My Top WFH Tips as a Transaction Coordinator
Hello and welcome back to the blog! Since the pandemic of 2020, many of us have transitioned to working from home at least part-time or desire to. As an independent transaction coordinator, I like to joke that my job was a remote role “before remote work was cool”. 😂 Anyway, no matter how long you’ve been working from home as an agent, transaction coordinator, or other, it can be an adjustment and a continuous challenge to make the most of your time and space. After 4 years of this, I’ve decided to gather my top tips SPECIFICALLY for fellow transaction coordinators. It is a unique role after all, and we need to figure out how to motivate ourselves, be efficient, and stay on track. The goal of this post is to help you achieve work-life balance and also to hit your business goals by being focused when you are working. We want to avoid blurring the work time and personal time line as much as possible for optimal success in both aspects of our lives. Keep reading for my top tips! Don’t feel like reading? Check out the video instead!
Separate your workspace from your personal space
IF AT ALL POSSIBLE - Trust me when I say I understand if space is a struggle for you. I first started working from home in a 700 sq ft apartment with my husband. When Covid hit, we were BOTH working from home in that space. I was working at the kitchen island all day. This was before I ever had an office space in my home! My point is, it can be done. Even with space limitations, it was important to me to have SOME separation of space. Each day, when I logged off, I would shut my computer and move to the couch. I encourage you to find some separation. Even if it is small, it is more of a mental boundary that it creates.
Have a set schedule/working hours
This is specific to transaction coordinators because your real estate clients will be working 24/7. You already are working in your home, do you want to be working 24/7 too? If so, you do you! If NOT - it is important to establish working hours and days and set this boundary with your clients upfront. I have a video about setting boundaries with clients you can watch here. Your set schedule makes working from home easier because you have that time when you are “off” for the day. This is when you can shut your computer and move to your non-working physical and mental space. If clients bother you all hours of the night while you are trying to relax, work/life balance and work-from-home balance will become extremely difficult to maintain.
Stick to a routine
I am a big fan of routines. I think routine is especially helpful when working from home and working as a real estate transaction coordinator because it can be easy to get sidetracked. At home, there is laundry to be done and dishes to be put away. In the real estate world, we could have plans to get a bunch done one day and then five new contracts come in. A good thing - but something that can throw you off big time if you don’t have structure in your daily and weekly routines. Because I never know what each day will bring, I try to focus on my personal morning routine, this is big for me because when I follow it, I truly feel like I get some “me” time before work starts for the day, even though my computer is only a few steps away. After that, I also have a short morning routine I follow to start the workday, deadlines, emails, etc. Watch my morning routine VLOG here. Outside of my morning routines, I like to have short, flexible routines that I follow each day. Small things I can focus on accomplishing that keep me organized and also move the business forward. I also try to have certain days that are scheduled for specific types of work. Things such as a content creation day, admin day, meeting days, etc. Routines help us stay structured in our business so we can help eliminate distractions while working from home (see next point) and also help us accomplish what we need to DURING our working hours, so we aren’t on our computers 24/7.
Eliminate distractions
Ah, distractions. Any work environment is going to have them, from a corporate office to your home. While they can’t be completely avoided, we can do our best to eliminate them as much as possible. Here are some of my tips:
Time-blocking
By focusing on set tasks for a set amount of time, you are less likely to stop what you are doing/get distracted until your time block session is over. Watch my time-blocking video here for more tips.
Social media time limits/turn off personal social media notifications
The urge to check every notification that comes through is real! By setting time limits for yourself on social media apps and also turning off notifications, you can check socials during your designated break times, keeping you focused on the task at hand! Honestly, I don’t like any notifications on my phone, outside of work, my friends and family complain that I never check my phone. My husband literally has to tell me when he sends me something on Instagram he wants me to see because I don’t get notifications for my personal apps. 😂
Do not disturb settings / “Work mode”
This is a great feature on the iPhone! You can set a “Work” DND setting to only include notifications from your work contacts and work-related apps. Also on the Mac, I always keep my computer on DND. This is separate from email notifications so it doesn’t hinder me, just another way to eliminate any unnecessary distractions.
Limit distracting background noise/TV
Working from home can sometimes be TOO quiet! Most of the time, I work in silence. But I also love podcasts and music. I could not take the background noise from the TV, but whatever works for you. Just take note if you find your preferred background noise distracting you. Sometimes, I have this problem with podcasts on certain tasks that require more focus. If you can’t stand the quiet, there are some great apps and videos that provide generic background noise such as “coffee shop”.
Avoid household chores during business hours
If you can’t focus in an unorganized house (I can’t either!), time block 30 minutes to pick up your space and then get back to work. Or give yourself a true lunch break (I believe in this! I take 30 minutes to 1 hour each day for lunch) and work on some personal tasks in addition to eating lunch! BONUS TIP: Don’t each lunch at your computer :)
Be your own motivator
If you are working independently, you don’t have a boss checking your hours or telling you that you have to hit certain metrics. It is imperative that if we are working independently from home, that we stay disciplined. There is no one to punish us for slacking off, but no one to reward us for working hard. This is why it is important to be your own motivator! While motivation can be fleeting, discipline is consistent, so stick to those routines we set earlier! I have two hacks for this:
Set small goals for yourself each day/week/month
This is something I have recently implemented that has helped my mindset tremendously! I have broken down my business admin and growth/marketing tasks into what I need to accomplish each week and then each day. This way, when I am done working on my transactions for the day, I know exactly what I need to focus on from a business perspective. This not only saves me time, but once I complete it I feel accomplished for the day! Pat myself on the back! Then, anything additional I have time to work on is just a bonus. I started to implement this because sometimes working from home can become a fog. You can end the day with - what did I even do today?! How is it already 5 pm?! Having small daily goals helps me avoid this.
Reward yourself!
Finish all your work and daily goals early?! End the day early to take a break!
Hit your weekly goals? Celebrate with a lunch out on Friday!
Sign up a new client? Do something to celebrate that you enjoy!
Implementing small goals and rewards will help you stay motivated and on track. Just because we work for ourselves, doesn’t mean we shouldn’t celebrate our wins! And continuously hitting your small goals and rewards will help your mindset, I guarantee once you start - you’ll just want to keep doing more and more!
Leave work where you work
Lastly, what we’ve been working toward in tips 1-5 is mainly work-life balance. There is no point in achieving this if we don’t leave the work where we work. When you are done for the day, have some concrete ways you separate your personal time from your work time. Some examples I use are turning on a “personal” do not disturb setting on my phone, not getting email notifications to my cell phone, turning off my computer, and physically leaving my office space. If in your budget, I also recommend having a separate phone number or phone so you don’t see work notifications on your personal phone ever! Or vice versa. It is also important that we stick to our boundaries - avoiding answering emails and texts after hours! I guarantee your clients will understand and you’ll be happy you did!
What tips do you use when working from home to stay focused?! Do you feel like you have achieved work/life balance?
