10 Time Management Tips to Make You a Better Property Manager

Posted on July 7, 2016 in General Info

When it comes to time management, a property manager needs to focus specifically on the unique daily tasks that you face in running an efficient and profitable business.

Being a property manager is a demanding job that usually requires multitasking, making decisions on the spot and planning ahead. Implementing time-saving strategies into your workday can make you more efficient, minimise problems and increase your job satisfaction.

To complicate your time management efforts, remember that you are the head of a team comprised usually of maintenance workers, outside contractors, in-house office staff and more. It’s hard enough to manage your own time with no distractions, but as a property manager, another person’s crisis becomes yours.

To be the best property manager you can be, it’s important that you take control of your schedule and understand how to focus your time and efforts to be more efficient and effective at your job.
In order to accomplish all your property management goals for the day, week and year, boost your skills by following these 10 time management tips for property managers:

1. Make a List

It sounds cliché, but it’s important to create a priority list at the end of each day for tomorrow, or early in the morning of each day. Include even the small things like taking a lunch break. Whether you make your list using a computer software program, a scheduling app on your smartphone or in your business planner, create the list and refer to it often throughout the day.

2. Prioritise the List

Determining what needs your attention first and what can wait is critical in managing your time effectively throughout the day and week. For example, you may want to start the day by managing maintenance requests and repair issues, then move on to responding to phone calls on vacancies after your morning staff meeting.

3. Connect with Staff

Whether it’s a 10 minute briefing or a more formal meeting, taking the time to make sure everyone on your team understands what’s happening for the day is a wonderful way to make sure tasks are assigned, help is available and each member is ready to go with no obstacles. Allowing time for questions, concerns and clarifications now will save everyone time and frustration down the road.

4. Use Your Morning Effectively

Studies show that people are generally more productive in the morning when they are well rested and focused. Schedule your most difficult tasks or projects for the morning so you can be your best and make sure your team is also following this advice.

5. Stick to One Task at a Time

It’s easy to get distracted when you are in the middle of a task, and you may fool yourself into thinking that you can leave one task, take care of something else, and then return to the first task with no hiccups. Studies show that working on tasks one at a time until you complete them is actually the most efficient way to get things done. It’s tougher to switch gears in your mind between tasks than to just move ahead while you are in the zone.

6. Group Similar Tasks Together

It is much more efficient to group tasks together and deal with them either collectively or right in a row. Much like going out one time to complete several errands rather than going out and back for each errand, grouping similar tasks will be more efficient and keep you mentally ready to deal with them.

For example, if you have to call several contractors to set up appointments, do them in succession—that way you have all your notes in one place, your mind is focused on asking the right questions and listening to the answers.

7. Use Your Tools & Resources

Technology is a wonderful time saver and if you aren’t already utilising the many different applications that technology provides—it’s time to get up to speed. Tools like electronic calendars, appointment reminders, texting, electronic banking, and social media all make you more efficient when you know how to use them wisely.

On the flip side, don’t let technology distract you too much—following your favourite celebrities on Twitter isn’t going to help you complete your to-do list.

8. Minimize Interruptions

Even if your to-do list is perfectly spaced so that you’ll get everything done, there are those unexpected events that instantly derail you from completing your goals. Whether it’s a personal emergency or just one of many immediate issues that pop up in a day, interruptions can completely throw you off and prevent you from doing the things you need to.

Even more difficult to deal with are the smaller, innocent interruptions, such as a co-worker stopping by to chat, a phone call that goes too long or getting drawn into a water cooler debate about politics or the latest blockbuster. Close your door, resist the office talk and get to work.

9. Break Up Big Tasks

If you have a huge task that you are shying away from because it is a big time suck or you simply don’t want to do it, break projects into smaller tasks and accomplish something each day.

For example, if you must clean out your file cabinets for the new year and archive old tenant files, split the job into sections and handle one each day. So, you could commit to dealing with all tenant files from A to D one day, then E to G the next day, and so forth. Organizing a task into a series of smaller ones gives you a much better success rate and you arrive at the same result with less stress.

10. Laugh a Little

There will be days when things go horribly, terribly wrong and you won’t have accomplished anything on your list. Instead of beating yourself up about it, just laugh about your crazy, wonderful job and make a promise that you’ll do better tomorrow. It’s easy for stress, frustration and guilt to overwhelm a busy property manager, so don’t let it happen or you will be setting yourself up for many future days of disasters.

When you aren’t at your best, your job suffers. Make sure you stay mentally healthy by recognising your limits and laughing about them from time to time.

All the demands on your time are just part of being a property manager, and it’s easy to get overwhelmed. By implementing some time management tips and working more efficiently, your productivity will increase and your satisfaction will grow. Your properties will be much more successful when you master your own day to day operations.

Do you have any successful time management tips that work for you? We’d love to hear about them please email wecare@protechpropertysolutions.co.uk.

We have over 30 years experience working with property managers and offer clients the complete property care package from communal cleaning and garden maintenance to property maintenance and waste removal. For information on the services we offer please visit Protech Property Solutions or call 0845 604 1288 and speak with one of our friendly team.