Title: Time Management Is A Myth
Neal Oates


Neal Oates directly addresses camera: Time management is a myth. You can’t manage time. But, you can manage your productivity.

I’m Neal Oates, president and CEO of World Renowned Real Estate in Hollywood. Let’s take five minutes to talk about how you can use some classic techniques that I learned from famous leadership experts, businesspeople and coaches to maximize your productivity. The secret? Do the right thing at the right time…right away.

Too many sales associates focus on the immediate or the easy unimportant tasks because they’re, well, easy. They don’t have a plan for success. Plans turn into actions which create habits—that’s your goal. None of what you’ll hear is new or ground breaking. However, hearing them again may cause you to finally act.

The very first thing you should do to maximize your productivity is prioritize, both professionally and personally. If your priority is to attend one of your child’s school functions each week, list it. If you want to secure two listings a week, list it. Put them in order of priority and you’ll be better able to determine your vital tasks and everything else will fall off. As part of this, know what your dollar-producing activities are. List your productions goals and a timeline to achieve these goals. Share your priorities and plan with your family. Explain to your loved ones what your plans are, why you have them and how they can help you. Remember: they benefit from your plan as well.

The next step is to time block. Take those priorities and schedule them, putting the highest dollar producing activities on the calendar first. Then, find an accountability partner. This should be someone you like and trust who will tell you what you did well and what you need to work on—with no judgement. You don’t have to agree with this person, but you should value their opinion. I have two accountability partners. One is a veteran real estate broker and the other is a 20-year old college student who owns a social media company. Both are confident enough to tell me things that will hurt my feelings, but I know the comments are coming from the right place. I meet with my real estate partner face-to-face twice a month and we have weekly phone calls to review my plans, what’s working and what’s not. Evaluate your successes on a weekly basis. Don’t get caught up with the next thing and ignore what got you there. Then, adjust as you need to.

Also, learn to say no. Understand that every time you say yes to something, you are saying no to something else. For example, every time I say yes to scrolling through social media, I am saying no to prospecting. 

I have a system that I use to manage my productivity. It’s called the 3D system. The first D is to delete. Delete is the hardest one for us to do because it takes time on the front end. Part of this requires checking your email and deleting spam and anything that doesn’t need your attention. But, don’t check your email first thing in the morning—resist! Once I open my email, four hours disappears because it leads to clicking on links or making phone calls. Get rid of the unnecessary junk in your life, unsubscribe from junk email lists, delete the amount of stuff on your desk. Get rid of distractions.

The next D is to delegate. Delegate as much as you can, such as social media, marketing, showings, etc. Spend your time on building relationships. Never delegate prospecting and follow up.

The third D is Double Down. Go deeper, bigger, longer on the key income producing activities: negotiations, prospecting, and working with listings and buyers. So, if you normally spend two hours calling people; spend four hours calling them. Or, spend two hours with them face-to-face. 

The secret to mastering productivity is that there is no secret. It takes planning and prioritizing. Then, you can focus on the activities that truly matter to you and boost your productivity. Remember: say no. Every time you say yes to something means you have to say no to something else. Make the Yeses worth it.