have something that still needs to be completed.

I’m not exactly sure what that thing is, but I have been on a year of self-discovery and things are starting to appear to me. I need to show up and make a difference in my world for others.

Over the past several years I have been struggling with my faith. Due to a divorce, everything started changing in my faith and with the people who were part of that faith journey as often happens in a divorce. I felt it might be time to leave that church, but I clung to the memories of the past 20+years I had there. When I started to look for a new church, I just couldn’t commit to a new faith family and therefore, I haven’t been attending any church. After listening to the message at John’s funeral, I received the next lesson. Lesson 4 – now is the time to find your new church home and get back on track with your faith journey.

My friend John was a giver. He volunteered his skills and knowledge to make a difference in this world. His latest endeavor was to help a church in St. Johns build a chapel. Donations were requested for the fundraising of this chapel in lieu of flowers. I can just see the big mustached smile on his face knowing that wish will be honored by so many. Realizing how much John did in a normally unassuming role led me to the next lesson. Lesson 5 – do what you can with what you have to make a difference for others.

I’m still working through these lessons. I am not exactly sure where they will lead me. But, if you are blessed by anything I do in the future, thank John. A man I have known for so many years has made a tremendous impact at this time in my life. For that, I will be forever grateful.

I hope this brings some comfort during such a difficult time. I continue to pray for my friend Becky and her daughter, Marissa and I hope you will join me. Rest in Peace my friend, thanks for your friendship and the lessons.

If you are interested in donating in John’s memory, donations are being accepted by Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church for the “Coral Bay Chapel” at P.O. Box 241, St. John U.S. Virgin Islands 00831-0241.