Work Life Balance

 

The real estate market doesn't take a holiday. Or a weekend. 

Between showing homes, sending out listings, and answering and responding to the endless calls and emails, it probably feels like you work non-stop. 

And for many real estate agents, that is true. A job that requires you to be on-call practically 24/7 makes it seem nearly impossible to obtain a work life balance. 

However, with a little intentionality and effort, it can be done. Don't believe us? Try a few of these tips and see if you find a few more minutes for yourself! 

Prioritize 

It may seem obvious to prioritize your to-do list, but what about prioritizing the different aspects of your life? According to Sara Caputo, author of the "The Productivity Puzzle", it's important to identify a "core four" of priorities for your life. Perhaps this is your work, family, and health; or perhaps it's your family, spiritual wellbeing, and recreational time. Understand that these four won't be the same as everyone else's and they aren't supposed to be. A work-life balance should be based on your priorities and the things that are most important to you. Clarifying these aspects of your life will help you recognize where you are spending most of your time, and how you can re-allocate and re-dedicate some of that time to those factors that are most important. 

Organize 

It's hard to start positive habits when everything around is cluttered chaos. Spend some time organizing your work space and eliminate distractions. This is particularly true if you are working from home. With so many of us now spending more hours inside with the pandemic, it can be easy to end up typing away on the couch in your pajamas. However, it's important to set aside a dedicated work space that allows you to focus - and walk away. If your work space and recreational space become one and the same, it will be difficult to unplug and take the time away from work that you desire. 

Caputo also says it's important to create multiple to-do lists. Create a list of must-do items for the day, one for the week, and a running list of things upcoming in the future. This will help you itemize tasks that need to get done and ensure that they do in fact get done, but in a timely fashion. It's important to not spend hours doing a task that can be done a week from now, ignoring those that are more time sensitive. You can also consider adding in your personal to-do's - like family time and workouts - into these lists. 

Unplug 

While technology is where we spend most of our work life and allows us to stay connected to our clients, it could also be a main point of stress in our lives. According to Harvard psychology professor Robert Brooks, notifications from your phone inject "an undercurrent of stress" into your life when they're popping up in your off time. That's why it's incredibly important to unplug, and allow yourself time away from your technology, and giving yourself an "off-call" moment. Set aside a designated time to walk away from work, and set your "do not disturb" setting on if needed. 

Caputo also suggests creating a "power hour" in your schedule once or twice a week. During this time, turn off your notifications and be unavailable to clients to allow yourself full concentration on your work. This allows you to think deeply about tasks that are more time-consuming and challenging. She also suggests setting timers during this time if you have multiple tasks to complete, as people often work more efficiently under pressure. 

Be Kind to Yourself 

Deciding today that you want a better work-life balance and trying to achieve it all by 5 p.m. tomorrow simply isn't realistic. Just as we often abandon our New Year's resolutions by February, we have to give ourselves time and be patient with ourselves when making a life change. Identify one or two areas in which you want to improve, be it more family time, or waking up earlier to allow more work time. Then, build these aspects in gradually. Realize and accept that major life changes can't happen overnight. However, with patience and time, you can obtain the work-life balance you desire.