TECHNOLOGY
Building Work-Life Balance as an Agent in 2020 You sit down for dinner and your phone rings. What if this call results in a deal? If I don’t answer, will they call the next agent? “Sorry, I need to get this.”
Work-life balance seems like an impossible achievement for an agent. The only thing certain in the industry is uncertainty - that’s why you want to make sure you capture every opportunity. Having spent years struggling with worklife balance as an agent, and now finding myself talking to agents every day about their goals, I’d like to share a few things I’ve learned from agents who manage work-life balance well.
The Problem with Shallow Goals Goal setting in sales is most often characterised by volume, with targets such as sales per year, appraisals per week, or Gross Commission Income. The challenge is; these targets reflect only a narrow set of personal goals. While revenue-centric goals have a role (I’m not taking away from wanting to put food on the table!) they often completely ignore the many other reasons for becoming an agent. So - why did you become an agent? Exercise Think back to why you started real estate in the first place; your “true purpose as an agent” ●• What were you expecting real estate would offer you? • Does your daily reality meet those expectations?
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The Real Estate Institute of New Zealand
Sarah Codling, Chief Customer Officer, Woork
●• D o the choices you’re making to achieve success ultimately align with the vision you have for your life? Agents I’ve met who tie their income goals back to their personal goals seem to be more empowered to build boundaries with clients and routinely rest.
The Balancing Act This is the point at which agents often say work-life balance is a luxury they can’t afford; “That’s just how real estate is” It’s true; there’s inherent competition in being an agent. When you pair competition with income uncertainty, this builds a habit of constantly being ‘switched on’. This mindset is helpful when you’re running offers and doing deals. It’s also the same mindset that turns into “FOMO” and has you answering buyer enquiries on a Saturday night. So - how real is that fear? When I was an agent it took me a few years to feel comfortable to put in boundaries with vendors and buyers. I gained confidence from understanding what the impact would have been if I deferred afterhour emails and calls until the morning. While the outcome might be different for you, I found it gave me the confidence to assert better boundaries with my time.
• Knowing what you know now about real estate, what does success look like for you?
Exercise • F or the next couple weeks, keep a tally of each time you get a call outside of business hours
●• From your perspective, what is the hardest part of achieving that success?
•N ote down any call that results in a real opportunity for a deal
