GATEWAY PERSPECTIVES: Constant Juggling
Richard Haggerty | May 15, 2018
For those of you who diligently read Real Estate In-Depth, as well as the weekly email updates we provide to all HGAR members, you know that there is a lot going on with the organization. I must confess that sometimes I feel that I’m constantly juggling meetings, appointments, phone calls, strategy sessions, e-mails, texts, and the most challenging of all for me, social media interaction. I know I’m not alone in this feeling—the typical Realtor’s daily life is all about juggling a myriad of urgent tasks.
The challenge is when we start to feel overwhelmed by the number of things we are juggling and we start to feel we are going to start dropping some of the balls. When that happens, I think back to the keynote speaker from our Annual Meeting last October, Mel Robbins, and the message she delivered. For those of you who did not attend the meeting, Mel is a best selling author who espouses the “5 second rule.” I’m not going to try to encapsulate Mel’s philosophy in this column—I’m only going to address what stayed with me from Mel’s wonderful presentation.
When you are feeling overwhelmed and you are hopping from task to task without bringing true focus to any of them—stop, pause, take a deep breath, and count to five. Prioritize your tasks and be willing to say, “No.” All of us often have an aversion to saying, “No.” How difficult is it to say no to a perspective home seller who has an unrealistic expectations concerning the value of their property when you know your friendly competitor from down the street will take the listing if you pass it up? However, sometimes we have to realize it’s not worth the potential aggravation and expended resources with no sale in sight.
I’m not suggesting we are going to give up juggling—these days that seems to be a constant in our lives. I am suggesting we be more disciplined, that we be willing to prioritize our tasks and handle them individually as opposed to multi-tasking, and that we be willing to say no. I also think it’s important to take the necessary time for ourselves and make sure we are personally in a good place, whether it be devoting the time to read a book, take a walk or working in our garden—we all need “me” time if we are going to keep a balance in our lives.
In conclusion I’d like to review just a few of the ongoing projects HGAR and HGMLS are working on:
• HGAR has launched a new Global Business Council to provide our members with tools, education, and networking opportunities to grow a global business. The Global Business Council will be co-sponsoring a Global Forum at the Marriott Marquis on October 22nd.
• HGMLS has completed the agreement to merge databases with the Sullivan County Multiple Listing Service and that process should be completed by the end of June.
• HGAR and HGMLS continue to develop products and services to offer brokers and agents in Manhattan, including a new consumer facing website for all of our members, which is expected to launch this June.
• HGMLS continues to have fruitful conversations with representatives from the Multiple Listing Service of Long Island regarding creation of a regional MLS.
As you can see, there is a lot going on with your organization, and a lot of balls in the air. We’ll continue to keep you updated on these initiatives, as well as many others as the summer progresses.
HGAR CEO