Can you make it to the end of AEP without burning out? For agents who sell Medicare, the period between October 15 and December 7 is easily the busiest time of the year. Each year, as more seniors age into Medicare and more enrollees choose Medicare Advantage, it gets busier and busier. If you’re not careful with your time, you risk burning out before you reach the end, and that can prevent you from achieving your goals. Fortunately, there’s still time to implement some crucial time management and appointment-setting hacks.
1. Schedule Appointments by Location
If you don’t pay attention to geography when you schedule your appointments, you can end up wasting a lot of time driving across town and back. Reduce your commute time by scheduling clients who live in the same area on the same day. Western Asset Protection agents use the Integrity Mobile App to plan their route and get directions to their destination, all while seeing client details prior to arriving at the appointment.
2. Offer Remote Appointments
Some clients prefer to meet in person, while others are comfortable with remote appointments. Give your clients the option. The more remote appointments you have, the easier it will be to maximize your productivity by avoiding long commutes. This is especially true for clients who live far away.
3. Schedule Breaks
In theory, you may assume that you’ll get more done if you work for eight hours without a break. In reality, you can usually only work for so long before you start running out of steam. Regular breaks can energize you so you can maintain momentum throughout the day.
The Pomodoro Technique, developed by Francesco Cirillo, involves working in 25-minute periods separated by short breaks of five to 10 minutes. After four work periods, you take a longer break of 20 to 30 minutes. You can use a timer to ensure that you stick to the schedule. Keep this principle in mind when you’re working from home and when you’re scheduling appointments.
4. Resist the Urge to Multitask
Many people are convinced that they’re not being productive if they’re not multitasking, but often, the opposite is true.
Sometimes multitasking is efficient, but only if one of the tasks doesn’t really require your attention. When you’re trying to do two tasks simultaneously and both require your attention, you can’t give either the focus they deserve.
The American Psychological Association says that multitasking reduces efficiency. You’re not really doing two things at the same time. You’re switching between two tasks in rapid succession, and that switching diminishes your productivity by as much as 40%. Multitasking also increases the risk of a mistake, and that’s the last thing you want when you’re enrolling clients in health plans.
5. Establish Priorities
Sometimes there simply aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done. To ensure you accomplish the most vital tasks on your to-do list, establish priorities. Write down your to-do list and determine which items must be completed first.
One way to do this is with the Eisenhower Matrix. The vertical axis denotes whether a task is important or less important. The horizontal axis denotes whether a task is urgent or less urgent. Do the tasks that are urgent and important first.
- Schedule the tasks that are less urgent but important.
- Delegate the tasks that are urgent but less important.
- Don’t do the tasks that are neither urgent nor important.
6. Move Things Off Your Plate
If you have too much to do, try to remove some tasks from your plate. The Eisenhower Matrix covered in the last tip shows how to identify tasks that you can delegate or simply ignore. Also think about what you can do in advance of AEP to lighten your load during the busy season. For example, you might be able to plan meals in advance and ask another family member to host Thanksgiving.
7. Let Western Asset Protection Help
Western Asset Protection is here to support you during AEP and help you avoid burnout. Our HealthWealthEngine gives agents the tools they need to stay organized and productive, and IntegrityCONNECT makes it easy to manage tracking, quoting, enrollment, and follow-up. We also provide marketing and compliance support. Learn more.