My professional purpose is to help you, the broker, optimize your productivity and help you become the best version of yourself. Why? Because happy brokers sell more real estate. I do that by helping you handle challenges and opportunities that you face every day. If you can effectively manage certain situations that arise on a daily basis and in your business, you'll be more productive and live a life that is the best version of you.
Today, I want to reiterate how important it is to have concrete deadlines built into your goal setting strategy.
After last week's MMPT, one of your fellow agents texted me and said, "When you stated that a goal is a promise, not a wish, that really resonated with me.” It's so true, right? When Keith Cunningham put that phrase in his book "The Road Less Stupid,” it resonated with me too. So, what is the difference between goals that are "wishes" and those that are "promises"?
With a wish, a goal would be "nice to have.” A promise requires commitment. A commitment to a strategy that will move the needle.
Many use the S.M.A.R.T goal setting strategy. It's an acronym that stands for is the goal Simple? Is it Measurable? Is it Achievable? Is it Realistic? and is it Timely? So, in this scenario you might say "I would like to build my Top 100 database from 49 to 55 people between October 1, 2021 and December 31, 2021.” In this scenario, that goal meets all of the criteria of a S.M.A.R.T goal. It is real enough that you can get up every morning and track your progress.
In that goal statement, was a length of time that I feel is the best approach based on my research and experience. In my opinion, QUARTERLY goals are the best approach for one major reason: you increase the number of goal deadlines you have in any given year from 1 deadline to 4.
This is no secret to those of you that have been following my MMPTs/Podcast. Earlier this year, I talked about my "Ultimate Productivity Strategy" that was key to helping me lose 20+ pounds during Q1 and Q2and keep it off. It consisted of:
- Create A Quarterly Goal
- "Burn the Ships"
- Identify 3-5 things a day to execute consistently
- "Gamify" and Track
When I wrote and delivered that MMPT, I had yet to read "The 12 Week Year" by Brian Moran. The book was written in 2013 and it was recommended to me at the absolute perfect time. A time where I was looking for validation surrounding my level of conviction to switch to a quarterly goal setting system. If you haven't read it, download it and start listening immediately. We are wrapping up Q3 this week and if you are moving to this suggested quarterly system for goal setting, you need to identify your area of focus this week, put leverage on yourself, identify those 3-5 things you'll do each day and commit to a tracking method. It's a simple and incredibly effective strategy. I endorse this approach because I know that I personally execute much better to goals when the deadline is approaching rapidly. You can see it when you plan for travel. When you know a trip is coming up in a week, you get a month's worth of work done before you leave. You make all of the calls you need to make, you plan, you create checklists, you power through your to-do's and like magic, the phone starts to ring. Every! Single! Time! So why wouldn't recognize this and build it into your productivity strategy?
If you are struggling with what to focus on in Q4, let me give you some more advice. If you do not have your TOP 100 built and organized, start there and commit to adding 5-7 relationships to your database over the course of the next 90 days. If you do that over the next 4 quarters, that means you'll give or take 25 new relationships that you are managing. Mathematically, there is no way that your business doesn't grow. It's a simple, easy-to-understand strategy chunked down into quarterly goals.
I got another question last week: "Jim, how many goals can I have in a quarter?" My suggestion is to keep it to 2: 1 for business and 1 personal.
So, what is the downside to re-programming yourself from annual goals to quarterly goals? I couldn't find any downside other than breaking away from industry and societal norms which really isn't a downside, it's just a decision to change your mindset. All I know is that I personally respond to deadlines, so I choose to give myself 4 deadlines a year instead of 1. Join me in wrapping up Q3 this week and re-commit to an amazingly productive Q4, ending 2021 in a really strong way.
Thank you, team. Have a happy and productive week.
