Kim Hughes

Providing solid solutions since 1999 specifically tailored for today’s real estate professional.

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Get More Energy for Your Morning

Get More Energy for Your MorningIf you aren’t a morning person, you may find it a challenge to summon the energy to face your daily routine. Apparently it takes around two hours or less for the average person’s brain to really wake up, so it is easy to see why many of us have to drag ourselves out of bed. You don’t have to continue stumbling through your morning though. Here are some great tips to boost your energy and shake up your routine.

The Right Light

Sunlight signals the body that it is time to wake-up. Keeping the curtains open is one way to get your sun exposure, or you can get an alarm clock that simulates it. Either way, spend a few minutes in front of a sunny window and maybe do a little stretching.

Exercise

Go for a low to moderate workout to get the blood flowing, and to trigger endorphins that can help you beat the midday slump. A morning walk or 15 minutes of yoga should help loosen the muscles and improve your mental focus.

Your Routine

Showering in the morning provides a great opportunity for an energy boost. Change up your shower routine by including bath products that contain peppermint or rosemary – both good for mental clarity. Or you can simply apply a few drops to a cloth and inhale the scent.

Lemon Water

Drinking a glass of water with lemon in the morning is thought to have many health benefits. Lemon water helps cleanse the digestive system, reduces inflammation, improves the immune system and boosts your energy. Squeeze half a lemon into a glass of water and drink 15 to 30 minutes before eating breakfast to enjoy the benefits.

Breakfast

What you have for breakfast can really go a long way toward making or breaking the first half of your work-day. Cut down on refined sugar and consider including sources of lean protein, fruits and veggies, and complex carbohydrates in your morning meal. Whole-grains, turkey, avocado, yogurt, eggs and bananas are some good options.

Vitamins

Taking a multi-vitamin can help counteract a deficiency of nutrients in your diet. Eating a balanced diet is the best way to meet your energy needs, but there are supplements that can help with fatigue. Magnesium, Vitamin B12 and folic acid are a few supplements that can boost your energy if you are deficient in them.

Sleep

And last but not least, get a good night’s sleep for a better morning. 8 hours of sleep is about average, though some people may need more. Stay on a daily schedule and avoid trying to catch up on sleep after your week is done.

I hope these tips will help you stay on your game and rock your morning routine in future. Making simple changes is sometimes all that is necessary to see an improvement in your energy levels, so you can stay focused and more productive throughout your day.

Ready to create the changes that will help you move towards living the life you REALLY want? Now is the time to take control of your personal development by eliminating self-doubt. Give your confidence a boost so you can value the life as well as the business you have dreamed of. Contact Kim Hughes when you are ready to Bring Clarity, Balance, and Confidence to your business. Visit KimHughesCoaching.com for details!

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Developing Consistency

Develop ConsistencyBeing consistent is defined as displaying predictable and reliable behaviors in meeting goals. The first step should be the realistic evaluation of the likelihood of meeting the goals we set—in other words, it would be self-defeating to attempt goals which we realistically have little chance of meeting based on many factors – time frames, ability, life circumstances, lifestyles, lack of motivation, and lack of personal valuation of rewards.

Consistency requires repeatedly valuing goal achievement enough to develop the necessary discipline of performance to be successful. Repeatedly achieving success meeting goals develops stability and predictability of behaviors.

Therefore, making goals manageable is the first step in creating consistency of performance. If goals are not being met, examine the reasons for failure. Perhaps striving for perfection is the cause of self-defeating behavior. Consistency is not compatible with perfection. Determine what is “negotiable” in task performance; the end result is the most important factor.

Developing motivation to perform consistently is based in personal value systems. The goal itself must be valuable enough to encourage repeated efforts to achieve it – that is, the reward must be great enough to inspire discipline in performance. The reward may be positive or negative in nature. The avoidance of a negative outcome may be motivational in itself; for instance, meeting deadlines for work projects avoids the negative outcome of compromising one’s job.

Consistent performance is a measurable outcome of repeatedly achieving goals. Here’s a breakdown of the steps to take for success in meeting goals and staying consistent:

  • Set expectations and hold yourself accountable.
  • Avoid the self-defeating expectation of perfection.
  • Set attainable goals and measure progress toward meeting them.
  • Strive to make measurable progress continually.
  • Keep a positive attitude towards consistently attaining goals and subsequent rewards.
  • Celebrate successes with each goal met to reinforce motivation in achieving future goals with consistent job performance.

If you are feeling overwhelmed or need a little help focusing on your goals, please contact me and let’s schedule a complimentary 20 minute coaching session to see how we can, together, get you on the right track.

P.S. Imagine you were offered the opportunity to be coached both on-site and virtually – by the leading expert in the real estate assistant industry through the 10 most important areas of a real estate agent’s business. Introducing The Real Estate Assistant Playbook. Designed for both real estate assistants and agents, The Playbook offers the training you need to excel in the business of real estate today! Visit TheRealEstateAssistantPlaybook.com for more information.

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Beat Procrastination

Beat ProcrastinationWhat, primarily, causes procrastination? Productivity requires goals, which require thoughts. We think, we determine the goal, and then – don’t act. Why do we not act?

Our emotions get in the way. Fact: Because of the way our brains are structured, emotions always win over thoughts. We know what we have to do, we just don’t feel like doing it. Why should that be the case? We procrastinate most when we are in a bad mood. Mood management is key in productivity. So, get positive.

Happiness increases productivity. In order to manage mood, we must become positive. Optimism is required to prevent procrastination, and the greatest motivator is progress. Learn to celebrate each little win and optimism increases, progress increases, and then productivity increases. Thus, we get rewarded.

Receiving a reward is a great motivator for many of us. After progress is made, treat yourself. Or, use penalties as motivation. One device is to give a friend money, which you will receive back only if you achieve your productivity goal; this is negative reinforcement which requires commitment on your part. And that is a part of peer pressure.

Surround yourself with people who have high goals, and are people you admire. Some would say that who you associate with determines the type of person you become. Job performance is more dependent on self-image than actual performance. Join with peers and hold one another accountable.

Some useful tips to become more productive each day: get a routine, focus, manage your mood. Don’t check email in the morning, this may make you reactive and in some cases, emotional. Your focus is lost, you may become stressed and distracted. Research has shown that due to distraction, your IQ can drop as much as 10 points. At work, determine whether tasks can be done faster, or not at all. Decide what’s important and don’t do much else.  Stay focused, even if you must change your environment. Eliminate distractions.  Develop a system, get a routine so that tasks become automatic. Define goals the night before, write them down.

Good time management is about feelings. Manage your mood and become positive; productivity is the result. Stay busy, but not rushed, and increased job satisfaction and productivity will follow.

If you are feeling overwhelmed or need a little help focusing on your goals, please contact me and let’s schedule a complimentary 20 minute coaching session to see how we can, together, get you back on the right track.

P.S. Imagine you were offered the opportunity to be coached both on-site and virtually – by the leading expert in the real estate assistant industry through the 10 most important areas of a real estate agent’s business. Introducing The Real Estate Assistant Playbook. Designed for both real estate assistants and agents, The Playbook offers the training you need to excel in the business of real estate today! Visit TheRealEstateAssistantPlaybook.com for more information.

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Working from Home

Office medOne of many great advantages in real estate assistance is the opportunity it affords to work from home. Many real estate assistants enjoy the independence and autonomy of the virtual work environment. More and more employers recognize its advantages to themselves and their employees in increased productivity and decreased expense, and a successful transition is easy to make for most. Here are a few tips to help make the transition to the virtual work environment go smoothly.

So let’s examine the number one most important aspect of working outside the office – employer expectations. For those who are transitioning in the same job, will the requirements be the same? Will support be the same? What about equipment, supplies?  It is imperative to establish a thorough understanding of these aspects before transition. IT support is important, and the contractor may have to gain independence in some computer areas by enrolling in classes, for instance, or establishing contacts through computer companies for support. Be able to outfit your home office with the same supplies you use in the formal work place. An understanding of your responsibilities is imperative.

Set up a separate and dedicated area in the home as office. Choose one that affords the least distraction, be it from environment, to family and friends, and establish boundaries. Just because you’re are at home does not mean you are always available. Establish a daily routine, possibly patterned closely to your former work routine. Take breaks as always; resist the temptation to be available to address emails and take phone calls any time and any day. Begin and quit working at established times and maintain this structure.

Set measureable goals for productivity, find what works best for your own personal work habits and through interaction with other telecommuters. Stay connected to the office by attending meetings and maintaining social relationships with co-workers through phone calls and social get-togethers. Continue networking to boost your career contacts. Continue to work closely with your office supervisor and co-workers. Eventually establish your own best work-style. Document your productivity and time as structured by your employer, as well as in your own personal records, and provide written documentation of your accomplishments to your supervisor regularly. Do not depend on company evaluations alone.

There will be requirements that you must meet as an independent contractor, such as taxes, licenses, and perhaps permits. The IRS has information available on its site under “Self-Employed Individual Tax Center”. Plan to increase insurance and retirement savings, since they will now be your own responsibility instead of your employer’s. Maintain your technical skills.

Now, enjoy your new work and life-style. Continue to develop self-discipline, and remember, to be successfully employed at home, always meet and exceed employers’ expectations.

If you are feeling overwhelmed or need a little help focusing on your goals, please contact me and let’s schedule a complimentary 20 minute coaching session to see how we can, together, get you back on the right track.

P.S. Imagine you were offered the opportunity to be coached both on-site and virtually – by the leading expert in the real estate assistant industry through the 10 most important areas of a real estate agent’s business. Introducing The Real Estate Assistant Playbook. Designed for both real estate assistants and agents, The Playbook offers the training you need to excel in the business of real estate today! Visit TheRealEstateAssistantPlaybook.com for more information.

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Transaction Coordination – Close the Deal

Like every real estate agent, you work hard at listing properties and connecting qualified buyers to sellers. In addition to all of Transaction Coordinatoryour efforts as a professional real estate agent in listing, marketing and negotiating a successful sale, the one most important element of a transaction is bringing it to a close.

That portion of the sale, the closing transaction, must be delegated to appropriate agencies and specialized legal entities who work simultaneously to verify value, viability and financing of the property. At this point, you are dependent on others also involved in the process. All preceding efforts are in vain if closing the escrow fails, and it is during this closing process that the greatest possibility of failure occurs.

Each and every step of the process contains an inherent possibility of failure during closing, from establishing a marketable title, to verifying structural integrity, to demonstrating insurability, and procuring successful financing. As with any fluid process, important decisions must be made quickly due to legal time constraints governing closing, and may have far-reaching ramifications for both clients and agents. Closing transactions are stressful for all parties involved at best. At worst, they fail entirely, or result in legal actions between clients and agents.

The last thing any agent needs is a mistake which precludes closing the transaction within time constraints, or places the decision in the hands of the seller, who may or may not be willing to extend closing time, or might incur liabilities such as daily monetary penalties paid to sellers for delays. Suppose a finding in the closing transaction necessitates renegotiation or the property doesn’t appraise – or interest rates change drastically during closing? Of course it is imperative to obtain these results immediately in order to have time to renegotiate and not extend closing time.

When the pitfalls of closing transactions become overwhelming, it is time to consider utilizing the service of an assistant trained in closing transactions. A transaction coordinator is a professional dedicated to managing only the closing process and is therefore able to provide the information you need in time to prevent a closing disaster. Prevent legal liabilities from developing with complete records of each transaction provided immediately from a highly trained, competent transaction coordinator devoted entirely to seamlessly closing and protecting your real estate transaction.

Do you find that with your busy schedule you don’t have time to manage these very important closing transaction tasks? Your staff could be trained to manage your closings competently, and decrease your legal liability. Get in touch with Kim Hughes today and learn how transaction coordination can be made simple, with no burden to you.

P.S. Imagine you were offered the opportunity to be coached both on-site and virtually – by the leading expert in the real estate assistant industry through the 10 most important areas of a real estate agent’s business. Introducing the Real Estate Assistant Playbook. Designed for both real estate assistants and agents, The Playbook offers the training you need to excel in the business of real estate today! Visit TheRealEstateAssistantPlaybook.com for more information.

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