Q: “Denise, I am struggling with balancing everything I have going on right now. With the end of school for my kids, four listings, two buyers who are dragging me all over the county, and dealing with extended family drama, I feel like I am about ready to explode. How do I regain control?”

A: Most real estate agents have some sort of people-pleasing or superhero mechanism inside of us that kicks into overdrive when we are needed. And it sounds like you are needed in many different ways at the moment. The problem is you very well may explode on either a child, unsuspecting client, or a family member. It isn’t their individual fault that you are in this situation – it is the collective fault of everyone including you for not speaking out about what you need. But you can easily get control back. Here is what you do:

1. Ask for help – Can your kids step up and help themselves or take any sort of burden off you? Can your extended family members give you a break or can they step up? Oftentimes, people offload on the most capable. If you are the most capable, it is time for someone else to pick up the slack.
2. Say no – At least for a week, give yourself the gift of no. But you don’t need to be overly-forceful about it. In fact, a great way to say no is to say, “Oh, I would really love to but I can’t”. You owe no explanations.
3. Make some appointments – With yourself! Make yourself unavailable for a few mornings or afternoons so you can catch back up. All you have to say is that you have an appointment.
4. Get your buyers talking – Since your buyers are all over the place, they may need some homework to do before they go back out. Have them go back through some of the listings you have seen together and have them do a ranking and list out some of the things they liked and didn’t like about each. Believe it or not, this exercise and the gift of time might be just what is needed to get them to the next level.
5. Hour of Power – Finally, are you taking that uninterrupted hour each day? Get up a little earlier in the morning and start your day with your Hour. You will be amazed at how much more in control you will feel!