(And Why You Can Stop Feeling Guilty About It Too)
If you have spent more than five minutes on business social media, you have definitely seen this piece of productivity advice:
“Set aside 1 to 2 dedicated times a day to batch-respond to text messages. During other times? Don’t check your phone.”
Is this good advice? Sure..
Can it work for some people? Absolutely.
Does it work for most? Not in my experience.
In a perfect world, it would work for all of us. But I don’t live in a perfect world and I doubt you do either.
Here is why I refuse to run my business this way (and why trying to follow this advice might actually be messing up your day).
1. Relationships Don’t Have Office Hours
In the real estate industry, we all love to say this is a “relationship business.”
Well, I don’t treat my actual friends like a batch task. I don’t text my loved ones back only during a strict 2pm to 3pm window. I don’t leave them on read for most of the day (okay let’s be honest, I absolutely do that sometimes…sorry Mom). Availability and genuine connection are core parts of the service I offer to my clients. I want to build a people-forward business and locking my phone in a vault for 22 hours a day doesn’t align with that.
2. The Advice Is Completely Contradictory
While the productivity gurus are telling us to ignore our phones, the sales stats are yelling something completely different.
Data shows that roughly 78% of buyers work with the very first person who responds to them. Platforms like Zillow practically push for 30-second response times because speed matters. So which is it? Are we supposed to ignore our phones all morning OR are we supposed to capture the lead within 5 minutes? You can’t do both without a massive team backing you up.
3. The Setup-and-Fail Cycle
Here is what usually happens when we hear this advice:
- We think, “Okay, this is what successful people do, so I have to do it”.
- We create elaborate time blocks, turn on “Do Not Disturb,” and plan hours of deep focus work.
- An urgent text comes through (because real life happens).
- We spend an hour handling that urgent call instead of doing our planned time block.
- We end the day feeling behind, disorganized, and guilty.
Build the Business That Works for Your Brain
Part of the awesomeness of being a small business owner is designing something you are actually proud of. You get to decide how you want to work.
If you have a massive support team to filter your messages, great! Batch your texts. But if you are running a high-touch, relationship-based business, it is completely okay to admit that this advice isn’t for you.
Stop trying to force yourself into a system that was never built for your brain, your business, or your goals. Hear the advice, decide it doesn’t fit, and move on (without an ounce of guilt).
Coming up, I will be talking about systems that are flexible enough to get your work done while simultaneously answering random texts and calls all throughout the day.