Brian Guzman is a broker with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Lakeview.

Every week, we ask a real estate professional for their Short List, a collection of tips and recommendations on an essential topic in real estate. This week, we talked with Brian Guzman, a broker with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, for a simple strategy for staying alert and committed to your business

I set a timer on my cell phone for seven or 12 minutes, and try to accomplish a task before the timer goes off. It is easy to let the hours fly by during the day, but with the timer, you have a seven-minute goal or 12-minute goal. The seven- and 12-minute timeframes work for me, but a different timeframe –say, eight and 14 minutes – might work for you.

So, I’ll give myself seven minutes to type/write a to-do list; 12 minutes to write a CMA and send it; 12 minutes to schedule showings for Friday; seven minutes to check in with a client that closed three months ago, and ask for referrals; 12 minutes to write an offer. and seven minutes to call/email a client about a counteroffer, and to map out/update my negotiating strategy.

That looks like a pretty productive hour to me!

Brian Guzman is a broker with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Lakeview. A real estate professional since 2005, Brian began his career in real estate after graduating from Marquette University; even at 12 years old, though, he found success helping his family’s real estate agent sell his home after only two showings when his mom was out of town. From day one, it was a perfect fit for Brian!