Productivity

A lot of people ask me how to make their days more productive. We all have the same 24 hours in everyday, and how we use it is critical to our success. One of the best things I have learned about productivity is that if we are working in our areas of talent, we can be much more productive.

I try to spend 80% or more of my day in things I excel in. The benefit of this is that you generally really enjoy those activities as well. So, find out what your strengths are. There are too many personality assessments out there to count but most will pinpoint the type of work you will be most effective in. They will tell you whether you will be good with detail work or strategic planning or face to face with clients selling your services. They are wonderful resources to get you started in the right direction.

Another way to increase productivity is to be very intentional about your daily accomplishments. Each morning, spend time doing planning and in solitude. During this time you want to evaluate your day, your business, and your successes.

One of the most effective strategies I have in being productive is that I get up before everyone else does. I usually wake up between 4:00 and 5:00 in the morning. I have found it gives me a head start on the day and my brain is very creative at that time of day. I am able to learn more and find better solutions for my life. My daily ritual is to get up and make coffee and then head to the home gym to exercise for an hour. During that time I listen to audio books on my iPhone at 3 times the normal speed. This way I can listen to two to three books a week and continually improve my knowledge base. I have found that education will solve any challenge you might be having in your life. It doesn’t matter if it is business related, marriage related or even challenges you might be having with your children. I also do my daily planning and solitude during that time and answer the questions that keep me focused on the highest priorities for the day.

Questions I recommend are as follows:

How did I fill my cup yesterday?

Right now I feel? Why?

What is the one thing I want to do today? What is my intention?

What could I do today to change the course of my business?

What task is so urgent that it would damage my business if it were not accomplished today?

Which processes in my business could be improved?

How can I improve these processes?

What friction points exist today?

Are the friction points different than yesterday?

Lately I have learned…

5 things I am grateful for today…

I am joyfully anticipating…

Last but not least, structure your day in blocks of time, so that you are always focused and intentional in your activities vs. multi tasking and putting out fires. If you can block time to make calls or to do your appointments, you will accomplish so much more in your day. Hope this helps and don’t hesitate to call or email if you any questions.

Paul Wheeler

Tulsa Real Estate

Accent Realtor’s Vision

Our company vision is to educate our clients and communicate in such a way that they can make the best decisions for themselves and their families. Along with staying well educated about the market, we use a system that we call OCR. OCR is an acronym of Options, Consequences and Recommendations. Making major decisions is very difficult for most people. Once money and emotions get added in the mix making a decision can be very overwhelming. OCR breaks decision making down into manageable parts.

The following are the steps we take for OCR:
1. Discuss all available options with our clients based on circumstance and their specific needs
2. Look at all consequences of each option or choices. (Generally there are no more than 3 options)
3. Give our recommendations based on our years of experience and the needs of our clients
4. Have client make the decision they feel most comfortable with and feel would be best for them and their families.
5. Support our client in their decision
If we have done our job correctly providing OCR we have found 99% of the time our clients make great decisions because they get education they need to focus on their needs. It is what we call a WIN-WIN.

Thank you,
Paul Wheeler

Paul Wheeler’s Vision Story

A Greater Purpose

As the owner of Accent Realtors, I would like to share a story about the creation of Accent Realtors.

My quest began when I was a young man, just 17.  I was frustrated and left home between my junior and senior years of high school looking for guidance, direction, mentors, and my life’s calling and passion.  I met many people, worked different jobs, and traveled to many places.  I learned many things but three things stood out to me.

The first thing I learned was that I wanted to be happy.  I found that the happiest people I encountered were people making a difference in the lives of others.  They were giving back and helping out.  They were focused on more than just their basic needs.   I wanted to be like that.   In my travels I had met a great deal of people in need of a helping hand.  Many of them were young people needing guidance and directions.   I decided that if I was very productive, invested my money well and saved 50% of everything I ever made in the first half of my life, I could start a charitable foundation.  Then I could spend my later years championing the education and guidance of young families and children to allow them to live the best lives possible.  I dreamed of donating millions of dollars to these causes.  I now had a vision.

The second thing I learned was that I needed to be educated and be an expert in whatever I did.  Experts were able to effect the most change.  Knowledge and the use of great knowledge will still change the world.  So I went to college, paying my own way.  I became a lifelong learner and still read 100 books per year.  My areas of focus were and still are being a better business owner, better husband, better father, and now I’m educating myself on charitable foundations.  I now had a plan.

The third thing I learned was that in order to accomplish these goals, I had to be a business owner.   Being a business owner allowed me the leverage to create something bigger than I could on my own.  If I and my team of experts served enough people exceptionally well, we would have the funds to create my vision of a charitable foundation.  I now had a passion.

I arrived in Tulsa, OK with $200 to my name and started on my life’s work.  I had 3 jobs within a week and had enrolled in college.  Luckily, I only needed four hours of sleep a night.  While still in college, majoring in business, I bought a few properties as a way to start creating wealth for the foundation.  I found that the buying process and later the selling process was less than desirable and had many flaws.  A light bulb came on and I thought “Aha, there must be a better way”.  One year later, Accent Realtors was born and became a vehicle for achieving our dream of the charitable foundation.  From there, I created the best, most productive experience possible for our clients with a team of talented, passionate people and a vision of a greater purpose. Our clients hire us because we are experts in real estate.  They also know that by doing business with us they are helping reach the vision to better our community and affect the lives of local families, children, and charities. Our clients get the best real estate team in town and get to be heroes for our community and those in need.

Thanks for letting me share.

Paul Wheeler

Accent’s Monthly Email Contest

Accent’s Monthly Email Question winners for the past 6 months:
All of these winners won $100 cash or a prize equivalent to $100!
If you want to be included in our email contest, simply send your email address to Paula@accentrealtors.com

November: Megan Zetik
Correctly answered the question – In the article Unsung Heroes what was Accent Recognized for? answer: Accent was recognized for the moving van that they make available to any charitable organization free of charge.

October: Mike Todd
Correctly answered the question – How many Buyer Specialists are currently with the Accent Team? answer: at the time 6, as of today the answer is 10

September: Crystal Fulton
Correctly answered the question – How many service providers are recommened by Accent through our Preferred Vendor Program? answer: 19

August: Chris Wilson
Correctly answered the question – On Accent’s new website Biggernest.com, what neighborhood is spotlighted? answer: Seven Lakes I

July: David Alvarez
Correctly answered the question – What is the percentage difference in sales volume between the Accent Team in 2010 and the second most successful team in Tulsa area for 2010? answer: 35%

June: Aaron Beck
Correctly answered the question – According to the article by Jim Stovall, what personality attribute does Paul possess? answer: a high I.Q. (implementation quotient)

2011 Angel Tree

Our 2011 Angel Tree has arrived! Be an Angel this holiday season – provide a gift to a child who may otherwise not receive one. If you don’t want the hassle of Mall traffic, stop by our office and select a child to sponsor from our tree. You can be in and out of our office in one minute. We are located at 4625 S. Harvard Ave. and our doors are open from 8-5 Monday through Friday. We are proud to again participate in this wonderful program!

Why a Team?

The following video explains why Accent uses a Team approach to selling real estate. As a collaboration of expertise, the Accent Team has been the number one Team in Tulsa since 2004.

Watch the video now!

The Ins and Outs of Obama’s New Mortgage Refi Plan

On October 25, 2011 President Obama announced a plan to ease eligibility rules for home owners who want to refinance and take advantage of ultra-low mortgage rates to lower their mortgage payments. The administration hopes that by broadening its requirements for the Home Affordable Program that about 1 million home owners will now be able to qualify.

Following is an article that give more details about the newly announced changes to the program.   READ THE ARTICLE NOW