Archive for Blog
Knowledge is Overated and a Bunch of Crap!
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The longer I live the more I realize that gaining knowledge for knowledge sake is really overated and just a bunch of crap. So what if you know how to build a deck, balance a checkbook, or even start a business. What does the knowledge do for you, UNLESS you take action and actually do something about it!
I think everyone in America has heard at one time or another this statement…
“You can do anything you put your mind to!”
What I always like to say is “That’s great, now prove it!”
You see proving it is really where the rubber meets the road. Taking action is what seperates the winners from losers.
If you want to find out more about this listen to our most recent podcast…
We All Need a Change of Perspective and Some More Hope!
Posted by: | CommentsWhy YOU Should Be Like Paul Blart
Posted by: | CommentsNow some of you are saying…who the heck is this Paul Blart cat? Paul Blart is the character in the movie Mall Cop. We rented it from the Red Box last night…
At any rate, most people would watch this as a comedy, get a few laughs, and try and recite oneliners to their buddies at work the next day, but I saw something totally different and something that is a great business lesson.
I saw Passsion. Paul was passionate about his job of being the security guard at the mall. He came up with ideas to make things more efficient for the customers, he had a great attitude, and he had a good work ethic. Now people made fun of Paul. Why would anyone take the job of mall security guard so seriously? Well serious people take their jobs, whatever they may be, seriously.
- Do you take your role seriously?
- Do you have unbridled PASSION for your business?
- Do you constantly seek out ways to improve your clients experience?
If not, now is as good a time as any to get started. Be Passionate, Have Fun, and Get Going!e
In This New World, You Better be Fast to Change!
Posted by: | CommentsSome good friends of ours turned us onto to Red Box last week. And, for those of you who do not know what Red box is, let me explain. For one measly buck you can walk up to the Red Box at over 15000 locations and rent a movie. No lines, no check out person, just you, the Red Box, and one buck. That is it. Sounds pretty simple right? It is.
Now why do I like Red Box? Well, first off I would occasionally rent a movie from Comcast. It is easy and I never have to worry about returning the movie…but why can Red Box give me a movie for $1 and Comcast wants $3-4?? Highway robbery I tell ya!
Last night I thought about Blockbuster and Hollywood video. Does anyone go to these places anymore? And if so why?
So what does this have to do with you business? Well, times, they are a changing. If you think you have the market cornered, then you are deceived at your very core. There is someone, somewhere, plotting to do it better, faster, and cheaper than you. They are lying in wait to jump up and take your clients. They are opening up bank accounts to deposit checks, cash, and credit card payments that once went to you.
So you say, “is there anything I can do?” Yep, there sure is and here is a quick list of action items you can take right away…
1. You need to be constantly reinventing yourself for your market. People want something new. What is the latest, the greatest, the freshest. Take your product or service and give it an overhaul.
2. You need to be on the Honeymoon with you clients all the time. Never assume your relationship is so forged in stone that you no longer have to work at keeping it. You need to constantly woo and wow your best clients. They demand it and are looking for a quick divorce from you if you do not keep up.
3. You need to pay close attention to the competition. Running a small business does not mean go in a cave. Keep your clients close and your competition even closer. You need to know what they are up to and when they are up to it!
4. Don’t wait, do it today! Got a new product? A new Service? Get it out today. Stop waiting for it to be perfect, because it never will. Take massive action today! There is not time to think, ponder, and plan…just get off your butt and do it!
5. Stay lean and mean! If you think you need a large overhead to run your business then look at the Red Box vs Blockbuster. Which one would you rather own? A store with rent, overhead, and lots of employees…or a box that automatically takes money without you being there? I dunno…tough one. If you want to stay in the game, you need to control your expenses and come up with ways to do business faster with less money.
I gotta go and return my 1 dollar movie…man I feel like a good steward of my money…
Sex, Money, and Flatter Abs
Posted by: | CommentsIsn’t that what everyone wants? This has to be what everyone is looking for because every time I am in the checkout line at the grocery store all I see are magazines that are telling me how to have better sex, make more money from home in my pj’s and how I can drop 50 pounds and get rock hard abs in just 30 seconds a day! I gotta tell you that all of this sounds pretty good, don’t you think? But what does this have to do with your business?
About 5 years ago, I was on the bottle water aisle and normally I would just get my water, head past the magazine rack, and race tot the checkout line…but on this day I stopped. I stopped to look at the magazines. I asked myself this simple question….
“If there are 5 Sports magazines, why does someone choose one magazine over another?”
This same question could be true about your business. If there are X number of competitors , then why does someone choose you over the competition?
I had a client tell me one time it was because of their awesome service. I had another client tell me it was because the were accredited. Really, you mean a client actually paid you money because you had some initials after your name? Give me a break!
People are people and they make choices based on EMOTIONS, and PROBLEMS they are trying to solve. Let’s go back to the magazine ads. Does your headline scream…
HEY YOU! WE KNOW HOW TO FIX YOUR BIGGEST PROBLEM WITH _____(you fill in the blank)____ FAST, EASY, and PAIN FREE!
or does it say…
Hey you, we are really friendly, have really low prices, and we have so many certifications we must be trustworthy!
As I stood in front of the magazines that day, I realized that I needed better headlines to attract the client I wanted. Headlines were everything. They get the client in the door and once they are there it is your sales process that keeps them.
Want to learn more about headlines? Listen to our podcast And if you want flatter abs, then check out our friend, Jacob Nordby at www.fatforfood.com
Oh crap! I Can’t Find My Keys!!!!
Posted by: | CommentsOne of my favorite quotes is from Les Brown. He says, “what you focus on the longest, becomes the strongest!” Now the question becomes, what is it that YOU should be focusing on? In the business of sales, the answer is easy…YOU should be focused on making sales.
I often tell the story of lost keys. We have all lost our car keys at one time or another. Do you remember the last time you lost your keys? Do you remember that sense of panic that ran through your mind? Where are they? Where were they last? What am I going to do????
That mindset is a great mindset for any sales person. You should get up every morning and say I have to find and make a sale today!! You should hit the ground looking for a sale with the same frame of mind that you take on when you realize you just lost your keys and must find them at all cost! Let’s take a look at how this can apply to your sales career…
1. You realize you must find a sale today!
2. You start asking great questions….
- Where did my last sale come from?
- How did I find my last sale?
- Where did I look for my last sale?
- Where is the most logical place that I could find a paying client?
- Who could I ask for a referral?
3. You don’t stop until every stone has been looked under and the sale (keys) has been made!
When we get really focused on the main thing, then we start to uncover the process and amazingly we find what we are looking for!
Now, go out and make a friend, because if you make a friend, you will make a sale! I guarantee it!
Those Pants Don’t Make Your But Look Big Because Your But is Big
Posted by: | CommentsWe have all heard the question, “Do these pants make my but look big?”And our normal response is no, but the truth is that for most people it is not the pants that make their but look big, it is really their but that is big. I have met a lot of people with big buts. They don’t want to admit that they have big buts. They would simply rather hear, “No your but is not big” than hear the truth.
Now before you go nuts, I am not talking about your derier. I am talking about all those buts that you use to keep you from pursuing your dream or passion. I have people ask me for advice all the time and when I give the advice, I usually hear something like this…
That sounds great…BUT
I would really like to start…BUT
Buy would that be awesome…BUT
Sure, I could do that…BUT
If you need a visual, check out this video…
You see where I am going with this one? It is their BUT that is so big that they will never get anything accomplished. So the question is not “do these pants make my but look big?” Instead the question is “What will you do to get rid of that big BUT?”
This Can Make You Rich, Healthy, And Beautiful…
Posted by: | CommentsEveryone is looking for the “answer”. How can I get more sales? How can I manage my time better? How can I eat 10 saltine crackers in under a minute without having anything to drink? (Actually that can’t be done, we tried…)
Anyway, you get my point. Let me share with you a very simple truth to making whatever you want happen…
DECIDE.
Yep, that’s it. Simply decide. You want to be a winner – decide. You want more sales – decide. You want to lose weight – decide. You see nothing happens until you make the decision. I meet a lot of people who want a lot of things, but only a few people move from wanting to getting and the bridge is simply the decision to go after the dream.
Now when I say to decide, I really mean you need to sell out to the decision. Selling out means that you will do whatever it takes to make your want a reality. When you decide to go after the vision, you will get resistance. There will be mountains to overcome, hurdles to jump, and battles to fight. There will be days you want to slip, days your will be fully engaged, and days you will question your decision. If you are sold out, then you will overcome all of these hurdles.
You may have to work harder than the guy next to you, you may have to run farther than the guy before you, and you may need to make more calls than the person in front of you, but if you are completely sold out the gaining the victory, then these things will not matter.
Everyone has a magic potion to make you rich, skinny, and beautiful they want to sell you, but the real sell comes when you sell yourself on your dream.
Now, go out and make a friend, cause if you make a friend you will make a sale! (maybe the first friend you need to make is be a friend to yourself…just a thought)
Video Killed the Radio Star?
Posted by: | CommentsWe recently began making videos for our mortgage company. Why? Good question. There are several reasons…
1. Video is a great way to duplicate yourself.
2. Video is a great way to communicate. Most people are visual and using video will better illustrate your message.
3. Video is a great way to introduce yourself and your personality.
But making a great video requires a little more than just sitting in front of a camera. We have 3 things we try and do with every video we create to give it the best shot at being successful…
1. We want to make it fun!
2. We want to make it entertaining!
3. We want to make it educational!
This is certainly new for us but a very exciting way to make a large impact! Stay tuned for more info on video!
You May Already be a Winner, but…
Posted by: | CommentsI got up this morning and Angie turned the TV on really as background noise but as I walked passed I caught the end of an interview with a couple who were behind on their house payments and facing foreclosure. There seems to be a lot of these stories today. Notice I said seems…
Anyway I got to thinking about the question, who is to blame? Who’s fault is this whole big mess? I hear a lot of people say the fault is with the government, the banks, wall street, the people who signed up for the loan and even a few people have said it can be equally shared. I have sat back and watched this unfold and I have to finally say my peace. I say in in love to help you, but I am sure it will offend some.
The person who is really to blame is the person who signed the papers. That’s right I said it. At some point we have to wake up a realize that your life is yours. Your dreams are yours and your choices are yours. Dr. Phil (like him or not) says, “if you choose the action, you choose the consequence”. Sure the paperwork has fine print, but you are still afforded the chance to refuse to sign until you have read and understood everything fully. Now some may say that would take forever. Really? Is your future worth it? I don’t know, only you can answer that question.
I recently saw a You Tube video where the lady was in tears about her situation of foreclosure. She said she was duped by the loan officer. Really? I have always thought that if I said that someone else pulled the wool over my eyes then it was my fault for not doing my due diligence, but I guess that is just me. As humans we don’t want to see anyone suffer. I don’t like to see suffering anymore than anyone else, but I have also realized that in my life times of suffering were times of tremendous growth, especially when the suffering came at the hands of a poor choice I made.
I recently spoke to a man who was looking for a government program to help him save his home. He has lost his job and said he needed a break. I asked him if he had any savings. He said he yes. I suggested he use his savings to get him through until he found work, but that was more than he could stand. He was offended that he actually use his savings to sustain him through a difficult time. Good grief, isn’t that what a saving account is for?
Now bringing on people to TV, radio, and print makes for higher ratings and plays on the fact that people were scammed. My Pastor once said Trust God and test people. Pretty good advice if you ask me.
The fact of the matter is that life has challenges. It has ups and downs. You need to prepare for the downs. Too many people live like they are 10 feet tall and bullet proof. The actions you take today, will determine the world you live in tomorrow. I learned a great business lesson from a mentor many years ago and this is what it was…
To keep problems from happening again you have to go to the root of the problem and fix it there. Most of the time the root of the problem is a choice or series of choices. Change those and you change the outcome.
So the truth is that you are already a winner. Examine your choices, get wise counsel, and take responsibility for your actions and then you will cash in on that winning lottery ticket – the ticket of life!
Now go out and make a friend, because if you make a friend you will make a sale!
