If you work in the real estate industry, whether you’re an agent, property manager, or a developer, chances are you spend a lot of time in your car.

I’ve come up with a few hacks to make the most of your mobility and revel in your chance to work out of a mobile office.

All it takes is foresight, a little bit of technology and an awareness of how to best manage your time whilst not in your office.

• Set aside time each morning planning your route and take note of places/areas in which you will likely stop. Having a plan for your day will empower you – of course things certainly don’t always go to plan, particularly in this industry! But it’s better to start the day with a framework, than none at all, and adapt accordingly.

• Put together your work-on-the-go-kit. Picture your desk – what is on it that you use frequently that you may need to replicate in your car? It’s pretty straightforward, but if you keep a separate car charger for your phone/tablet, notebook, pens, diary and glasses if you require them together, in a bag or storage tub in your car, you’ll thank yourself for it. It means not having to grab extra bits and pieces before leaving your office. Knowing that you’ll have what you need with you if you have to unexpectedly stay out longer than planned will provide you with peace of mind. It sounds so simple, but the amount of times we’ve clients have said their phone battery had betrayed them, or they didn’t have their reading glasses has made us all the more aware of the importance of these basic things. (I’ve been guilty of forgetting so many of these things too.)

  

• Cloud storage is your friend. It’s inevitable that being on the go so much, you’ll be creating or receiving documents. You will want these saved securely without you having to switch devices often, or wait until you return to your office. If they are streamlined across your devices, you ultimately save time.

• As well as utilising handy cloud storage, there are plenty of apps that I use that I swear by for using while working on the run. That’s a whole other post in itself, but ones I favour are Evernote for word processing/note taking, Dropbox for saving and sending files and utilising Voice Memo (or the Android equivalent) for dictating.

• Speaking of back-up – portable contents insurance – ensure that you have it! If you do have an unfortunate incident with one of your devices or contents, if it’s covered by your insurance policy, you’ll be glad to not have hassles when making a claim.

  

• Coffee and snack stops. These are vital, especially if you are fuelled by caffeine, as I admittedly am. (What writer isn’t, really?) Packing your own food can often be healthier and more cost effective, but isn’t always a daily reality. For when you are making a stop, if you don’t mind repetition, go for somewhere with a loyalty scheme for your beverages, so you’re at last getting a free drink after several. If you like mixing it up, find somewhere different each time and aim to support small or local businesses to the area that you’re stopping in. And do your part for reducing your carbon footprint and aim to take in your own travel mug to fill up, if stopping for coffee is a regular thing. You can get some AMAZING ones online, or even your local stationary supplies store.

  

• Embrace podcasts! They are a great way to stay engaged and informed in your industry and stay mellow in traffic. As long as you feel like you can still concentrate while driving, podcasts are a seriously fabulous way to make the most of time spent driving. You could always use the time to indulge in podcasts aligned your own personal interests or hobbies now and then to mix up your day and drive.

• Find an inspiring natural landscape, or backdrop, to stop and work at. Make the most of your position of not being fixed in the same working space day in, day out. Seek inspiration in the great outdoors. Fresh air and natural splendour do wonders for soul and can really help boost creativity. I love so many quotes from John Muir. A particular favourite, to finish on:
  

  I only went out for a walk and finally concluded to stay out till sundown, for going out, I found, was really going in. – John Muir

  

  What are your tips for working while out and about? And please do let us know of any podcasts we should be subscribing to. Visit us on Instagram and Facebook to give us your own tips and tricks.