Many real estate professionals enjoy the benefit of spending much of the work day outside of the office – which is particularly nice during the beautiful summer months. However, it can still be a challenge for team members to remain motivated when their minds begin to roam toward the beach or summer vacations. Here are four ideas to help put your agents first and keep team morale at its highest this season:

  1. Stay active. Turning meetings into walking check-ins allows you to not only get a pulse check of how your team members are doing in an informal setting, but also to get some fresh air and exercise – both of which help clear your mind and get the creative juices flowing. If you want to take activity to the next level, organize an office sports team and join a local summer softball league. You don’t have to be a group of all-star athletes, you just need to get out there and have fun together. Team on the field and team off the field.
  2. Periodic perks. If a larger company outing isn’t in the cards this season, bring some perks to your team members every few weeks. Hire a specialty food truck to come to the office for a couple hours, bring in a traveling manicure or massage service, start a Monday morning with fresh fruits and pastries – even small surprises can give company morale the boost it needs.
  3. Set summer goals. And make sure they include a fun goal or two! Talk with team members about what they want to accomplish in the short-term, and then help them set realistic but challenging goals to work toward between now and Labor Day, for example, to keep motivation high. By adding in one or two light-hearted goals like “get to the beach once a month” or “spend one day a week outside with my family,” you show your team that you understand the importance of work-life balance.
  4. Revisit your resolutions. Did you make business resolutions around the New Year? Reflect on how well you’ve kept to them so far in 2015. If you’ve strayed from them, revisit how you can better implement your ideas for the second half of the year.

What else are you doing for your team this summer? What has worked well in the past? Tell us about your experience below or on Facebook or Twitter at @ASmarterERA.