Feeling stressed? Top Broker's Nathan Vecchio explains how to get more done in less time
Director of Hunter Galloway, Nathan Vecchio, started broking in 2015 and using the techniques from Joshua's Top Broker Handbook, is writing big numbers, leading to Vow Financial naming him Broker Partner of the Year Rising Star in 2016.
Feeling like you’re getting busier and busier but not necessarily getting more done? We received an email this week from Greg, a successful broker in Victoria who is starting to feel like this. Greg’s business has grown significantly over in the past few months, all from successful word of mouth marketing, but he knew that he was starting to fall into the trap of spending lots of time working in, but no time working on, his business.
We all know that as urgent deals pop up, credit managers call to let you know the wheels are falling off a deal or client expectations are shifted out of proportion, it can be easy to fall into the busyness trap.
But most brokers forget about the fact that time is irreplaceable and money isn’t.
On Top Broker, we often speak about hustling every day and making the most out of your time, but it’s also important to have a balance and keep yourself in check.
So today I want to cover some ways to get out of what we call, the busyness trap. Sometimes, all it takes is putting everything into perspective so that you don’t get as easily preoccupied and consumed by the little tasks along the way.
Put yourself first
I spend 10 minutes at the end of each day, and 10 minutes at the beginning of the next, planning it out. I believe it’s critical to have 3 set priorities for the day, a clear to-do list and then sundown tasks that need to be done before you leave the office.
You can download my day planner here, but as you can see, I have each minute of each day planned out. I know when I will be checking my emails, I know when I will be following up applications and when I will be doing business development to find more leads!
Top Broker Tip: It’s amazing by putting yourself first how much more satisfied you feel at the end of the day having accomplished your Top 3 Priorities, and knowing what you are going to be doing the next day.
Never Multitask
You need to prioritise your tasks first and work out how to tackle these otherwise they will never become a priority. Then you’ll just get sidetracked throughout the day on other, less urgent matters, so never multitask.
Top Broker tip: As I’ve covered before if I have allocated time to work on an application, follow up, or back office task, I do not answer my phone (unless it is a referrer or new number) because as so, you get distracted from a task. It can take 10-15 minutes to get back to where you were – and studies have actually shown once you have been distracted it can take an average of 23 minutes and 15 seconds to get back to the task.
Mindset and building a team
Have you ever heard of mindset before tactics? It might sound a little bit new age, but this is what it comes down to.
Assuming you have a team, or a support person, you need to first get rid of the self-talk that’s telling you things like ‘It’s quicker if I just do it’ or ‘It’s already in front of me, I’ll just finish it off’. You have a team for a reason, so make sure you are utilising them to their fullest!
And if you’re just a one-man-band at this point, consider outsourcing small and time consuming tasks so that you don’t have to spend your time and brainpower on it. Streamlining your tasks will help you achieve more in the long term, so you can spend time on tasks and activities that work towards the bigger picture.
Top Broker tip: Remember that you have limited time in a day, so each time you let your mindset overcome your tactics, you’re only disadvantaging yourself.
Know what your time is worth
As brokers, it can be so easy to get caught up in meetings and answering the phone, that you actually forget about the importance of an hour.
My first job I got paid $8.50 an hour, and really at that point (in a café) that’s what I thought my time was worth.
Now instead, that figure is clearly a lot higher – which helps me realise that all tasks are not equal and if I am going to keep earning what my time is worth I need to focus on the tasks that earn me the highest return and outsource or delegate those lower priority tasks.
Top Broker tip: Look at the overall value and sum of your tasks. You need to get rid of the low-cost ones that aren’t’ giving you a good return and find a way to either delegate or outsource them.
Watch your time
Have you ever documented every task and activity in a week? I did this late last year and it was scary!
Now it’s your turn!
For the next two weeks, document in your diary how you are spending your time. Yes, it’s tedious, but you’ll be surprised how often you’re falling victim to time wasting activities.
I found I was wasting lots of time checking, and rechecking my emails, logging onto broker portals to see if my deal had been picked up, or just burning time scrolling through Facebook or reading the paper…
On the other hand, you might actually be surprised at how well you’re utilising your time!
Top Broker tip: If you’re already using our weekly planner to document your week, then also look at whether you’re really spending time on what you’ve committed to, or if you’re getting side tracked.
Figure out your genius zone
So basically, your genius zone is when you’re doing things you love, that also come easily to you. These tasks also tend to be highly profitable.
Now that you’ve figured out where your time is going, replace those hours that you aren’t being productive during or that time you feel you could better utilise, with getting into your genius zone.
How do you find your genius zone?
Consider the following
1. What are your talents? What activities come naturally to you and bring you satisfaction?
2. What is your purpose – what brings you joy?
= Your genius zone is the combination of both these things
Top Broker tip: Actually schedule in time for your genius zone so that you prioritise it.
Create a stop list
Yeap you got it, a stop list! This may sound a little backwards, but writing a ‘stop list’ of the tasks that you’re going to actually stop doing is necessary.
These are the admin tasks I mentioned above, the lower value tasks that take you away from generating leads or growing your business. How can you stop wasting your time working in the business, and start working on the business?
A stop list is the answer.
Once you’ve got the list, it’s time to figure who exactly you’re delegating the tasks to. The low-cost tasks need to be removed from your day-to-day activities or grouped to one task per month.
Top Broker tip: Try this for a month and see if you can stick to it. It can be challenging at first because you might not be used to cutting out everyday tasks, but well worth it.
Once you start to implement these steps and rethink how you approach little tasks and time wasters, you’ll begin to bring back some of your time. From here, you can spend more time working on growing your business rather than wasting it working in your business.
PS: I’m going to be taking over here at Top Broker for a little bit while Joshua focuses on a few big and exciting projects we are looking forward to bring you in the next few weeks. A quick background, I started broking in 2015 and using the techniques Joshua has given in the Top Broker Handbook I have grown my business in a very short time to writing some big numbers, and was fortunate enough to be awarded Broker Partner of the Year Rising Star in 2016.
Feeling like you’re getting busier and busier but not necessarily getting more done? We received an email this week from Greg, a successful broker in Victoria who is starting to feel like this. Greg’s business has grown significantly over in the past few months, all from successful word of mouth marketing, but he knew that he was starting to fall into the trap of spending lots of time working in, but no time working on, his business.
We all know that as urgent deals pop up, credit managers call to let you know the wheels are falling off a deal or client expectations are shifted out of proportion, it can be easy to fall into the busyness trap.
But most brokers forget about the fact that time is irreplaceable and money isn’t.
On Top Broker, we often speak about hustling every day and making the most out of your time, but it’s also important to have a balance and keep yourself in check.
So today I want to cover some ways to get out of what we call, the busyness trap. Sometimes, all it takes is putting everything into perspective so that you don’t get as easily preoccupied and consumed by the little tasks along the way.
Put yourself first
I spend 10 minutes at the end of each day, and 10 minutes at the beginning of the next, planning it out. I believe it’s critical to have 3 set priorities for the day, a clear to-do list and then sundown tasks that need to be done before you leave the office.
You can download my day planner here, but as you can see, I have each minute of each day planned out. I know when I will be checking my emails, I know when I will be following up applications and when I will be doing business development to find more leads!
Top Broker Tip: It’s amazing by putting yourself first how much more satisfied you feel at the end of the day having accomplished your Top 3 Priorities, and knowing what you are going to be doing the next day.
Never Multitask
You need to prioritise your tasks first and work out how to tackle these otherwise they will never become a priority. Then you’ll just get sidetracked throughout the day on other, less urgent matters, so never multitask.
Top Broker tip: As I’ve covered before if I have allocated time to work on an application, follow up, or back office task, I do not answer my phone (unless it is a referrer or new number) because as so, you get distracted from a task. It can take 10-15 minutes to get back to where you were – and studies have actually shown once you have been distracted it can take an average of 23 minutes and 15 seconds to get back to the task.
Mindset and building a team
Have you ever heard of mindset before tactics? It might sound a little bit new age, but this is what it comes down to.
Assuming you have a team, or a support person, you need to first get rid of the self-talk that’s telling you things like ‘It’s quicker if I just do it’ or ‘It’s already in front of me, I’ll just finish it off’. You have a team for a reason, so make sure you are utilising them to their fullest!
And if you’re just a one-man-band at this point, consider outsourcing small and time consuming tasks so that you don’t have to spend your time and brainpower on it. Streamlining your tasks will help you achieve more in the long term, so you can spend time on tasks and activities that work towards the bigger picture.
Top Broker tip: Remember that you have limited time in a day, so each time you let your mindset overcome your tactics, you’re only disadvantaging yourself.
Know what your time is worth
As brokers, it can be so easy to get caught up in meetings and answering the phone, that you actually forget about the importance of an hour.
My first job I got paid $8.50 an hour, and really at that point (in a café) that’s what I thought my time was worth.
Now instead, that figure is clearly a lot higher – which helps me realise that all tasks are not equal and if I am going to keep earning what my time is worth I need to focus on the tasks that earn me the highest return and outsource or delegate those lower priority tasks.
Top Broker tip: Look at the overall value and sum of your tasks. You need to get rid of the low-cost ones that aren’t’ giving you a good return and find a way to either delegate or outsource them.
Watch your time
Have you ever documented every task and activity in a week? I did this late last year and it was scary!
Now it’s your turn!
For the next two weeks, document in your diary how you are spending your time. Yes, it’s tedious, but you’ll be surprised how often you’re falling victim to time wasting activities.
I found I was wasting lots of time checking, and rechecking my emails, logging onto broker portals to see if my deal had been picked up, or just burning time scrolling through Facebook or reading the paper…
On the other hand, you might actually be surprised at how well you’re utilising your time!
Top Broker tip: If you’re already using our weekly planner to document your week, then also look at whether you’re really spending time on what you’ve committed to, or if you’re getting side tracked.
Figure out your genius zone
So basically, your genius zone is when you’re doing things you love, that also come easily to you. These tasks also tend to be highly profitable.
Now that you’ve figured out where your time is going, replace those hours that you aren’t being productive during or that time you feel you could better utilise, with getting into your genius zone.
How do you find your genius zone?
Consider the following
1. What are your talents? What activities come naturally to you and bring you satisfaction?
2. What is your purpose – what brings you joy?
= Your genius zone is the combination of both these things
Top Broker tip: Actually schedule in time for your genius zone so that you prioritise it.
Create a stop list
Yeap you got it, a stop list! This may sound a little backwards, but writing a ‘stop list’ of the tasks that you’re going to actually stop doing is necessary.
These are the admin tasks I mentioned above, the lower value tasks that take you away from generating leads or growing your business. How can you stop wasting your time working in the business, and start working on the business?
A stop list is the answer.
Once you’ve got the list, it’s time to figure who exactly you’re delegating the tasks to. The low-cost tasks need to be removed from your day-to-day activities or grouped to one task per month.
Top Broker tip: Try this for a month and see if you can stick to it. It can be challenging at first because you might not be used to cutting out everyday tasks, but well worth it.
Once you start to implement these steps and rethink how you approach little tasks and time wasters, you’ll begin to bring back some of your time. From here, you can spend more time working on growing your business rather than wasting it working in your business.
PS: I’m going to be taking over here at Top Broker for a little bit while Joshua focuses on a few big and exciting projects we are looking forward to bring you in the next few weeks. A quick background, I started broking in 2015 and using the techniques Joshua has given in the Top Broker Handbook I have grown my business in a very short time to writing some big numbers, and was fortunate enough to be awarded Broker Partner of the Year Rising Star in 2016.
