10 Ways To Have Healthy Boundaries With Clients
Have you been feeling like your clients run your life? If you have then maybe it's time to look at setting some healthy boundaries for them. As I write this, it's the holiday season and we can be inundated with "emergencies" in our real estate businesses. Of course, we want to help our clients as so many of us in real estate are givers. However, there comes a point in your business, where you need to say enough is enough for your own wellbeing.
Before we get into the different ways to set boundaries, as a real estate coach, I want to cover one very important aspect with you. I know that by setting boundaries you may feel like you're not living up to client expectations or you're letting them down. I want to help you understand though that you are actually helping your clients have better representation because their agent, you, are not so worn down and are happier with your career. You are also teaching them how to treat you and have mutually beneficial respect for each other. This is healthy and more than acceptable.
Clients don't call financial institutions, closing attorneys, mortgage lenders, insurance agents, inspection companies, etc. after their business hours. Why? Because they know the people are not working. They know they are spending time with family or on personal time. You need that time for yourself too and if you establish the right boundaries, clients respect that. It's ok, don't feel guilty about that.
Alright, now that we got that out of the way and you're ready to get some healthy boundaries in place, let's take a look at some actions you can execute in your business.
#1 - Have Specific Business Hours
This is the place where you start to establish your time boundaries. Set specific hours that clients will know that you'll be available concerning your real estate business. If they get your voicemail or an autoresponder outside of these times, it won't be a surprise to them as you've set their expectation ahead of time. You aren't expected to work 24/7 by anyone. If you do have clients that expect that then do you really want them as clients? I'm guessing you don't.
These don't need to be the same as normal business hours either. These are individual to YOUR business, so they can be whatever works best for you. For example, many times I've had clients on both the East and West Coasts. Years ago, before I was doing real estate coaching and training and strictly sales, I was working non-stop in the early mornings until later evenings to accommodate both. I'm talking 7a-11p in the office long days. It wasn't sustainable and I was exhausted. So instead, I made my business hours 10a - 6p. This accommodated my clients on both coasts and also made me happier and much healthier. I've kept these business hours for my clients for years now and it's worked great.
What about those certain "negotiation nights" that we have you ask? You know, the nights where we are trying to wrap up a contract later in the evening. Yes, those still happen on rare occasions. However, my clients know that isn't my normal and they don't expect it, but instead, they appreciate that I'm taking the extra time to focus on them for that important aspect. We'll also discuss another way to limit or avoid those times below, so they are much less frequent.
#2 - Display Your Hours Within Your Initial Buyer and Seller Client Presentations
By displaying your business hours right up front in your client presentations, you're establishing that boundary right from the onset so there are no surprises or false expectations. This gives them the opportunity to ask questions if they want as well.
#3 - Have Your Hours In Your Email Signature
As a reminder to those who email you, you can put your hours at the bottom of your email signature. By doing this, if someone replies to your email at an off-hour, they'll see it and know that you won't be responding until the next business day.
#4 - Have Your Hours On Voicemail Message
Again, this is a notification and reminder for setting expectations. If someone leaves you a voicemail after your hours, then they won't expect you to respond until the appropriate time.
#5 - Verify Your Contract Deadlines Are Within Your Business Hours
This is a simple tweak to your business practices that can have a big impact on making your life so much easier. The worst part is that I see so many real estate agents miss it. Don't put your contract deadlines at 8p at night. Instead, make them for say, 11a. That way you're not scrambling into the late evening negotiating contracts and these items can be done and out of your way. This will not only give you better peace of mind but also gives your client more as well.
#6 - Turn An Autoresponder On For Emails After-Hours
I am a huge lover of automation and the treasured email autoresponder. This makes life much simpler, so take full advantage of it. Depending on your email system, this may be able to set one time as a recurring autoresponder or you may need to manually set it before the end of your office hours each night. Either way, set a standard autoresponder that will reply to any incoming messages after your set business hours notifying others that you'll get to their messages the next business day.
#7 - Set Your Phone To Do Not Disturb After Hours
Ok, this one is, in my opinion, going to be your toughest battle. However, it'll also be your biggest accomplishment. Do Not Disturb on your cell phone was made for a reason yet few of us tend to use it. I'm not certain about iPhones, but if you're an Android user like myself, you'll have the added bonus of being able to set a list of contacts that can break through the DND when others cannot. I have all of my close friends and family on this list. That way, if I turn on my DND, I don't have the worry about missing something important from my family should they call or text me. This is gold for the real estate professional and I strongly suggest you do the same.
#8 - Notify Your Clients Before Going Out Of Town
I know that we can work remotely mostly anywhere we are. However, instead of just "handling whatever comes up" when you're out of town and it's inconvenient, let your clients know ahead of time. From my experience, I like to let them know about a week before. Then if they need anything we have plenty of time to address it and get it taken care of before I'm away.
Also, there are always last-minute items that rear up right before you leave on vacation. Instead of simply waiting for this to happen, schedule extra time in advance as "cushion" time within the 3 days leading up to being away. That way you'll already have allotted time planned and won't get overwhelmed when those obstacles rear their head.
#9 - Set Your Voicemail Away Message When You're Out Of Town
Before you leave on your vacation, don't forget to set your voicemail "away message." This will ensure that anyone that calls while you away understand that you most likely won't be returning their call unit after your return. Make certain to put the day that you plan on returning to your working hours so they will be aware of the length of your departure.
#10 - Turn An Autoresponder On For Emails When You're Out Of Town
Similar to your nightly autoresponder, this time you'll set it for the length of time that you're out of town. Again, I would set the expectation for when you'll be returning and also any contact information for a substitute contact should you have one. You can include information like a substitute contact's email address if needed as well.
For any of the aforementioned items, one key element is that you'll need to enforce them with yourself. Between me and you, this is a bit of a struggle at first, but you will adapt with practice. We can be our own worst nightmare sometimes, but discipline is extremely important for this to give you the serenity that you desire.
By enforcing your own rules, you're teaching yourself that your time and health are important. The added benefit of this is also that you'll learn you won't lose all your clients and business can wait until tomorrow. That in itself is worthy of praise in an industry where it can frequently be chaotic. Do this for yourself. You'll soon learn that it'll be perfectly fine if you don't jump to get it when the phone rings.
Stay Healthy and Shine On ~ Your Real Estate Coach,
Amanda
