A Time Management System for Real Estate Agents & Entrepreneurs

I recently finished reading The Success Principles by Jack Canfield, as well as listening to the CD version in the car. This book is filled with great tools to help you improve your chances for success.

One of the tools that I found to be most helpful was the Enterpreneurial Time Management System. The system is featured in the book but was developed by Dan Sullivan of The Strategic Coach.

The purpose of the system is to allow you to be highly productive and successful in your career, while also enjoying free and recreational time with your family and friends.

To get started, divide your days into three kinds - Focus Days, Buffer Days, and Free Days

Focus Days - "A focus day is one in which you spend at least 80% of your time operating in your core genius or area of expertise."*

Everyone has a different core genius. It should be something that you love doing and may completely lose track of time when you're doing it.

For me, it's online marketing, blogging, and learning about technology. For Kevin, it's negotiating a contract and putting deals together.

Determine your core genius and schedule days to focus your time and energy working in that area.

Buffer Days - "A Buffer Day is when you prepare and plan for a Focus or Free Day."* My buffer days are spent in the office working with our office manager on files, closing preparations, setting up checklists, and training staff.

Buffer days allow you to tackle those issues or tasks that prevent you from havina Focus Day or a Free Day.

Free Days - "A Free Day extends from midnight to midnight and involves no work-related activity of any kind. It's a day completely free of business meetings, business-related phone calls, e-mails, etc."* This is the most challenging part of the system for us in real estate. We do our best to have a regular "Free Day" although exceptions are made in some instances.

There are many benefits to taking a Free Day, one of which is that you come back to work feeling refreshed, with a clearer mind, and a fresh perspective.

Implementing the system takes a bit of planning, training staff, and delegating but is well worth the efficiency and peace of mind it helps create. We're still working to perfect the system in our busy world but have already seen an increase in our productivity and creativity.

Jack Canfield also offers a Free Monthly Teleconference where he holds discussions and answers questions about applying the tools in his book. You can sign up for the next teleconference at www.AskJackCanfield.com. You can't beat the cost (Free) and the ones I have listed to have been very well done and informative.

What are Your Time Management Tools?

Focus Photo - Margolove