Taking Time Off Can Be Lifesaving

LEE NELSON

BY LEE NELSON

Lee Nelson is a freelance journalist fromIllinois. She writes for REALTOR® Magazine,several state REALTOR® Magazines andwebsites, and loanDepot.com.

When Asa Fleming started out in the real estate world, he tried to be all things to everyone.

“Everybody’s urgency was my emergency,” says Fleming, broker associate at Asa Fleming Real Estate at Allen Tate Company in Raleigh/Glenwood. “But I learned. And now I take breaks quarterly, at least three to five days at a time.”

Asa Fleming

He’s involved in at least a dozen things, including running a few nonprofits and opening Central Wake High School, a charter school for dropout prevention. He also serves as the Chair of the Wake County Planning Board and continues to be an active member of the Raleigh Regional Association of REALTORS® (RRAR), NC REALTORS® and the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR), where he has served on multiple committees.

“When things get too much, and it’s all work and no play, I begin to notice. I get frustrated, and I don’t want to be bothered by anyone,” he adds.

That’s when it’s obvious that it’s time to go somewhere and take a break. But heading out from all that on his annual deep fishing trip to the coast gives him clarity again. He also pads days on the beginning or ending of a real estate conference so there is time to have fun and just unwind. Sometimes, he takes his kids out of school to hang out with him at Disney, the Bahamas or the Smokey Mountains. A few times, he goes alone just to decompress and clear his brain so he can focus on real estate when he gets back.

His story reflects many agents’ worlds—many hours on the job helping others and being involved in the community. But he’s one of those that understands the importance of relaxation, fun and time away from the career. It could be lifesaving.

Research Shows Importance of Time Off

The work-from-home explosion during the pandemic led to very long workdays for REALTORS®. Work was coming from everywhere.

One-third of surveyors told the American Psychological Association that their workload makes it hard to actually get away from it all. Even the 42 percent who say they actually take time off, dread coming back because their workload has piled up.

Without escapes and time off from work, burnout can happen. Burnout has become so rampant that the World Health Organization (WHO) declared it a syndrome in the International Classification of Diseases. The WHO explains that burnout results from chronic workplace stress that hasn’t been addressed. Symptoms can show up as feelings of energy depletion, increased mental distance from the job, feelings of negativism and reduced effectiveness.

A Framingham, Massachusetts Heart Study found that vacations actually reduce the risk of heart disease. It tracked subjects over a nine-year period and found a positive correlation between more frequent vacations and longer, healthier lives. Men who didn’t take a vacation for several years were 30 percent more likely to have heart attacks.

Mental health also becomes affected by no time off. Vacations can improve someone’s mood and reduce stress by getting away from the environment associated with anxiety. A Canadian study of more than 800 lawyers shows vacations reduce depression and buffer against job stress. A small Japanese study finds a short, three-day leisure trip can reduce perceived levels of stress and the stress hormone cortisol.

Fleming sees newer agents working two or three years in a row without any time off.

“I don’t want to tell them to stop, but they need to know that a week away will refocus their efforts,” he comments

Teaching Others to Take Time Off

Beatrix Masotti saves time off at the end of each year just to take a nice holiday break from it all. She and her husband own land and raise a garden and Scottish Highland cows.

Beatrix Masotti

“We are weekend farmers,” says Masotti, managing broker-in-charge at Premier Sotheby’s International Realty in Asheville. “I like spending time with the cows. They have a really good temperament.”

As a couple, they like to visit other farms or attend auctions.

“I enjoy the time off to relax and not be on a schedule. But my phone is never off,” she admits.

She works with dozens of agents in six counties who are doing deals all weekend when she is off. But she’s there for them with their questions and concerns.

“I do encourage my agents that there is nothing like a long weekend to rejuvenate and get back on track,” she adds.

So many of them didn’t take time off during the pandemic. It was either feast or famine. But many in early 2021 to mid2021 were on hyper mode. She started to see the possibility of burnout for many of them.

“I had to rein in a few of them and tell them to take some time for themselves,” Masotti states. “This is a 24-hour, 7-days-a-week business. We work when others can’t work. It’s a very demanding business, but you can manage it if you do it right.”

She teaches them that clients don’t need to know what they are doing all the time. Just tell them you are busy and can’t meet them at certain times. Instead, give them options of when you can meet them.

Time blocking becomes critical to better manage an agent’s time.

“You are the boss. You make the decisions. It’s unlike going to a job. You have to create your own tasks,” Masotti says. “The old saying that if you don’t take care of yourself, you can’t take care of others. That goes for [real estate agents], too.”

As a real estate professional, you have to be in the right frame of mind to advise people. When anyone is under stress, they may not make the right decisions for themselves or their clients, she believes.

Getting Back to Nature

Before starting many of her days, Christina Asbury can be found fishing out of her boat or duck hunting. It helps her get in the right frame of mind to make the deals as a real estate broker with Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Advantage in Sneads Ferry. She even keeps her fishing rod in her trunk if she has a 15-minute break while near a public fishing dock.

“Being back to nature and being able to be near calm waters gives you peace and quiet for a while,” she adds. “I get up at 4:30 a.m. sometimes. You really don’t think about your bank account when you get to watch the sunrise while fishing.”

Christina Asbury

She and her family take vacations everywhere from cruising to touring New York City. She also likes to wrap vacations around a conference or real estate meeting. She feels fortunate to be afforded reimbursable travel through national and state REALTOR® meetings and trainings.

She enjoys getting out of her comfort zone and experiencing the hustle and bustle of a big city since her lifestyle is so laid back.

“It’s nice to go to a metro area and then come back to the pace of Eastern North Carolina,” she adds. “You need breaks for a mental recharge. You can’t just burn a candle at both ends, or you become a lunatic.”

Coaching Herself About Self-Care

Helen Gentry wears many hats and works several jobs, so vacations and long weekends become crucial.

At a minimum, her goal every year is to take one vacation consisting of several days plus a few weekends away and a staycation where she stays home to recenter. She helps clients as an agent at Mason Peak Mountain Properties in Franklin. She also owns Helen Gentry Coaching and works as a franchise and entrepreneur coach.

Helen Gentry

“We have all been through so much in the past two to three years with the pandemic. We all need breaks to refuel, refresh and recharge,” she adds.

She understands how challenging it is for dedicated, driven entrepreneurs to step away and take breaks. But breaks become necessary to safeguard against burnout in the long term. She tries to promote a culture of being encouraging and supportive of agents that she works with and offers to assist with anything they need when they go out of town.

“Clients deserve an agent who is fully present, focused and not trying to work through severe exhaustion and brain fog. I have personally experienced and seen that working under the latter conditions all too easily leads to errors that can adversely affect our clients and their transaction,” Gentry adds.

When she was younger, she didn’t have a career but just worked various jobs.

“I would swoop in, succeed, exhaust myself, burn out, leave, start over somewhere else and do it again,” Gentry states. “A different strategy is required. Time off allows us time to evaluate our businesses and lives, assess what’s working and what isn’t and brainstorm new ideas.”