I’m sure there are many property investors out there who can relate to those weeks where you don’t feel like you’re making much progress. Maybe you had set a goal to have reached a certain stage in your analysis by a set date, or to have started a refurb by a certain date. However, even with all the right intention, you find yourself not making much progress because you are waiting for key inputs from various third parties. Sound familiar?
In the last couple of weeks Chris and I have felt like we’ve had a lot of waiting across all of our property deals. Here’s a list of some important things we are waiting on:
-build cost estimates from a QS in relation to a potential development site
-drawings from an architect to title split our commercial property and commence a programme of works
-a contractor to finalise a quote on works and confirm a schedule for a single let refurb
-a planning application decision to convert a 2 bed to a 4 bed
It reminds me of that famous Guinness advert where the group of friends are waiting to catch the biggest and best wave, do you remember – “Tick followed tock, followed tick, followed tock….” then it comes, they paddle out, they ride it, and celebrate (remember the charging horses in the waves?). And the tagline- “Good things come to those who wait”.
So what’s the message of this post? There will be many times with property projects where you find yourself having to wait, and often, good things will come from that. However, while we are waiting for certain inputs, contributions and information from others, it doesn’t have to stall the feeling of progress.
What can we do?
How we plan and execute a week can have a big impact on how we feel at the end of that week, and subsequently how we go into the next. If you set a load of goals that don’t happen, maybe because you are still waiting on other inputs, then your brain’s perspective might be one of disappointment and frustration. In other words “the outcome wasn’t achieved this week”, or “I didn’t get this project to where I wanted it to be”, and you can feel down about it.
One of the key things I’ve learned over the last 5 years about the psychology of goal setting and achievement is this – the goals we set for ourselves, and the way we measure them, must be entirely within our control. In other words it is within our power to initiate them, continue and complete.
I’m conscious that it is unrealistic to think we are in control of an entire property project, because it does require the inputs from a power team around you. What I’m highlighting however is that knowing this, and to maintain your motivation, it’s important for us to set weekly goals and measure our progress against the things we are in control of, and the effort we put in against it.
So what does that look like in reality?
In the context of waiting for third parties, like in my four examples above, that means doing things like this – providing them with absolutely everything they need to complete their part; thinking ahead to what they’ll need next and preparing for it, and yes of course, being that ‘squeaky wheel’ when needed to push things along with calls/texts/emails. Alongside tasks like this, there will always be plenty of proactive sub projects, that are fully in your control, that you can schedule in and complete in advance of them having to be urgent. Examples might be getting admin in order ready to apply for finance, business development conversations with prospect end users/buyers/tenants of the property, or any number of related tasks that you could fill in the blanks for. The key thing is to schedule a bit of time each week to think ahead, get organised and plan for these things.
In summary, your weekly property goals have to be what is within your control to progress – focus on those things and you’ll feel good about your done list at the end of the week. Look at it the other way and you’re at risk of feeling disheartened and frustrated, which can have a negative ripple effect, This is a very subtle difference but can have a massive impact on how you view your accomplishments, progress and sense of satisfaction.
So in the week ahead, what is something in your property world that you and you alone can progress and feel great about doing so?
[Image credit: Guinness advert]