For most people, a 9-to-5 job gives them an ideal work-life balance. They work for eight hours, sleep for eight hours, commute for one or two, and are left with around four hours of personal or family time each day.
Their weekends typically include time for entertainment, socializing, shopping, and getting some heavy chores or maintenance work done around the home. Most people often find the time for a hobby or two as well.
Other high-functioning individuals can run a side business with their job, but this usually doesn’t leave much time for family, socializing, or entertainment, which isn’t ideal. The real estate industry is relatively different from others and does not fit in the 9 to 5 category.
Real estate professionals work longer, unsociable hours, which is common across the board. Their client-centric profession is based on commissions, which means they often take on as many as possible.
Since clients are always a priority and most clients have families and jobs or run businesses of their own, real estate professionals often have to make time for them at odd hours or on the weekends.
Therefore, we have found a work-life balance for real estate professionals to help you make the best of your workdays and weekends.
Real Estate Professionals and Finding a Work-Life Balance
The modern real estate industry is very different from what it used to be. The introduction of technologies like the internet and mobile communication means that you are never more than a few clicks away.
Real estate professionals find it harder than ever to get away from persistent clients, contractors, and colleagues. Often, their demanding careers lead them to forget that there is more to life than just work. However, it is crucial to set boundaries and live a life outside of work, especially if they want to avoid burnout, which is very common in their industry.
If you face similar challenges, here are a few things that will help you find a work-life balance to avoid burnout.
Set and Track Clear Work Hours
As you take on clients to bulk up your portfolio, you may find yourself giving more time to work than you expected. The best way to find a balance and give yourself time outside of work is to set your daily and weekly hours for work and track them every day.
Naturally, you may have to make adjustments and compromises now and then for showings, meetings, etc.
But setting clear hours for work and tracking them means you’ll know exactly how much time you are giving to work, and this will help avoid burnout and maintain a better work-life balance. It allows you to create a reasonable daily/ weekly schedule that you can rely on.
Your work hours don’t have to be 9 to 5 or limited to 8 hours. However, it is best to limit yourself to no more than 10 hours between 8 am and 8 pm. One excellent tip is to print your office hours on your business card and stick to those hours.
This way, potential clients won’t call you randomly at odd hours, and you can easily get your admin work done during work hours. If you want to take this one step further, a neat trick for real estate professionals is to have two separate numbers, one for work and another for personal and social use.
You can give your work number to clients, prospects, and colleagues and tell them to ideally call you between 8 am and 6 pm. Of course, you should mention that you will gladly accept calls outside those hours if there is an emergency.
This is simply the nature of the real estate industry, and you may have to accept emergency calls at unsociable hours.
Set and Track Clear Work Hours
Real estate professionals always have some things that are more important than others, and you would rather spend your time getting those things done. A healthy way to overcome important tasks is to prioritize them during work hours.
Start each day by writing down the important or urgent tasks you have as well as the not so important or urgent ones. Writing down tasks will allow you to prioritize and get important things done first. You will often find that once the main tasks are done, you can easily complete many less important ones.
It helps you draw a line for work while remaining productive throughout the week. When you go home, you’ll feel satisfied that you got your important work done.
Use OktoHub
Just as technology makes it difficult to get away from clients and colleagues, it also offers solutions. OktoHub is the first-ever on-demand real estate assistance program that makes sure that real estate professionals never have to compromise on clients, family, or personal time.
With OktoHub, you can create a network of reliable real estate professionals around you and hire them for task-based jobs. There are no long-term commitments, and you only pay them for the task at hand. These tasks include all real estate-related ones, like client meetings, showings, inspections, staging, and more.
You will never have to risk losing a commission just because you can’t be there for a client. Similarly, you will never have to let friends and family down just because you are stuck at work. OktoHub allows you to eliminate the need for making compromises and helps maintain a healthy work-life balance.
Make Time For Yourself
Like how you plan your important tasks like showings and meetings ahead of time, you should also plan time for yourself. This planning is crucial for your well-being and for finding a work-life balance. You need to make time for the personal things that bring you joy every week, so you can perform better at work.
If you like the outdoors, go on a hike or two each week. If you like art, visit a gallery now and then. Perhaps you like to cook but never learned; go take a class or two each week. Adventure seekers and travel lovers should start the year planning one or two trips, so they have something to look forward to.
Whatever makes you happy must be a part of your life, no matter how small, and you must make time for it.
Make Time for Loved Ones
Your family and friends may say they understand your work, but they don’t. They may say it’s okay if you had to cancel for a work commitment, but these things pile up and take a toll on your relationships. What good will becoming successful be if you won’t have many loved ones to share it with?
Hence, you need make time for your friends and family. Plan and prioritize these things in your week like plans for your work and personal time. If things aren’t happening, make an effort to call them, organize something, and socialize with them each week.
It is way more important than you think. If a client calls last minute or you feel you can’t make the time, use OktoHub to get someone from your network of reliable real estate professionals to meet your client and free up your time.
Conclusion
It is no secret that every successful real estate professional has made compromises, worked ungodly hours, and put clients before everyone else. These sacrifices are required for becoming successful in the competitive real estate industry.
Your work and career should be a big part of your life, but you shouldn’t let your ambition take away family and personal time. More importantly, you shouldn’t work yourself to burnout. These things only make it harder to be productive and get results.
Instead of working hard, you need to be working smart. Set clear work hours and track them. Prioritize important tasks. Use OktoHub whenever needed, and make time for yourself and your loved ones.
If you want to learn more about finding a work-life balance for real estate professionals or OktoHub and its real estate assistance benefits, please visit our website today.
