Smart time management is the secret to a thriving real estate business. Here are the top 10 ways to take control of your schedule so you can close more transactions:

1. Set goals: Create a yearly business plan, then break it down into the goals you’ll need to accomplish each month. This will ensure that you’re motivated to succeed!

2. Prioritize: Determine the tasks needed to accomplish each goal, then make a daily to-do list according to their importance.

3. Stop procrastinating: Today! When you have a prioritized to-do list, do the items in the order they appear—no cheating, no rationalizations. Period.

4. End perfectionism: Know when to stop! It’s tempting to keep fussing with a flyer or follow-up email, but there comes a point where the time spent working on a task is greater than the benefit of your efforts. That’s when you need to stop and move on to the next task.

5. Say no: If you feel a request is unreasonable, takes too much time, or prevents you from accomplishing your goals, politely refuse. If this is difficult for you, practice your refusal aloud to a friend or mirror.

6. Take a break: If you’re burned out or exhausted, you’re wasting your time and money. Better to take a few days of uninterrupted time off than drag on for weeks working half-heartedly.

7. Invest in your skills: Take a seminar, find a coach, read a book. Learning something new can save you time and make you more effective in your business.

8. Focus: Don’t let your mind wander. When you’re working on a task, put all your energy into it. This will help you finish the task more quickly so you can move on to the next one.

9. Ask questions: One of the biggest time-stealers is miscommunication. Make sure you have all the information you need to complete the task before you start.

10. Use technology tools: Spend your time on the face-to-face tasks that earn money. For everything else—such as finding new prospects or sending follow-up emails—use a full-service prospect capture and management system. HouseValues delivers a steady flow of motivated home buyers and sellers plus automated follow-up tools to help you close more business in less time.

When you use these tips to help you manage your schedule, you can achieve the success you want in no time!

Helping more than 10,000 agents across North America manage their time, HouseValues puts agents in touch with exclusive prospective home buyers and sellers, and even helps them manage their contacts, automatically keep in touch with prospects, and enhance their real estate sales and business skills.  To find out more (and to get your FREE 2008 Agent Business Plan) go to www.REAgentBusinessPlan.com.