The Ultimate Sales Coach

Time to focus

There's never enough it seems! So many things to do and so little time ... although do you really have to do all those things or just the most important ones? It's no wonder stress makes people less effective - all that thinking and not enough of the 'right' doing for creating the intended goals or outcomes. I was reading an ezine by business guru Brian Tracy which reminded me that:

The two indispensable keys to time management are: 1) the ability to set priorities; and 2) the ability to concentrate single-mindedly on one thing at a time.

I don't know about you, but every day I need to refresh my focus on time, to ensure I'm using it, not wasting it away. Easy to do if I slip into a week of 'busy-ness' rather than efficienty creating BUSINESS. Our one non-renewable resource in life is time. Here's some tips you can apply RIGHT NOW to better use your time today.

1 in 100 will be wealthy

Did you know... Take any 100 people at the start of their working careers and follow them for 40 years until they reach retirement age, and here’s what you’ll find.

According to the Department of Health & Social Security: just 1 person will be wealthy; 4 people will be financially secure; 5 people will have to continue working; 36 people will be dead; and 54 people will be dead broke – dependant on their meagre Social Security benefits, relatives, friends even charity for a minimum standard of living.

So that’s only 1% achieve financial freedom. Scary. That's why I highly recommend ...

60,000 thoughts a day

We have some 60,000 thoughts a day. 95% are the same ones you had yesterday. Scary thought!

What are you doing to stimulate that internal dialogue? TV, reading, comparing, judging self, repeating conversations in your head ... it seems such a natural process, to repeat the same information and thoughts we had the day before, and the day before that. Our conditioning is powerful in channeling our thinking and behaviour, unless we challenge our conditioning and default processes and consciously choose to 'think differently'. As Einsein said, 'You can't solve a problem at the same level it was created'. So, what thoughts are being repeated more often than they you would like? And what can you do to change it?

Subliminal Software

This is one of the coolest bits of software ever for people like us. Subliminal messages work... and all it takes to influence your mind, is a simple 100-millisecond message flashed before your eyes. Someone once told me: you're always in a trance ... it's just whether YOU have chosen the message or someone else has chosen it for you. How true.

I'd much rather be consciously programming myself for success at every opportunity, so this software is one of the best finds ever. Derren Brown, the UK mentalist, has recently been bringing the public's attention to how easily we are influenced by daily sublimal messages around us in everyday life. What might be subtley influencing you today that has perhaps gone unnoticed? This software encourages you choose what to feed your mind subliminally:

http://www.subliminal-power.com/?afl=15697

Use it for embedding confidence, energy, motivation, healthy habits and positive attitudes. Perhaps the most famous and controversial experiment using subliminal messages was performed by researcher Dr James Vicary. He flashed the messages "I want popcorn" and "Drink more coke" for just 100-milliseconds in front of a movie audience. Nobody "saw" the messages, but during that sitting popcorn sales shot up 57.8% and coke sales rocketed 18.1%. How does it work?

Pick up the phone

One of my colleagues has been struggling with average income for some time. As an Osteopath, this colleague has serviced literally hundreds of clients. Most days, there are huge gaps in their appointment book despite them being a capable, experienced Osteopath with some star clients.

When starting out, Chiropracters receive much more training about how to build a service business, than Osteopaths. Mainly based on Amercian business-building success models, Chiropracters learn about the lifetime value of a client; how to encourage Standing Order payments for client commitment to health; servicing beyond the session; adding value with merchandise and information; how to have conversations that create and retain clients; how to ask for referrals. Generally, Chiropracters are known to be 'better business people' than Osteopaths. You can understand why! So what is the one quickest solution to fix my colleague's problem?

Be ready to change...

Bob Parson's of GoDaddy.com has a fabulous blog called Hot Points - it's very inspirational about building a business and he's written a superb article called "Never Give Up (But Always Be Ready To Change: Turning $15,000 into $64 million & Kissing $64 million goodbye)" - a fairly compelling title I think you will agree!

Click here to read more

It runs in the family

I am fortunate to come from a family of sales people, with stories abound of failures and success. In many ways, it's in the blood ... or at least on the end of the phone whenever I want some fresh advice and insights. My dad, Bob Miller, is quite a character and well known in the Australian media for his cheeky, outrageous outspoken-ness ... he is rarely politically correct, is renowned for being blunt about facts & results and is motivated to shake up the status quo. His sayings and sales mantras have rung in my mind and form the foundation to my own success habits ...

Way of the Warrior

An old Chinese saying reads, "He who conquers himself is the mightiest warrior".

And selling is a key area of business where this saying rings true time and time again. My experience is that only by mastering our own values, beliefs and behaviours can we create the kind of freedom and flow in business we desire.

The powerful (and sometimes painful!) truth is that we are responsible for the results we produce (or do not produce) when selling. Excuses may fly around to displace the responsibility for low sales to other people or things. But let's face it. It's the decisions we make every day that contribute to the outcomes we have been involved in creating. Like it or not.

As sales warriors, we strive to master ourselves through the zen of many experiences including ...

• mindful awareness and learning from every day
• setting clear goals to focus our activities: annual, monthly, weekly, daily
• tranforming fear or uncertainty into confidence
• vigilantly creating our winning mindset
• holding ourselves accountable
• managing time and saying 'no'
• learning passionately about and from our environment
• mastering the art of communication

What would you be willing to change today, to practise the way of the warrior in your selling activities?

Effective business cards

I've often had clients who use 'needing to get the cards and letterhead' as an excuse for not getting started on sales. Business cards can be a powerful part of your identify, more often to verify to yourself, then the world, that you actually are a real Property Investor, Change Catalyst or Chocolate Maker. However, don't let a little thing like lack of business cards get in the way of simply getting out there and having passionate conversations that create sales. What does make an effective business card is ...