Part of the reason you became a REALTOR\u00ae was to \u201cbe your own boss,\u201d right?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But then, \u201cbeing your own boss\u201d turned into \u201cnot having a boss,\u201d which is like when you\u2019re a teenager, and your parents go on vacation and leave you at home for the first time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s fun at first , but then the house gets frighteningly messy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now you\u2019ve got one day to clean up this pigsty and bring it back to \u201cnormal\u201d before your parents get home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But being your own boss isn\u2019t merely about keeping things \u201cnormal.\u201d Unless, of course, you\u2019re entirely satisfied with the state of your business as it is. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
But then, you wouldn\u2019t be reading this, would you? <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It turns out that everyone needs a boss, but being a good \u2018boss of yourself\u2019 is something you can learn, just like any other skill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Let\u2019s explore a few different ways to improve your \u2018boss\u2019 skills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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For starters, it\u2019s important to know the value of your time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
For example, a typical busy REALTOR\u00ae probably works close to 2,500 hours per year (50 weeks x 50 hours\/week).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you made $250,000 last year, divide that by 2,500 hours to calculate your hourly rate ($100\/hr). <\/p>\n\n\n\n
That\u2019s not bad, but once you deduct all your expenses and taxes, let\u2019s face it: You\u2019re not getting rich. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
If your goal is to make $500,000, and you\u2019re willing to work 2,500 hours to get it, here\u2019s the most critical mindset shift you need to make:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Start behaving like your time is worth $200\/hr. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s as simple as that, and <\/em>as difficult as that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s simple because there\u2019s no reason you can\u2019t make $500,000 or more if you\u2019ve got the right knowledge and skills<\/a>, and <\/em>you learn to use your time wisely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s difficult because it requires personal discipline to be a good boss of yourself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ask yourself: Do you spend most of your time doing highly-productive income-generating ($200\/hr) activities?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Or do you spend half your time doing $20\/hr work that you could easily delegate to someone else?<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you spend your time doing $20\/hr work, that\u2019s precisely what you are worth.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n ______________________<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you had a personal productivity manager who looked over your shoulder every minute of your working day, would they be impressed by how you spend your time? Or would they be appalled at how much time you waste<\/em> doing completely useless, unproductive activities?<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you want to make $500,000, wasting two hours every day is like tossing four $100 bills out your car window\u2014every single day. <\/em> Visualize that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019s $2,000 per week (M-F). <\/p>\n\n\n\n You could hire a full-time, experienced assistant for half <\/em>that, and stop doing $20\/hr activities, forever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Don\u2019t get me wrong. If you are <\/em>earning $500,000 and you make a conscious choice to spend $400 of your time doing something unproductive, go for it!<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019m not suggesting that you should work continuously and never have any downtime to recharge. That leads to burnout.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, you do need to stop running your life haphazardly (like an unparented teenager).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Start being conscious of what you are doing and what you are not <\/em>doing during your regular work hours. <\/p>\n\n\n\n For one single day, be your own productivity manager. Write down how you spend every minute of your day. How many hours did you waste?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Two? Three? Six?<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you\u2019re afraid to do this, you already know you have a problem, and you know you need to shift your mindset.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Perhaps you\u2019re feeling overwhelmed, like your house is a pigsty right now, and your parents are coming home tomorrow. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Here\u2019s the good news:<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you think that shifting your mindset means you have to start doing things that you hate, and that you\u2019ll never have any fun ever again , that is the ridiculous success-preventing part of your brain trying to sabotage you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The opposite is true: Positively shifting your mindset is exhilarating, confidence-boosting, and freeing, not to mention the massive improvement to your bank account.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Only one person is stopping you from achieving your goals. It\u2019s you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s time to start adulting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you\u2019d like to further explore this topic, check out this previous post: Five Simple Steps to Getting Stuff Done<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n ______________________<\/p>\n\n\n\n