"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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