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As the summer of 2025 approached, things were coming together for me to exit the brokerage I had founded in 2002. With my family’s trip to Japan coming into view, I was excited about the opportunity to spend an entire month being truly present. No crises to handle, no deals to save, just dad time.
Our first morning in Tokyo, I had one mission: don’t think about work.
I got up early, slipped out for a walk, and told myself: “Berenbaum, this is your month with your family. Start it right. Don’t think about work.”
You know what they say about not thinking about pink elephants.
What started as a walk…
Thirty minutes into that Tokyo morning, coffee in hand, watching the city wake up around me, my brain had other plans. Instead of clearing my mind, I found myself seeing, with crystal clarity, a framework that could allow me to continue my life’s work, coaching real estate agents, while still moving on from my brokerage.
My post-exit business plans were, at that point, deeply conflicted. My passion for positioning agents to optimize their lives was at an all-time high, but my partnership had run its course. I had “soft-launched” a product, This Iberian Life, to help Americans buy homes in Spain and Portugal, but in the back of my mind, I couldn’t get comfortable with the idea that I wouldn’t be coaching agents anymore.
I had planned my route that morning to take me by one of the few coffee shops that was open. As I waited for them to make my Flat White, my inner voice, which sounded a lot like Sam Harris, kept encouraging me to acknowledge my work thoughts and then quickly move on.
Scenes from a walk in Kyoto, Japan.
A continuation, not a rebirth
As I turned the corner, leaving Boardwalk Coffee behind me, I remember feeling deeply grateful for my situation. For the three years prior, since my family and I moved to Spain, I had been navigating complex life changes. This time, when that Sam Harris voice popped in to say no business, Eddie, it dawned on me that the success I was experiencing in my personal life was directly tied to the detailed business plan I had been executing.
That’s when it hit me: the changes I’d experienced in my own life over the past three years weren’t about where my body was physically, they were about where my mind was mentally. Best of all, I had the formula ready to package! The fact that I soon wouldn’t have a brokerage to share it with seemed immaterial. It was an “If I build it, they will come” type of moment.
One hour-a-day promise
I snuck back into our Airbnb, fingers crossed, everyone was still asleep. They were! Over the next hour, I mapped out ways to convert my personal plan into a framework for agents to grow their business while prioritizing their personal lives.
The progress I made, as always, was intoxicating. My instinct was to dive deep - take a few days, flesh everything out, but thankfully, I know my weaknesses. Two days would become two weeks, and before you knew it, I wouldn’t be present during this precious month with my family.
So I made myself a deal: one hour each morning before everyone woke up. Free-form notes on how to build this vision. Then back to being fully present with my family.
That discipline? That boundary-setting? That was Balanced Busy in action before Balanced Busy even existed.
The problem I lived for 23 years
Here’s what became clear during those mornings as we explored Japan: what I had always believed to be my superpower was also my kryptonite. They say, love what you do, and you’ll never work a day in your life, but loving your work creates a unique challenge. It pulls you away from everything else that matters - even when you know those other things are more important.
I knew my family was everything. I knew the time with my children was limited. I knew my wife deserved a present husband, not someone whose mind was always partially at the office.
The reality is, work was always easier. It gave me immediate pleasure, instant gratification. I could justify those long hours by telling myself I was doing it for my family, but the truth is I was doing it for myself.
The solution that’s been missing
Here’s what I learned during those early Tokyo mornings: the problem isn’t that agents lack motivation or can’t create business plans; most agents can do that beautifully.
The problem is with tracking, and, in turn, execution.
Even with the best-written plans, most agents operate without a vision for what to do, and when to do it. In turn-
When times are slow, agents wake up with a desire to work, but lack an understanding for what they need to do.
When business is good, agents often wake up with more than they can handle, and don’t have a framework to focus on the work that is their “highest and best use”, and out source the rest.
As a result, over the course of a year, their business looks like a yo-yo, and, even worse, their personal life experiences the same whiplash.
The Balanced Busy Beaver. Dams to build, Zen to be had!
Enter Balanced Busy
The name comes from what I’ve observed agents want most:
When business is slow: “I want to be busy.”
When they’re busy for extended periods: “I need balance.”
What if you could have both?
Balanced Busy isn’t another business planning tool. It’s a complete system that prioritizes your personal life first, eliminates morning paralysis about what to focus on, stops the feast-or-famine cycle, and helps you define what winning actually looks like for your life.
It’s that new scoreboard - one that measures both sides of success.
Ready to join the movement?
The Balanced Busy beta launches in late January, and the waitlist for FREE access is open now.
This isn’t just about software, it’s about joining a community of real estate professionals who believe you can be successful AND present. Agents, Team Leaders, and Brokers who know that sustainable growth beats unsustainable hustle every time.
Join the FREE Beta Waitlist Here → https://app.balancedbusy.com/waitlist
Remember: Sign up now and receive at least 3 months of free access when we launch.
Because here’s what these last three years have taught me: the agents who protect what matters most don’t just become better people. They become better agents.
Your clients deserve someone operating at full capacity - not someone running on fumes and caffeine.
It’s time to stop choosing between success and balance. It’s time to be Balanced Busy.
Eddie Berenbaum is the founder of Balanced Busy. After 23 years of building a business that consumed his life, he’s now helping agents build businesses that enhance it - one balanced morning at a time.
