8 tips to get more out of your day

A top broker in Australia shares his tips for making the most of your time each day.

Director of Discovery Finance Group in Australia, Jayden Vecchio has written over $250m, using techniques and tips being shared on his website Top Broker.

I don’t think I’ve ever met a broker that isn’t busy. Everyone is busy. Brokers that write $200M every year seem to be as busy as brokers that write $20M per year but the difference is the brokers doing the big numbers know time is money and realise that their productivity is directly linked to their settlements, revenue and profit.

So what are you doing to make better use of your time? This isn’t something you can implement overnight, but what are you doing this week to be more productive and get better results than from last week? Here are my top time-hacks for brokers to produce more and make better use of their time! 

1. Keep focused on a single task. 
We all know multitasking doesn’t work, it has been proven time and time again that if you have two things to get done, completing them one at a time will not only allow you to finish sooner, it’ll also increase the precision of your work. As a broker this means if you are working on an application, keep working on the application until it is done – instead of start to work on an application, get interrupted by your phone, check an email, update your Facebook and then go back to working on the application! Single tasking is the way! 

2. Planning to be productive. 
Every day there are new dramas, deals running off the rails and just general things that come up unexpectedly, but the reality is a productive week starts on Monday morning. You need to have a good plan in place, lock out times in your calendar for you to work on specific tasks and stick to a daily schedule to help keep you on track and productive. Do you have a weekly plan that you stick to? If not check out our free 90 day plans to double your mortgage settlements to get your week back on track!

3. Eat that frog! 
I love Brian Tracy’s book Eat That Frog: In the book he says the best way to take on a task is not to wait, and just do it first thing so you don’t waste any mental energy resenting (or thinking about) it! So next time you’re putting off that phone call to a client, or a tricky deal just get it out of the way first thing when you’re nice and fresh because once its done you’ll be so relieved that the rest of the day will seem simple in comparison!

4. Sharing is caring – I’ll show you mine if you show me yours. 
This is what Top Broker is about, helping open up the industry and letting people know what other brokers are doing – SO compare your weekly calendar or productivity plan with other brokers and learn from their best practices. We’ve put together a free daily planner here for this very reason – Most of the best habits I have acquired over the years are from other people’s methods! As Pablo Picasso says, “Good artists copy, great artists steal!”

5. Start first up, everyday!
Not everyone is a morning person, but maybe you should consider getting up 15 minutes earlier and learn to be an early riser  – The sooner you get started, the more you can get done. I personally love the early hours of the morning between 5 and 7am, it is my time where there are NO distractions and it is my time to get things done to free up my day to make me more productive.

6. Work hard, but play harder.
We all need some downtime. When you’re working, go all out but schedule some time each day and on the weekends to stay far, far away from work. You deserve a break and your brain does too. Either join a gym, get a hobby and schedule some time for you into your calendar to make sure you aren’t working 24×7.

7. Work in intervals.
As much as it would be amazing to do it – no one can go all out all day long. A great rule is to work 25 minutes, then give yourself a break for five minutes – Or work 55 minutes and give yourself a five minute break. In the long run, you’ll accomplish more because you aren’t too burnt out and you stay fresh and focused. Pomodoro is a great app to help get this done.

8. Relax. 
Overall just remember to relax. It takes time and practice to master anything, and productivity is no different. Constant improvement is the realistic goal that we can all work towards achieving – not perfection in a week.

This article originally appeared on Top Broker, a growing online space where tips and strategies are shared by Australia's top mortgage brokers.