Teaching people lessons on overcoming mental barriers to purchasing property, McIntyre has made herself a booming success in property and in coaching others. In today's episode, she shares top-notch tips to keep your mind in check. With her trusty planner in hand, she details the importance of always knowing what your game plan is—even if the method becomes a little messy along the way. Plus, she opens the curtains wide and reveals the 'why' and 'how' of practicing gratitude.

Timestamps:
01:02 | Ticking the Boxes
03:10 | The Nitty Gritty
07:08 | Keeping Accountable
10:05 | Cost vs. Charge Out Rate
12:58 | Honour It
15:03 | Step 1: BAS. Step 2: Bigger Picture
18:40 | Balance
23:33 | Find the Time
27:40 | Balloons

Resources and Links:

[00:12:58] And I think this is very much the case, we keep on putting things off that we feel aren't important. But actually, they're having a bigger effect on us than we think. And the more you can think about that, if they're on your list, that's a to do list. It's not a must do list. Change the name of what you've got at the top of your page. And honour it.

This is Property Investory where we talk to successful property investors to find out more about their stories, mindset and strategies.

 

I’m Tyrone Shum and in this episode of Mindset Monday we’re chatting with life and property coach Jill McIntyre. With her trusty planner in hand, she details the importance of always knowing what your game plan is, even if the method is a little messy. Plus, she shares her tips to keep your mind in check, and why and how we should all practice gratitude.

Tyrone Shum:   

While so many aspects of organisation have gone the digital route, McIntyre remains loyal to the handwritten method. Her A4 planner allows her to write more than what she can on her phone, giving her the space to write down exactly what will be happening each day, week, and month.

Jill McIntyre:   

[00:01:02] I know exactly what I'm doing tomorrow, I know exactly what I'm doing next Tuesday, say, for example. But everything that needs to happen in my day, every time it comes into my thinking, or my emails, or whatever I'm doing, I'm planning ahead continuously. Even a month on if something needs noting or whatever I'm doing. 

  

[00:01:24] With each of those that are listening, the question is to each of you: How good are you on the game plan? How are you on ticking your boxes on a daily basis? We can be very overcome with I'm running all day, I haven't got time. Yes, this is what I need to do. And we do the top two or three things that are very important. And the bottom few keep on getting put off and off and off. 

  

[00:01:50] Well, if they're important enough to you to be on today's game plan, why aren't you doing them? And I always say our game plan isn't our to do list. To do lists can be changed, they're the must do list is on our game plan. 

  

[00:02:09] And this game plan goes far wider where you can have it where I know exactly what I'm doing on a daily basis, or a weekly basis. 

  

[00:02:18] But the other thing that I wanted to also share is if you're working with someone, and we haven't touched on this either Tyrone, where you've got a couple of people and you're working with someone else in a deal together, for example, you're both investing in deals, could be multiple deals. 

  

[00:02:41] So as a joint venture partnership, how often do you get together and really plan what's happened over the last week that could be rejigged or done better? Or the outcome? How good are you planning the week ahead of what actually needs to happen? Who's going to be delegating which jobs to who within the partnership of what you're doing? 

Jill McIntyre:  

[00:03:10] Because when we get caught up in the run of things, we forget about the nitty gritty of it's just organised, that's what's happening. But if you know you're accountable for something, this is going to keep you on your toes that by the meeting next Sunday night, at seven o'clock when I'm meeting the partner, I've got to have an outcome that's working in our favour. 

  

[00:03:36] So this comes into your game plan, a partner's meeting, your daily tick list comes into your game plan, timelines come into your game plan. And if you're doing a development at the moment, and it's being stretched and held up and council's taking longer than anticipation, you've got to go back and rejig your game plan. What can you do differently? How's it going to do? How's it going to affect you? 

  

[00:04:09] So instead of waiting for things to happen, anticipate being ready for them to happen. How important would that be, Tyrone?

Tyrone Shum:   

[00:04:20] Huge, huge, because the thing is [it] allows you to pre-plan and prepare if different scenarios come up so you can actually move forward without having to, I guess, worry and stress too much. Because if you don't plan, you plan to fail. 

  

[00:04:40] I'm very much the same as you, I have an A4 spiral booklet, not a daily planner, but that's what I actually wanted to ask you. How do you operate? Like [what] does it look like? I'm just trying to visualise it.

Jill McIntyre:   

[00:04:52] It looks a mess. Even with where I am today, I have appointments all during the day, obviously, for clients and different things that I'm doing. I set in my alarm on my phone the day before all of those appointments for the day. 

  

[00:05:16] So my first client this morning was eight o'clock, and then what we're doing and just keep on going through for the whole day. So I set it for three minutes before I'm due to go into a session or meet someone. Or even when I'm going out after this one, I'm meeting another client at a coffee shop. And so I've got half an hour before. 

  

[00:05:38] My whole day is planned out with specific things that are very, very important that I've got to meet that commitment at that time. The lead up in between, I start on emails and things that I'm doing at six o'clock in the morning. And that's my time that's most productive without interruptions. So it's when I get so much of the nitty gritty little bits happening at that time, because that works for me. 

  

[00:06:09] Where when we're busy, if we haven't got a game plan or a planner, even in the column of my diary, I will put number one, two, three, four, five, six things that are real commitments that are set out in the day, I've got all those marked out in the diary. So it's very, very visual. This, down. 

  

[00:06:30] As soon as I have that particular session or client or appointment, I go and I put a vertical line beside that whatever I've done. At the end of the day, whether it's your planner, or your diary, or whatever you're doing, I look for... I've got to have a vertical line down the column of everything that I've done. 

  

[00:06:53] What's not noted— is it important that I've got to do it before I finish work or my head hits the pillow, or can it be left tomorrow? And if so, it's not as important as what it was. 

Jill McIntyre:  

[00:07:08] But it's keeping me accountable. I honour that line down there. I honour what I've got in there. And it's little things, too. I've got to email such and such to someone as a follow up or whatever I need. All of those are in my daily planner. 

  

[00:07:27] It's not just clients, it's everything. It could be working on strategies to move forward with specific things. I'm putting together a product at the moment, and different directions and thoughts and my strategy, and what outcome do I want to achieve by the end of the day? 

  

[00:07:47] All of that goes into my diary, because I've got to allocate time in between appointments and with what I'm doing and going from A to B. They're necessities. It's part of what I'm achieving. But I honour that line down the side as well. And it's done in all different coloured pens. And it's very technicolour, and it's colourful, and it's a mess, and no one else can understand it. No one else has to understand that.

Tyrone Shum:   

[00:08:17] That's why it's for you. It's only for you. So you mentioned at the beginning, there's also things that we've got like a game plan, which is the things that you commit to that you need to do, it's a must. But then there's these little nitty gritty things that always sort of just fall to the wayside. And I'm very much unfortunately, yeah, known for that as well. And I just keep putting off and putting off. How do you stop that from happening? Because I'm struggling with something like that [at] this point in time as well.

Jill McIntyre:   

[00:08:44] Okay, so why are you putting them off, Tyrone?

Tyrone Shum:   

[00:08:47] Because the other higher priority things that are coming up, and I'm getting them done first, but by time I finish those, I don't have enough time to do other smaller things.

Jill McIntyre:   

[00:08:56] But how good would you feel if you could accomplish those, say, three little things every day? How good would it feel? Because the longer that you keep on extending to another time, another time, another time, the more that you do that, you're just going backwards.

  

[00:09:17] And if you're committing to what's on your list, you've got to have a damn good reason to put it on to tomorrow. Don't go to bed tonight until they're done. 

  

[00:09:32] And I don't mean that everyone's got to work till midnight every night. Not at all. Because you'll soon learn that if you've got to work till midnight at night, something's wrong with your thinking. You've got to come back to your game plan. What's in it for you? Where are you going? What's the outcome that you're looking to achieve? Do you need to delegate? Do you need to handle some of the things that are taking you longer to achieve then passing them on to someone else that can do it better than what you can? 

Jill McIntyre:  

[00:10:05] Yes, it might come at a cost, that if you work out what your charge out rate would be, it's not good bang for your buck to be doing it yourself. And we've got to look at the bigger picture. We are in the game of growth, we are in the game of 'I can do all of these things'. Well, I might be able to do them, but some of them will take me twice as long as others. 

  

[00:10:32] And for me, it's even little things like the BAS, I'll put it off and off. But I've got a deadline [and[ that's it. Yes, it's done two or three weeks, because I commit to that's what it's got to be. And do it and stick with it. And it's done on that day. 

  

[00:10:53] Now, I could put it off to tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow. But my thinking is, if I do it today, it's going to leave me open for the next two or three weeks before it's got to be paid. So hear how I'm flipping the thinking? 

  

[00:11:18] Because I can see while it's on the top of my thinking all the time, it's overloading me. Because it's in the background. And that background is hard work. And why even go there? So get it done, because it's a priority by [a] certain date. 

  

[00:11:37] So when I'm planning say, the end of the quarter, I would do, say, in the week to seven days after the end of the quarter, I put in the diary: Best to be completed today. And I work around that with clients and do whatever, because clients or outings or whatever I've got fit in. But that BAS gets done on that day. [It] mightn't get finished on that day. But man oh man, I can't stand the mess on the table. So by lunchtime the next day, it's gone.

Tyrone Shum:   

[00:12:13] Yes, yes, I'm the same.

  

[00:12:17] It's just a matter of doing, like, for example, there's a task that's here, which I know should only take me 10 [to] 15 minutes to do. But just other things get stuck. And I think what you suggested at the beginning or close to the beginning of this episode was maybe how would I feel if I do two or three of these a day? Just these small little things can obviously just take them off the list.

Jill McIntyre:   

[00:12:39] Tyrone, what's it gonna take for you to complete that task before day's end, at say, five o'clock?

Tyrone Shum:   

[00:12:46] As I said, one of these tasks, probably I can look at it just 15 minutes, I just need to do it before I finish the day off and not getting interrupted, don't pick up a phone, just do it. And I think that's the challenge I've faced.

Jill McIntyre:   

[00:12:58] And I think this is very much the case, we keep on putting things off that we feel aren't important. But actually, they're having a bigger effect on us than we think. And the more you can think about that, if they're on your list, that's a to do list. It's not a must do list. Change the name of what you've got at the top of your page. And honour it.

Tyrone Shum:   

[00:13:26] Makes sense. I think that's very powerful. Just this discussion has unlocked what I need to do to change the way I think about that. Because, yeah, it's been a mental burden. As you've said. It's just extra weight on the shoulders and not necessarily needing when actually I could just go, 'Okay, just get it done'. And if you put it off and put it off for weeks, it just doesn't [get done].

Jill McIntyre:   

[00:13:51] We don't have a day of completely doing all the little bits of drivers crackers, either. You're able to spread these over a week, or your five days or whatever you work, spread them out. And if you do one or two a day, and obviously, some will take longer than your 15 minutes. So you might only do one thing that day that's in the little bit of the dribbles category, shall we call it. Depending on the timeframe. 

  

[00:14:19] Say the BAS. I know it'll take me a few hours to do. And if there's a time that I need to handle it for someone else, fine. But it's not a big task for me. Because of what I do in the situation, I can handle it very easily.

Coming up after the break, McIntyre explains the importance of timelines…

[00:16:18] That, once again, goes onto my planner.

Her tips on avoiding burnout…

[00:21:36] The other thing is we've got to remember that it's very easy to be stretched in our day.

She shares what she takes five minutes to do every day.

[00:25:30] Now, I don't like doing it when I'm going to bed at night, because the brain would be going at 150 miles an hour.

And that’s next. I’m Tyrone Shum and you’re listening to Property Investory.

McIntyre takes the time to do her BAS and finds that it helps her over the next quarter of the year. By doing this herself, it allows her to focus on the bigger picture for her vision.

Jill McIntyre:   

[00:15:03] And yes, keeping it up to date is... I don't do it in between, but I'd certainly do it because I don't have the flow of things, like buying materials for dwellings every day and things like that. So mine's easy to manage.

  

[00:15:18] But it all comes down to the system that I've got in place that works for the benefits of the outcome that I'm doing.

Tyrone Shum:   

[00:15:26] I like what you said, reframing it, actually. The BAS, yes, [is] something that we're got to do. But you've reframed it to say, look, you can get excited, because you actually get to see, accountability wise, what are you doing, what have you achieved this quarter, etc. And you can actually use that to your advantage. So it gets the mind to go, 'Okay, let's just do it, it's actually a positive'.

Jill McIntyre:   

[00:15:47] But also, too, we've talked in the past about intentions and goals and things like that. And also with my 12 months, my goal, my plan, or [my] income, what I'm growing, streams of income, things like that. It's also bringing me back to: If it's X number of dollars, and it's not making the mark of my quarterly growth plan, what am I going to do? What do I have to do to increase that? 

  

[00:16:18] That, once again, goes onto my planner. It could be on the planner, just spending a quarter of an hour for the next few days growing upon what I can do, how I can move forward. Who do I have to see, who do I need to talk to? What do I have to do to believe that I'm on track? 

  

[00:16:41] And that would go in my planner, that I've got to allocate that time to do. It doesn't go off till tomorrow, because this is important, this is part of my bigger picture. So that's when a game plan is important. That's where my goals are important. That my goals, they can happen or not happen. 

 

[00:17:00] I also realised the importance of working on timelines, working on what I can actually do to break my goals up, to achieve them at a quicker or a more accelerated rate or a better outcome by working and bringing them into my daily plan. Not just letting fate happen. And we'll see what happens in nine months' time, I like to give them a push.

Tyrone Shum:   

[00:17:27] Of course, a good push. And that's the reason why having a game plan, a daily planner, or weekly planner allows you to be able to think it through carefully. Because yes, it's so easy to go, 'Okay, I've got this goal, but then I'm just going to note down all the to dos', but that gets lost. 

  

[00:17:44] But until you actually strategically plan and see where your efficiencies are, and put it in a certain part of your diary in your day, then it becomes a very structured approach. And in actual fact, that structure, for me, anyway, gives me a lot more freedom because at least I don't have to keep thinking about, you know, where do I have time, went am I supposed to do this task? I can actually just go ahead and action, and then that allows me to have gaps in my schedule to actually go, 'Okay, I can actually squeeze in something else I may need to do as well', or take the time off. 

  

[00:18:15] So it's something that I've [been] learning this year to be a lot better, I'm trying to take more time off this year as well, too, just trying to plan out every quarter to take a trip overseas or go interstate as part of that. So I can have those kinds of things blocked in. 

  

[00:18:29] But if I didn't do it, which is what happened last year, I just kept working all the way through. And there wasn't good mentally as well to for me. So I think having this game plan is so, so crucial, important.

Jill McIntyre:   

[00:18:40] Well, I think this is part of the balance. And I think we all have our own levels of what we want to do in a timeout situation where yours is going away or going into state or doing something with your family.

 

[00:18:54] And I think we need to plan this and do it. And it's very, very important to set those timelines ahead of time, whether it be just for weekends, every two months that you set a long weekend, go away. It could only be... and then of course a lot of situations will come in, well, this is going to take money. And right now I haven't got money. What can I do? 

  

[00:19:18] But you deciding to do something that doesn't cost you a lot of money, you just get your creative juices working and start to happen. That[‘s] what you can do because sometimes we need to totally cross out a day where we're in another headspace, where we're not taking business calls. Where we're working on the balance that's so important in what we're doing. 

  

[00:19:45] What we can do when we're in business when we're doing what we do and love what we're doing, but at the same stage going through lots of ups and downs during the challenging as we've talked earlier with interest rates and cash flow and things like that, we need to counterbalance that with being in a space where we can have it with family. Or we can go fishing, or we can go and play footy, or go to the footy, or do something completely where you leave your phone, turn it off, put it on silent if there's work, if it's work related.

Tyrone Shum:   

[00:20:24] Absolutely. See, I guess I totally resonate with that, Jill, with what you just said. For me to get away is to go into the bush, I go out to nature and just get myself absorbed and just go for a nice long bush walk. I've been doing that, actually, committing to that every Friday, every morning, just to just walk off for many, many hours. 

  

[00:20:42] And it makes a huge difference, not just only to my overall health, but just the mental shift, because it just switches my brain off from thinking about business and work related stuff to actually go out enjoy what God has given to us in nature, and what the beautiful surroundings. 

  

[00:20:59] And it's only around the corner from where I live, I don't have to travel too far to get to beautiful locations for bushwalks. So I think that's something that's so important, not just for me, but for everyone else that they should actually consider those things. Yes, we all have found me like myself, and busy with kids, school, all that kind of stuff.

  

[00:21:20] So just got to block it out. And in basically block the time out to be able to go and do these things. Otherwise, you will not get to do it. And that's what I've noticed in the past. So intentional, as you said, always be intentional on how you actually or when you want to do certain things, put it in the calendar or put it in the game plan.

Jill McIntyre:   

[00:21:36] The other thing is we've got to remember that it's very easy to be stretched in our day. And when our stretched gets longer in its stretch, we become thinner and thinner in what we're trying to achieve or what we're trying to do. We're exhausted, we're tired, we're keeping on going. 

  

[00:21:55] It is very, very important to give time and give back to yourself. And this is usually we're the last in line when there's so much on. And especially, say, in your situation, you've got a young family, there's commitments, there's all these sorts of things.

  

[00:22:13] I've been there, done that, I've got grandkids, and I pick them up quite a few days of the week from school, which I love. But this all goes into my planner, even with that, for the whole term. So I know exactly that at each point in where I'm going in a week, I've got to set time aside that I can go out and meet mates for lunch or things like that, or go for things and do things that I want to do. Because we've got to have that balance base. 

  

[00:22:45] Little bit, as you say every Friday morning you do it. But you come back invigorated. But the thing is, too, we're not good at doing it if we're not used to doing it. Congratulations, Tyrone, for setting it aside. Because I'd say you haven't always done it. But how important it is, of the outcome received.

Tyrone Shum:   

[00:23:08] Huge, huge benefit. I mean, I only just started doing this a few months ago. But prior to that, I hadn't actually gone out to go for bushwalks as much as I would love to, but I made a commitment. 

 

[00:23:18] And it was hard at first. You go, 'I've got other things I've gotta get done'. But I said nope, hop in the car, drive to the location. Once you get actually there and you start doing it, you go, 'Oh, actually, it's been the best thing ever to do'. So it changes.

Jill McIntyre:   

[00:23:33] We're the only ones that can do it. And we get very caught up, 'Oh, I just can't fit it in. We've got family, we've got kids' sport, we've got all these sorts of things'. But find the time. You get up at five o'clock to find the time.

  

[00:23:49] You've got to find the time. If it means getting out of bed half an hour earlier, or even quarter of an hour earlier, to listen to some positive stuff, there's plenty of stuff on YouTube. That's really motivational for a start. Or listening to a podcast, you know, one of your podcasts or something just to feed your brain of you're growing with every step that you're moving forward with. This is so, so important.

Tyrone Shum:   

[00:24:15] I totally, totally agree. I think I wanted to also just mention, and I think this is important for all of us, is that not only do you do these things as part of your game plan, you mark off your to do list, but it's also important that we acknowledge what we achieved.

  

[00:24:30] Because sometimes it's great to tick it off and then move straight on to the next one. You just keep going and going. It's like a never ending cycle. But I think it's important to look at the big goals that you've achieved and to celebrate that as well.

Jill McIntyre:   

[00:24:42] But how important is it that we enjoy the journey and we value the journey we on? Not just to look at the rewards as being at the end. The important part and in fact, the journey can be more exciting than the rewards at the end. 

 

[00:24:59] We've done gratitudes, too. And you know my thinking on them where one of the guys that I have known for many, many years and admire. And he does his three gratitudes every night. And the last gratitude, he always puts it out there of: How can I do and achieve a different and more positive and stronger outcome to what I've already achieved today, on that specific focus that he's talking about? 

  

[00:25:30] Now, I don't like doing it when I'm going to bed at night, because the brain would be going at 150 miles an hour. And I'm trying to tell it to switch off and go to sleep. But it's challenging you, if you even did that at five o'clock in the morning. What am I grateful for? And on the third one, what's going to support the growth within me to move forward in my stepping stone of whatever it is? And put that challenge out to yourself every morning. 

  

[00:26:00] And that come in to just giving it five or 10 minutes of doing a bit of brainstorming. I love the idea of a mind map as part of your game plan and your bigger picture. And I'd put myself if I'm doing it with myself, or I'm doing it with a client, for example, I'd put in the middle me, and I'm a stick figure job, I'm not good at drawing me, stick figure in the middle. And then from there, I do all different balloons. 

 

[00:26:27] And if I'm doing it with a client, for example, it might be random streams of income. How we can do now, in these balloons all round with strings into the centre part. All of these balloons, I don't stop and think the viability or the possibility, or can I do it, or what do I do. I'm putting them all out there to work them out later on as the 80/20 rule. To bring into the importance of: What's going to give me 80% return for 20% of my time? 

  

[00:27:02] It might mean that I'm not really... that's not my strength. But who do I know that can support me? So these are the sorts of things that doing your page of balloons and bringing them into the centre, but not putting restrictions in what you're putting into those balloons as well. 

  

[00:27:21] Because as soon as our mind starts to shut us down, and tell us we can't do something, we stop, and we're limited to even putting it down into the balloon. So give yourself the big tick, this is your brainstorming. That's what brainstorming is all about.

Tyrone Shum:   

[00:27:40] So allow yourself to think bigger during this process. I'm typically the type of person who goes, 'Okay, that's the solution'. And I just focus on that. But I think the key thing is, okay, don't be restricted.

 

[00:27:52] So if you're planning a holiday, for example, think of the things that you want to do, but also other things that you potentially have never explored before. And you note them all down. And you know, who knows, you might just go and for whatever reason gonna visit and see. 

  

[00:28:04] Or if there's somebody that you really want to see, like a celebrity and stuff, write it down and see if you can try to find out how you can do it. It doesn't mean that you can't.

Jill McIntyre:   

[00:28:12] I think how you can do it is important, because when you stop and think, one of them will be: I haven't got the money, I can't do it. So flip that on its head. So what different ways can I find that are opening me up to that way of doing it? This is good for your balloons. In each balloon, different ways to do it. 

  

[00:28:38] And one of them might be a second job or one of them might be doing some support or going in or skill set or time that you can help someone with feasibility or whatever. And it's opening you up to the possibilities rather than left to your own devices. You go around around the circle and go nowhere. And your little bits get put on to the next day. And it doesn't happen. 

 

[00:29:05] And this is where it's a form of accountability that you honour what you're doing, as I said with having a joint venture partner, for example, who is a 50/50 share with you and you want to bring them in moving forward and you keep each other accountable. But that's a story for another day, because you've got to pick the right joint venture partner that's like minded to do it. But these are all thought patterns to put down and start to explore on.

Thank you to Jill McIntyre, our guest on this special episode of Property Investory.