Focus on the task at hand

Where’s your focus? Is it fine tuned like a laser on one task or are you doing three things at once?

Multitaskers love to feel like they are doing so much when in reality multitasking actually inhibits your ability to get things done. Study after study has shown that focusing on one task at a time is not only more productive, but also less stressful.  So why are we doing so much at once these days? 

We live in a time when everything is fast, networked and on demand.  People are updating their facebook status while at the altar, checking in while chatting, and downloading a video, phone in hand, while face to face with a customer.  Smart phones, iPads, and tablets have made it possible to stay in touch, update and multitask like never before.  But at what cost?

For our industry it is vitally important that we stay in reality.  Apartment communities are literally a sticks and bricks business.  You have to walk the market readies and show units daily.  You must put down your phone and go out into the community to talk to your residents, check the grounds and take a peek at your amenities.  Staff meetings and lunches should be devoid of electronics and genuine conversation needs to take place.

Don’t get us wrong, using the advances in technology, social media and the latest gadgets to make your job easier, bring in more customers or improve operations in any manner is fantastic and a must in today’s age.  We are in fact strong believers in social media and technology. But ask yourself the next time you jump online and start to get lost in social media if your time would be better spent out walking apartments or visiting with a resident.