On this first Monday Morning Pep Talk of 2023, I will discuss the importance of reviewing and documenting what the turbulence of 2022 taught you. I did the exercise and I'll share with you what I experienced that was "validating" and what I hope to explore more in 2023. Explore means that I will "stress test" some philosophies further and others I will recommit to or fully implement into my execution strategy.
My advice to you (and I'm sure many of you have already done it) is to take 30 minutes to an hour, review your transactions and calendar, and ask yourself the following questions:
- What did I already know that was "validated" in 2022?
- What am I taking into 2023 and that I will explore more?
- What is the one thing that I will leave behind in 2022?
If you are trying to optimize your productivity during this quarter and/or 2023, I recommend a book called Grip: The Art of Working Smart by Rick Pastoor. There is a chapter in the book about how to do a proper annual review. Here is what I wrote down after I did my annual review:
What did I already know that was "validated" in 2022?
- 12 Week Year principles are my operating strategy - Simple concepts lead to large successes.
- Remain focused on Internal Goals vs. External Goals
- Take a look back and review your successes: "The Gain.” The "I will be happy when_____" concept is really dangerous.
- There will be a major market shift every 8-10 years. A large period of demand will be followed by "the herd" pulling back. You've got to be "prepared" for the shift so you'll be in the right mindset to take market share.
- Using your vision to make your decisions. Being wary of ego sneaking into your decision making.
- The relationship business model works in every type of market.
- NINJA sales process is legit. I wish that I would have had it back in 2008. I took my first installation in 2022. I highly recommend it.
What Am I Taking Into 2023 and Will Explore More:
- "Periodization Planning Strategy" the Annual Theme and Action Word (3-Year Vision boiled down into 1 or 2 words) added to the 12-Week Year philosophy
- Lifestyle Consultants vs. Real Estate Broker concept
- Meditation daily. Power naps on weekends to catch up on sleep (protect and maintain energy)
- Elevated focus on daily execution. True it up to your long-range goals. When done for the day, you're done. Do some mindless stuff at the end of the day to reward yourself.
- Take a look back and review your successes: "The Gain". The "I will be happy when_____" concept is really dangerous.
- Adding a vision "accomplished" board to the vision/goal boards concept.
- Alternate ways to stay "current" on news and industry trends. Too much noise on mainstream options.
What is the one thing that I will leave in 2022?
- Social media and news content - "the noise" - that does not improve my thinking. I will be doing a lot of unsubscribing and unfollowing in 2023.
My Top 3 Books of 2022:
- "The Gap and The Gain" by Dan Sullivan and Dr. Benjamin Hardy
- "The Psychology of Money" by Morgan Housel
- "Unreasonable Hospitality" by Will Guidara
Team, you will always remember the transitional years and in this case, the last 3 years will most likely be etched into your memories. The type of turbulence we've seen in the past 3 years in the overall economy, not to mention the just the real estate sector, may not be seen again in a lifetime. Yes, there will be the pull backs every 8-10 years, but the last 3 years have seen the extremes. You need to make sure you come out of this period of time with massive personal and professional growth. For me, that time period was 2008-2013. With that being said, are you ready for the next 3-year cycle? What have you learned?
What will you have to accomplish to see massive progressive growth, both personally and professionally, in the next 3 years?
Over the next several calls, I will cover a few additional thoughts before I take the next several quarters to lead you through an updated and extremely detailed version of Take Flight. I did something similar in Q3 and Q4 of 2020 and it's time for an update. We'll start that late this month or the first call in February. Stay tuned for more details.
My point for today, though, is that you make sure that you take some time to do your "annual review.” Go back through your transactions and your calendar and glean as much as you can from 2022 before you fully jump into 2023.
Time is a wonderful teacher.
