When you work in real estate, one of the best parts of the job is that you can often build your own schedule and, in some cases, be your own boss. But, as the saying goes, with more freedom comes more responsibility. It’s up to you to structure your daily schedule in a way that is conducive to your productivity and success.
Real estate agents need to find a balance between meeting with clients, calling potential new ones, honing your marketing efforts, generating new leads, and working on existing deals—not to mention maintaining a healthy work-life balance. This daily schedule will look slightly different for each agent based on their particular business, market, specialty, inclinations, and goals, but successful agents will likely share a lot of similarities.
The most important thing is to find a schedule and structure that works for you. Here is how I structure my day, as well as six things that I do on a daily basis that work for me and help me be as productive as possible.
6 Things I Do to Start My Day
- Get your minimum required sleep – If you’re going to perform and do your job well, then you need to be thinking, alert, and personable. That’s not easy to do if you’re tire and nodding off in a meeting. Whatever the minimum amount of sleep you need, get it. For me it’s 7.5 to 8 hours. If I get that minimum amount, I feel good waking up in the morning (well, at least most of the time).
- Exercise daily – I know that this is a tough one, but if you build your morning so that you can fit in a quick workout or some type of physical activity, you’ll feel awake and have more energy throughout the day. I like to do this in the morning. I either walk the neighborhood or do an exercise video, even if it’s only for 15 to 20 minutes.
3. Do some type of mindset work – As a real estate agent, you need to feel positive and motivated about your work. It can be a constant struggle against negative thinking. Whether it’s journaling, meditation, or something else, it’s important to do something. In the past I’ve written down three good things from the day before or three things I’m thankful for to counteract any negative thoughts.
4. Have a hard start time to your day – When you’re your own boss, you need to act the part. Set a start time to your day and stick to it no matter what. Pretend that you will get fired if you show up late too many times. For me it’s usually 8 or 9 in the morning.
5. Have a hard end time to your day – Same with having a start time, real estate agents need to have a hard end time. It’s all too easy to keep working and working, but you need to find time to shut it off. The quickest way to destroying your mindset and productivity and eventually your health is to constantly be stressed about what you didn’t do or aren’t doing.
6. Don’t treat yourself like a machine – Things happen, life throws curveballs, we mess up. Have your routine and stick to it, but don’t punish yourself if you have to break it once in a while. You don’t need to add “not sticking to my routine today” as another thing you’re feeling stressed about. Do the best you can and if your routine needs to be tweaked, do it.
Here is my power morning routine: I get my7.5 to 8 hours of sleep, and then I make coffee, play some video games, walk the neighborhood or do an exercise video. Next, I help get the kids ready in the and then make breakfast. Then I start work. That’s about it. It works for me and I feel generally happy and (mostly) stress free as I go about my day.
How Real Estate Agents Should Schedule Their Day
Once you find and implement a morning routine that works for you, then you have to schedule the rest of your day. Again, this will probably look slightly different for every real estate agent out there, but the general structure should be about the same. Typically, your day will be divided into lead generation and servicing your existing business.
Here’s what a schedule may look like:
7am: Wake up (after your minimum amount of sleep)
7am – 9am: Morning routine (breakfast, exercise, mindset work, getting ready)
9am: Hard start to work day
9am – 11am: Active prospecting and lead generation
11am – 12pm: Administrative tasks (check the status of transactions, clean up your CRM, confirm meeting times and places, etc. This can also be a time for trainings and skill building.)
12pm – 1pm: Lunch. Take a break and recharge your brain.
1pm – 2pm: Follow up with existing leads
2pm – 6/7pm: Appointments with leads and customers (or lead generation when you don’t have appointments)
6/7pm: Hard stop to the day
The Key Takeaways
Like I mentioned, the most important thing is to build a schedule and routine that works best for you and your business. It’s also critical to do prospecting and lead generation every single day—if you focus solely on existing business then the well is going to dry up fairly quickly. Always block time out for specific activities, schedule in lunch and other breaks, and treat your start and end times as sacrosanct and inviolable.
Do these things, and you’ll find your days are less stressful, more productive, and even more fun. Stay motivated and on top of yourself, and your business will thrive as a result!
