Take Flight Weekly | Jim Miller

Jim Miller

Jim Miller is a success mentor and life coach who guides top real estate brokers from around the country while managing 2.3B+ in sales production as Designated Managing Broker with Jameson Sotheby’s International Realty in Chicago, Illinois. He is also recognized as a top real estate coach to top Sotheby's International Realty brokers in 35 luxury markets.

  1. #328: It's Time to Start Thinking about Q3

    Jun 7

    #328: It's Time to Start Thinking about Q3

    Summary Jim shares a change he made a year ago that reframed his whole year. He moved his vision cycle off January first and onto July first. The reason started personal, tied to his daughters and a three-year path, but it exposed a better way to run a vision cycle for most real estate markets. January is a no fly zone, with no momentum coming out of the holidays. Starting the cycle where the season actually turns puts the heavy lifting in Q3 and Q4, where it belongs, and turns June into a true review month. Jim connects this to last week's message on the basics. The advisors truly winning know what works, build SOPs around it, and run it consistently. The ones without momentum chase everything except the network. A vision cycle is how the basics get rebuilt and reinforced, one quarter at a time. This episode is the bridge from reflection into action. June to review, July to set the cycle, Q3 and Q4 to do the work that makes trapped become free. Inside this episode: 1.     Why it's hard to build real momentum in January, and what to use instead. 2.     How to pick a vision cycle start date that fits your season. 3.     Using June as the review month, the 13th week in 12 Week Year terms. 4.     The quarterly rebuild rhythm. Tear apart, put back together, let it run. 5.     How the basics and the network sit underneath the whole cycle. This is your coaching session. Chapters 00:00 Reflections on June and Personal Milestones 10:14 The Importance of Vision and Planning 20:13 Operational Excellence and Business Growth 24:01 Philosophical Insights and Future Directions Resources Find me on Instagram at @askjimmiller 12 Week Year by Brian P. Moran - https://www.amazon.com/12-Week-Year-Focus-Execution-Discipline/dp/1118509234 Traction by Gino Wickman - https://www.amazon.com/Traction-Get-Grip-Entrepreneurial-Operating/dp/1936661837 EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating System) - https://www.eosworldwide.com/

    27 min
  2. #326: If I had to Rebuild my CRM, I Would Do This!

    May 17

    #326: If I had to Rebuild my CRM, I Would Do This!

    Summary Five tries. Five abandoned attempts. If that sounds familiar, this episode is for you. Episode 326 of Take Flight Weekly is built for the roughly 90% of real estate brokers, agents, and advisors who have tried to build a CRM and never gotten one off the ground. The episode opens with a moment from earlier this month at a leadership event for top advisors. At the event, Jim got tapped on the shoulder by a advisor with the same question he hears from his clients constantly: I've tried five times, how do you do it? The answer is a full teaching session, and Jim names the real obstacle in the first few minutes. The CRM is just the technology. The mindset is what gets in the way. From there, he walks through a complete 13-week rebuild plan that runs on a simple spreadsheet, requires no perfect platform, and produces a clean Top 100 contact list by the end of September. The system is two names a day, ten names a week. No Saturday-afternoon import marathons. No more starting over. Inside the episode, Jim breaks down the 15 columns every CRM spreadsheet needs, from contact rank through neighborhood or building, source of origination, last touch, next touch, and three customizable tag fields. He covers where to mine the names from, including MLS sold data, your phone, your email marketing list, school rosters, and vendor partners. He stays CRM-agnostic on the platform question, because the right tool is always the one you'll actually use. By the end, listeners have a system, a 13-week runway, and the one decision that determines whether any of it gets built. This is Pillar 3 of the Take Flight coaching framework, CRM and Relationship Management, and Jim makes the case that this pillar sits at the foundation of every successful real estate business he has built or coached. The episode closes on the only question that matters for anyone who has been stuck: are you committed, or are you interested? The answer shows up in what you do this week, not what you say. This is a longer teaching episode worth bookmarking and re-listening. There will be no Episode 327 over Memorial Day weekend; the next episode drops May 31, 2026. Chapters 00:00 Introduction to CRM Challenges 02:54 The Importance of Mindset in CRM Implementation 06:00 Starting Your CRM: The Spreadsheet Approach 09:07 Building Your Contact List: Key Columns to Include 11:57 Organizing Your Contacts: Strategies for Success 14:53 Commitment to CRM: The Path Forward Resources Jim Miller on Instagram - @askjimmiller Email Jim Miller - mailto:jim@askjimmiller.com

    22 min
  3. #325:  The Math that Created Take Flight

    May 10

    #325: The Math that Created Take Flight

    Summary In this episode, Jim kicks off a new pillar of the Take Flight framework: CRM and Relationship Management. He explains why, in an AI‑accelerated world, your network is more valuable than ever. “We are moving at light speed when it comes to technology… If you use it the right way to support your business, it is exciting.” Jim shares the story of how a 2011 conversation with CEO Chris Feurer sparked the very first Take Flight class and how doubling down on building a real database transformed his business. You’ll learn: Why the future workforce splits into two groups — tech operators and high‑touch professionalsWhy real estate advisors must master relationships to stay competitiveThe true capacity of a human advisor: your Top 100The math that drives predictable growth:“Your income equals the number of people you serve times the value you deliver.”Jim challenges you to make this the summer you finally build, nurture, and protect your network — before the stakes get even higher.    Takeaways Building and maintaining a database is crucial for long-term success.The ideal network size for effective relationship management is around 100 people.Consistent engagement with your network yields 85-90% of your business. Using AI and technology enhances efficiency but personal relationships remain vital.Focusing on a smaller, high-quality network improves performance and results. Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Take Flight and CRM 07:08 The Importance of Technology in CRM 13:01 Building and Nurturing Your Network 21:09 Commitment to Relationship Management Resources The Go-Giver by Bob Burg - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00A7U7U4Q Claude Cowork AI Platform - https://claude.ai/ Jim Miller's Website - https://jimmiller.com/ Follow Jim Miller on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/askjimmiller/

    25 min
  4. #324:  If you see Consistency, Look for This!

    May 3

    #324: If you see Consistency, Look for This!

    Summary: Jim Miller recaps the second pillar of the Take Flight framework, emphasizing the importance of habits, routines, and systems in business success. He shares insights from past episodes, focusing on designing, executing, and maintaining consistency in real estate entrepreneurship. Design before execution sets the destination. Consistency as cadence, habit stacking, the Weekly Planning Session, and daily rhythm build the engine.  Choose Wisely points the engine at the right clients, because a great engine pointed at the wrong work breaks the operator. Seasonality and the Farmer Framework decide which projects deserve which months.  The Ideal Week becomes the bridge from quarterly Rocks to weekly execution. The dress rehearsal each night protects the whole structure with analog discipline.  Nine moves. Standalone, they are a curriculum. Integrated, they are an operating system. ELP's do not run more habits than the 97%. They run a tighter system. Here is the truth to carry this week. A great habit, in the wrong system, breaks the system. If you have been adding habits and still feel like the week is leaking, you do not have a habit problem. You have a structure problem. The fix is an audit, not another book. One page. Nine rows, one per episode in the arc. Three columns: installed, partial, missing. Score yourself honestly. What you find missing is what is putting unnecessary stress on your week. Install the system once and the output compounds for years.   Key Takeaways from this review of Habits, Routines, Rituals and Rhythms. Design before execution. Pillar 1 sets the destination before Pillar builds the path. (EP315)Consistency as cadence, not intensity. Stop restarting takeoff. Build habits, routines, rituals and rhythms . (EP316)Habit stacking. After [X], I will [Y]. Identity drives the stack. (EP317)The Weekly Planning Session. 60 to 90 minutes. The anchor habit that runs every other habit. (EP318)Win the day, win the week. Morning ritual, arena work, evening wind-down. The compound effect is daily. (EP319)Choose Wisely. Client selection is the highest-leverage decision an advisor makes. (EP320)Calendar architecture. Seasonality, the Ideal Week, and the dress rehearsal. Right project, right season, rehearsed each night. (EP321 / EP322 / EP323)Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Take Flight Framework 02:29 Recap of Pillar Number Two 03:01 Key Principles of Execution 10:14 Choosing Wisely: Client Selection 12:09 The Importance of Planning 14:18 Looking Ahead: CRM and Relationship Management Follow Jim: Instagram @askjimmiller Website:  AskJimMiller.com

    15 min
  5. 323: Your Planner is Your Daily Dress Rehearsal

    Apr 26

    323: Your Planner is Your Daily Dress Rehearsal

    Summary This week's episode starts with a confession: some of the highest performing advisors and entrepreneurs I coach use a physical planner as their most important high-performance tool, and they have been quietly wondering if they should apologize for it. The story underneath is personal: I tried going all digital after years of building my business with a daily planner, and I lost the clarity that made this analog approach work in the first place. My thoughts around this approach changed when I reframed this analog approach as my "dress rehearsal" for the day and the week. Until I built the dress rehearsal, a practice of transferring the day's plan from screen to paper that I have done every day since 2011. The principle is plain: the planner is not a backup plan, it is the dress rehearsal, and the neuroscience says your brain knows the difference. What you will walk away with from this episode: •       Why the highest performing advisors and entrepreneurs I coach use a physical planner as their most important tool, and why you should stop apologizing if you are one of them •       The story of going all digital and what broke: I had access to every piece of information and clarity about none of it, until I went back to the planner and built the dress rehearsal •       The neuroscience: a 2023 study found handwriting activates far more brain networks than typing, particularly in the parietal regions tied to memory and processing, while typing puts the brain on autopilot •       The goal data: people who write their goals by hand are 33% more successful at achieving them than people who only think about them, because writing forces a different level of encoding •       Why the $5.2 billion planner market is growing, not shrinking: professionals are returning to analog after discovering that all-digital does not produce the clarity they need •       The dress rehearsal defined: the daily practice of reviewing the day's digital calendar and writing the plan by hand with three priorities, the time blocks that matter, and nothing else.  This practice can be in the morning or at the end of your day.   •       One challenge: do the dress rehearsal today and every day for seven days then notice what changes about how you start your mornings. Chapters 00:00 Introduction: The High-Performance Tool 01:00 Why a Physical Planner is Essential 01:56 The Power of Writing vs. Typing 02:56 Personal Experience with Digital and Analog 03:52 Research on Brain Activation During Handwriting 04:51 The Concept of the Dress Rehearsal 05:48 Neuroscience Findings on Handwriting 07:13 Goals and Handwriting Success Rates 08:09 The Growing Market for Analog Planners 09:11 The Trend Toward Hybrid Planning 10:09 Your Planner as a Dress Rehearsal 10:53 Embracing the Analog Approach 11:52 Final Thoughts and Call to Action Jim Miller's Email:  jim@askjimmiller.com to sign up for newsletter.

    13 min
5
out of 5
58 Ratings

About

Jim Miller is a success mentor and life coach who guides top real estate brokers from around the country while managing 2.3B+ in sales production as Designated Managing Broker with Jameson Sotheby’s International Realty in Chicago, Illinois. He is also recognized as a top real estate coach to top Sotheby's International Realty brokers in 35 luxury markets.

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