"Consult
The Coach" Archives
Stuart Kaufman, MS, MBA
“The Real Estate Coach”
Spring
2006 - Volume 6, Issue 1
Q.
Dear Coach:
My
broker keeps telling me I need to do a business plan
for 2006. I hate business planning and generally find
it a waste of time. I just want to go out and sell
more houses this year than I did last year. What do
you suggest since my Broker is expecting a business
plan?
A.
Dear “One Who Avoids Business
Planning”
First
off, let me say that you are not alone. You have a
lot of company when it comes to thinking that creating
a business plan is a waste of time. After all, why
spend time developing a plan that is put on a shelf
and maybe gets dusted off once a year?
As
a rule, we don’t do something (like creating
a business plan) until we see a value in doing it.
So, what is the value in planning for the year? There
are several reasons to plan.
- Planning
gives us a direction and focus where we
choose to spend our time and resources. For example,
where do you expect your business to come from this
year? Your farm, Sphere of Influence, open houses,
FSBOs? A well-known quote states, “If you
don’t know where you are going, you will probably
end up somewhere else”. So planning helps
us establish a direction and focus. For example,
many of my clients plan to focus on their Sphere
of Influence in order to increase the number of
referrals they receive.
- Planning
helps us be proactive. Rather than waiting
for people to contact us, a business plan helps
us identify who we want to market to in order to
create business. I often hear agents say,
“my phone is not ringing enough”. My
response is “Why are you waiting for your
phone to ring? Make other people’s phone ring
and you will get business!” To succeed, we
need to be PROACTIVE, not reactive.
- Planning
helps us set goals so we not only grow
our business, but enjoy our lives in the process.
A good business plan will help us identify how much
time we want to spend on our business. Your Real
Estate business is one part of your life, not your
whole life.
- In
general, those agents who
have a plan are more likely to achieve what they
want, compared to those agents who don’t
have a plan. The reason is that when we write down
our goals, it helps us be more accountable to ourselves.
Most people don’t get what they want because
they don’t know what they want. A plan helps
us “know what we want” so we are more
likely to achieve it.
When
planning, I like to use the KISS philosophy, which
means “Keep It Simple Stuart”. To do this,
I have created two, one-page business planning documents
specifically for my Real Estate clients.
These
documents can be accessed and printed, at:
www.stuartkaufman.com/RealEstateBasicBusinessPlan
Here
is a quick summary of these two planning documents:
1. |
Analyze
Your Past Performance – this
document looks at the PAST 12 months.
To know where you want to go, you need to know
where you have been. There are three sections: |
| |
|
a.
Where did my business come from?
|
| |
|
|
i.
Percent listings and percent buyers
ii. Source of transactions (sphere, networking,
etc) |
| |
|
b.
How much business did I create?
|
| |
|
|
i.
Number of transactions
ii. Commissions earned
iii. Expenses paid |
| |
|
c.
How much time did I spend creating
my business? |
| |
|
|
i.
Number of days worked per week
ii. Number of days of vacation |
| |
|
|
|
2. |
My
Expected Performance – this
document looks at the NEXT 12 months.
The same three sections help you determine where
you want your business to head: |
| |
|
a.
Where will my business come from?
b. How much business will I create?
c. How much time will I spend
creating my business? |
| |
|
|
|
The
goal of using these documents is so that you
know where you have been and where you want
to be heading. To say that you want “more”
business is not specific or measurable. How
much is more? You need to be specific and these
planning documents help you be specific and
accountable.
You
are welcome to download and use these documents
to help you plan for your success. Planning
can start at any time of the year. The important
thing is to start.
In
summary, there are many advantages to planning
your year and reviewing your plan every month
to track your progress. If you are still skeptical
or uncertain how to proceed, print off the documents
and ask your Broker or Coach for help.
Remember
that “Nobody plans to fail, but many agents
fail to plan”. So don’t be one of
them, and instead, plan to SUCCEED! |
About
the Author:
Stuart Kaufman, MS, MBA, is a Real Estate Coach
who specializes in helping Real Estate agents earn
a 6-figure income working 40 hours or less per week.
He resides in Washington State and is a regular
contributor to numerous Real Estate publications
nationwide. Got a question for the coach? Contact
Stuart at coach@stuartkaufman.com
or 206-725-1584.
©
Copyright 2006, Metamorphosis Coaching. All Rights
Reserved.
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