Right about now the end of the year feels tantalisingly close. There are just a few weekends of open homes prior to Christmas, and then it’s time to start afresh in the new year ahead.
But as you start that planning for next year and where you intend to direct your attention to hit the ground running, keep the 80/20 rule front of mind.
The 80/20 rule
There are few people in this industry who would not be aware of the 80/20 rule. First put forward by philosopher and economist Vilfredo Federico Damaso Pareto way back in the 19th Century, it asserts that 80 per cent of results are often achieved through just 20 per cent of activities.
Pareto reportedly discovered this in relation to seed pods, after noticing 20 per cent of the pea plants in in his garden generated 80 per cent of the healthy pea pods.
This prompted him to ponder the ratio a little, and he then recognised 80 per cent of land in his native country Italy was owned by just 20 per cent of the population.
The principle then evolved to encompass everything from economics to business and received further attention when Tim Ferris explained the idea exceptionally well in the book, The 4-Hour Work Week.
In fact, it was a key takeaway of the book, with Ferris noting that when you drill down into the 20 per cent of activities that produce the most impact, then do them really, really well, the results are exponential, and the effect dramatically increases.
What’s your 20 per cent?
In real estate, there’s a good chance you already know the 20 per cent of critical activities that are likely to reap you 80 per cent of your results.
These are core activities like prospecting, getting face to face with people, building your brand and providing great customer service.
The trouble is we can sometimes become distracted by the many new tools available and the bright shiny toys that cross our desks.
And when the distraction sets in, we lose focus on the vital few activities that actually produce results in the false belief that if we don’t use and do ‘everything’ we will miss opportunities.
That’s just not the case.
From a prospecting point of view, the 20 per cent is this simple.
- Weekly email blasts
- A minimum of three sessions of 45-minute calls and/or door knocking each week.
- Just listed/sold campaigns as they happen
- Quarterly (30-day) social media lead generation
That’s it.
Set and forget
Interestingly, when it comes to most of those critical activities, they can occur on autopilot.
Each is a set and forget activity. You simply schedule the time and undertake the action. In some instances, these activities, such as the social media campaigns, can even be completed on your behalf.
So, as we count the days until a welcome break, it’s a good opportunity to ponder your results and what can be done to increase them.
Now is the time to reacquaint yourself with the 80/20 rule and consider how it applies to a plan for prospecting, a plan for training, and a plan that extends beyond real estate into your personal life as well.
Before you close the door on yet another real estate year, I urge you to have an honest conversation with yourself.
If you had done those 20 per cent of core activities each and every week in 2022, what would your business look like today?
More importantly, how will you apply it to your business of tomorrow?
