If This, Then That Programming for Real Estate Goals

I don't know about you, but I cringe at the thought of goal setting. It's not that I don't know what I want to do. It's not that I don't know how to set S.M.A.R.T. goals and create action plans to reach them. There are two reasons I don't like goal setting. First, is that I tend to get distracted easily and real goal setting requires absolute focus. Second, and most important, is that I tend to think that most goal setting suffers from the influence of the goal setter. It's one of the reasons that I always encourage people to have their goals and their plans to reach those goals reviewed by an independent third party, like a coach or a mentor.

I was recently reading Nine Things Successful People Do Differently by Heidi Grant Halvorson and the second chapter really struck a cord with me. It takes the traditional "what", "why", and "how" of goal setting and adds a "when" and sometimes a "where" to it that tricks your brain into actually doing the actions that lead to success.

If This, Then That is not a new concept. It is used extensively by the technology industry to tailor websites and software to user behaviors. It is used by psychologists to help with behavior modification. It is even effective as a negotiation technique. Ms. Halvorson brings it, very effectively in my opinion, to productivity for everyone. To quote the book:

"Wanting to be more productive isn't enough to actually make you more productive."

It's very simple to understand and put in place. An If This, Then That plan looks something like this:

If X happens, then I will do Y.

For example, if it is Tuesday at 10:00 a.m., I will make calls to my sphere of influence to get referrals. Seems simple right? It is and the results are shocking. Why? Because the plans take the shape of the way your brain works. Your brain works in a world of alternatives. So, instead of saying I will work out one hour a day, say if it is 6:00 a.m., then I will work out for an hour. Instead of saying I am going to quit smoking, say If I feel the need to smoke, then I will do ten pushups.

How well does this simple trick work? There have been hundreds of studies and practitioners of this method of goal setting consistently outperform non-practitioners. Using the example above about working out, a study cited in the book was done on people who had the goal of working out more. Of the people who used If This, Then That goal setting, 91% were still working out weeks later. Of those who did not set their goals this way, only 39% were still working out weeks later. That's a huge difference!

The trick to If This, Then That programming of your goals is it helps your brain create habits. As we all know, once formed, habits are hard to break. Go back to your goals for the year and see if you can put them into an If This, Then That context. Measure your results and see if you find yourself more productive. I think you will.

And, since you have more time on your hands now, read the rest of Ms. Halvorson's book. It is a short and easy read and full of great info.