What If You Built a Business That Supported Your Life?

I Think We Might Have Made a Mistake

Let’s talk about the idea of working to live instead of living to work.

If you’ve been around for a hot second, you’ve probably already heard me say that working 24/7 is nonsense. If you’re available to clients at all hours of the day or night, it’s time to rethink that. It sets the wrong stage.

Real estate agents often wear this self-inflicted work pain like a badge of honor and call it “great service.” There are a lot of problems with that. One of the biggest? You can’t be your best self when you’re always on. If you’re giving to your clients 24/7, you’re absolutely taking from another part of your life—your health, your family, your joy.

Yes, real estate can mean working weekends—but only if you decide to work weekends. That’s the key: you get to decide.

If you’re burned out, operating with no real plan, working around the clock, and never making time for yourself, your people, your passions—it’s not the job. It’s you.

The Hard Truth

Because here’s the truth: you can build your business any way you like.

We’ve been programmed to chase higher GCI, applauded for our volume, and taught that success looks like being busy all the time. But I think we’ve been doing it all wrong. These days, I’m far more excited about profit over production.

If your calendar is running the show—or worse, your clients are—or if you have no idea what your profit margins actually are, it might be time for a reset. Pivoting isn’t easy, especially when you’ve operated the same way for years. But it is absolutely possible.

A Different Philosophy

Personally, I’ve been leaning into the idea that your business should support your life—not steal from it. I love the philosophy from Pursuing Freedom—the idea of building a business you don’t need a vacation from.

When you have systems in place, manage your time like a CEO, and scale in a way that protects your energy—not just your income—you actually make more money. Because you’re present. You’re focused. And your work starts to compound instead of wear you down.

Want to Hear More?

We talk about ways to do this on a recent episode of How to Real Estate Today:

🎧 EP: 23 — The Go-Giver Approach to Business with Erin Bradley
Listen now

Erin shares what freedom really looks like as an entrepreneur. And honestly, isn’t that one of the reasons we got into this business in the first place?