Distractions: The Enemy of Progress

Hi, everybody, Cheryl Knowlton, coming at you with—today we are talking about distractions.  Distractions are the enemy of progress.  In real estate we have so many, many distractions—from our loved ones, family and friends who are usually our “Why” for doing what we’re doing, especially if we are working from home quite a bit to a ringing phone and blowing up transactions.  We also have things we can control like notifications.

Turn off your notifications

Statistically, notifications, social media and the internet make up three huge pieces of distractions according to many articles on the subject that I researched for my book Burn the Hamster Wheel.  I’m going to advise you—if I could give you one piece of advice. Turn off the notifications for your email and social media right now.

If you don’t know how to do this find an 11- or 12-year-old kid because they are so much better at utilizing our tools that we can be.  Sometimes that’s just what it takes.

Go into your settings and figure out how to turn off these notifications. Here’s why.  We get—and this is medical science talking—certainly not coming from the real estate between my two ears.  We get a shot of dopamine every single time we get a text message.  Sometimes when we text someone, we enthusiastically expect a response.

Sometimes that can be good, except when we are fixated and focused on a project and trying to get something done.  Statistically, if we are distracted and we get off task it takes 20 minutes for us to get back on track—even when we are sitting down trying to be focused.

We are mentally—where was I? We get out of the zone and get out of our flow of doing what it was were doing in the productive manner that we were doing it.

I realized this about myself, personally, when I was speaking.  Of course, when I am teaching a class whether it is to 10 people or 1000 people or whether it is for an hour or all-day for two days.  When I am with my class, I’m WITH them.  I am present.  My phone is somewhere else and truthfully, I had to get rid of my apple watch for that very reason.  I felt like I was turning into Pavlov’s dog.

I expected—it would buzz constantly, especially that year and a half that I was the broker in charge, the branch broker of my office. My agents constantly needed me.  There was lots of transactions blowing up instead of my own when I was on that roll.

Figure out what distracts you

You need to figure out what your distractions are and handle that! Get rid of them.  Minimize them—not if hat is your family. But you need to minimize them as much as possible.  That means posting a note on your door of your office hours, letting people know—hey, I’m working right now.

My coach gave me one that I absolutely adore.  It’s of the Empire State Building.  It says, “I’m building my empire.  Please come back!”  That is something I say to myself all the time. I’m building my empire.  You are building your empire. Take some time over the next week.  Identify when you are in the zone and when a distraction comes your way, what it is and how you can minimize that.

Start with something you can control. When you are working turn your phone into airplane mode.  That way you’re not even going to be distracted. Turn off those pesky notifications.  I hope this helps.  I hope you are less distracted and far more productive.