Every year, most of us set personal and business goals in the form of resolutions. Few follow through on those resolutions, and the key to understanding why is the lack of a plan. Trying to be a successful sales agent without a plan, and then executing on that plan, is a fool’s errand. This is why a lot of new agents drop out of the business, or treat it as a part time job.

Real estate sales can be a great career for those who learn the discipline involved in being successful. It’s the same in just about every other field, but some people never learn how to adjust to the freedoms of an open schedule. Real estate offers freedom like few other careers. But if  you don’t do the work to plan your pipeline, then constantly keep it topped off, you won’t make it.

Enough with the negative advice. Most of us don’t need to hear what we’re doing wrong, we just need encouragement to do what we already we know we need to do. This is more a matter of motivation than knowledge.

I’m here to tell you that even the most undisciplined person can learn to come out of the gate strong each year, and keep up a consistent pace. Create goals. Break them into a series of tasks to accomplish each goal. Then set aside the time each week to work toward accomplishing those goals.

If you want to have a website that ranks better for your area’s top real estate keywords, put that down as a goal. If you want to create new lead pipelines, put that down as a goal. If you want to own your website rather than renting an ineffective boilerplate one, put that down as a goal.

Self improvement is also key to all of this. Never stop learning, and never stop competing. Actively learn from other successful agents in and out of your market area. One way I invest in myself and my business is by reading (actually, listening to) a lot of books. I listen to books while I run, work in the garage, and do yard work.

Educational books in your niche are easy to find. Buy them and listen to them regularly if they are good. I particularly like Zig Ziglar’s books and talks to keep me focused on improving my attitude, planning, and consistency. For those who get overwhelmed by the large number of business tasks to accomplish, try a great little book called Eat That Frog.

You’ll find audio books on digital marketing, blogging, and real estate marketing. You’ll find audio books on staying motivated, getting better organized, and tons of other helpful topics to light your fire and help you keep it lit.

As far as organization, I love Excel (or Google Sheets, if you prefer that). You can use this to plan blog topics and create an editorial calendar. You can also use spreadsheets to organize and systemize digital marketing tasks, like link building, guest blogging, social media posts, and more.

This year, instead of being haphazard in our businesses, let’s make the most important resolution we can make, to create a plan and stay on task until the plan is executed. I’m confident you’ll have a fantastic year!