Is being “swamped” an excuse to avoid taking the time to address internal bottlenecks and inefficiencies?
As a commercial fee or bank appraiser are you constantly fixing the same things over and over?
Is it “quicker” to fix on the fly or stop and create an initiative that will make the issue go away forever?
You can learn new things
Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol S. Dweck highlights the fixed versus growth mindset. She concludes that those people that think their abilities are fixed won’t be successful. Conversely, those with a growth mindset believe that failure is an opportunity to learn.
“The price of excellence is discipline.
The cost of mediocrity is disappointment.”
William A. Ward
A growth mindset doesn’t assume that you’re limited to your skill sets that you were born with. Thinking that your personality, capabilities, intelligence and social skills are fixed and can’t be improved results in frustration and giving up quickly.
This is evident with partially implemented processes, initiatives and technology. As a fee appraiser, consider DataComp Suite for your comp database, report writing and workflow. Consider YouConnect, our appraisal and environmental workflow platform to confidently lead your appraisal department.
Give daily pro tips
Commercial fee appraiser example:
Pro Tip: Email/text/call the property contact the same day fornew assignments.
This is good because:
- Some clients require contact within 24 hours.
- The borrower won’t call annoyed that the appraiser hasn’t contacted them.
- Facilitates a quicker inspection time.
- Helps you understand the scope of work quicker.
- Gives contact more time to provide the data you need.
Bank appraiser example:
Pro Tip: Correctly classify your vendors.
This is good because:
- Appraisers love to bid on almost everything, even if its beyond their expertise.
- Working in an unfamiliar area may result in wonky valuations.
- Remove appraisers that don’t play nice with your reviewers.
- Have frank conversations to determine what they’re really good at.
- Ask your more progressive appraisers if they’re open to providing evals.
Sean Young author of Stick with It: A Scientifically Proven Process for Changing Your Life — for Good concludes with ABC behavior: Automatic, Burning, and Common. The SCIENCE model of lasting change: Stepladders, Community, Important, Easy, Neurohacks, Captivating and Engrained. Let’s chat about the first three concepts.
Make the plan, work the plan
The most critical step is the first one you take, Stepladders. Taking baby steps, biting off new processes little by little. Creating initiatives for you and your team to help you move forward. Create a model of steps, goals and dreams.
Checking off little tasks goes a long way to achieving your goals. Short term goals should take less than a month. Longer term goals may be three months plus. Remind yourself of the outcome, then focus to get there.
Be a lighthouse
Community is important since it’s rooted in the “monkey see monkey do” concept. Surround yourself with optimistic and productive people. Identify those on your team that are a lighthouse. They’re easy to spot.
A lighthouse attitude is somebody with energy, brings up new ideas and is collaborative. Tugboats are an anchor, create nothing, lack forward momentum, locked into the past way of doing things.
What’s important now
Make sure you outline the personal or professional outcomes that’re important to you. This will facilitate lasting change.
Change your mindset to view “running up the stairs” as a fun challenge, not a laborious chore. “Stairs” are analogous for anything. Try to reduce mistakes in your appraisals, meet your bank’s SLAs, improve your health, whatever.
Visualize the outcome of your effort. Create a new auto-pilot, commit to CANI – Constant and Never-Ending Improvement attitude.
Stick with it.
