WHAT REALLY WORKS?… In the game of life there seems to be a rather frustrating rule. Let's call it the Rule of Change. It goes like this… if it is easy to do, it probably won't last. For example, consider this irritating truism…Crash Diets Don't Work! Here's another one… Going to the Gym Just Once Doesn't Work. The logical conclusion is that if you don't do it repeatedly then there is no permanence to the change. If there is no "compound effect" then the change you are looking for doesn't stick. Sometimes you get immediate results but they are short-lived. Taking it one step further… there needs to be a habit or a series of habits in place to create the permanence required to institute change.
This is certainly true in the Business of Sales. What really works is the consistency of effort, a consistency of routine supported by a series of habits that move in a common direction. Let's say you decide you want to make a change… let's say you decide you want to call five Past Clients or members of your Sphere on an ongoing basis and ask them for referrals. If you can do that every single day for a month, pretty soon it will still happen automatically. Then you won't have to think about it or police yourself, it just happens automatically.
In her best seller, "Stop Saying Your Fine", author Mel Robbins says that when a thought or task crosses your mind, you have to pass the "5 Second Test" in order to get it done. Mel says you "must take action in 5 seconds or your resistance will take over". She calls this Activation Energy… the force required to move you in a new direction. Activation Energy will move you out of your existing comfort zone and into a new activity. She goes on to say that "you must remember that you're never going to feel like it". You have to "outsmart your brain" for those few moments that you don't want to make the change.
Here is your ACTION STEP… start thinking about your Sales Business… where do you need to employ the "5 Second Rule"?. Where do you need to start taking advantage of your Activation Energy to change direction during the day? What is your particular "snooze button"? What's an obvious change that you have been putting off? Is it…
1. What time you get up?
2. What time you leave the house?
3. What time you start prospecting?
4. How many contacts you make each day?
5. Finding an accountability partner?
6. Cleaning up all your old leads?
7. Practicing a new objection handler?
8. Getting more comfortable with closing 5-7 times?
One item of homework in this Sales Tip… next time you catch yourself pressing the "snooze button" in your business, next time you start putting something off that you know you need to do now… STOP IT! Use your Activation Energy and change direction. Start creating that particular habit and you will start making the changes you are looking for. Doing things once doesn't work. Doing it over and over does. If you want success to become a habit start employing the habits that will result in success. It's not rocket science, just do the right things repeatedly. NO Excuses.