Want to throw you in on a discussion I was having with some business owners and it’s about why most of us don’t want more sales … I say most of us DON’T WANT MORE SALES. Sure, we’d like more sales, but we don’t need them. WHY do I say that? If we really needed more sales, we’d be doing something about it. Like what?
You hit on the great disconnect that I have been working on the past few months. Selling does not appear to me to be personally meaningful to many business owners. It’s like weather. Love to have nice weather, but hey, it’s snowing and we deal the hand we are dealt eh? Actually, we do MORE about weather – like shovel the snow than we do about selling.
But selling, hum. Most intellectually agree that they need more sales BUT there’s so much to do as a business owner that we constantly find something else that is more important and never FIND the time to do something about it. That’s classic Role Rejection thinking in Sales Call Reluctance.
So, once again you are right – it is about clearly seeing the goal FIRST. Unfortunately most give short shrift (brief and inconsiderate or unsympathetic treatment) to clearly seeing it and that is BECAUSE WE ARE NOT GOAL DRIVEN.
Again, many intellectually BELIEVE they are goal drive but they are not. They’ve done the same old, same old for so long that it doesn’t matter what you do (like make sales calls), the results are going to be the same anyway.
What to do? Snap out of it. Realize that the vast majority of producers and achievers set a personally meaningful goal as the first step. So, decide what you want to be when you grow up and go do it! Unfortunately that’s the seminar response and that is very hard to do.
Try this – what personally meaningful goal (change) can you accomplish this week? Spend an hour soul searching. Nothing big. Something small.
Can be as simple as cleaning out the office, renewing acquaintances with three old customers or doing one item off your action plan. Whatever. It just has to be something you decide you will do THIS WEEK.
Set a goal and then do it.
When you do, you will feel good about yourself. It’s addictive.
Then do it again next week. Do it every week.
As you gain confidence, expand your goals.
ONLY ONCE WE ARE GOAL ORIENTED (acting upon the steps necessary to meet the goal; not just talking about it) will we be able to set personally meaningful goals (spend New Year’s in Mexico with the family) and connect immediate tasks (making sales calls) to the goal.
Otherwise, we end up giving lip service to the concept and end up with limp action plans: I will make five sales calls a week this coming six months – I promise I will really do it this time.
Anyway, thanks for bringing up the subject. Gotta go make some sales happen now.
Tom Crouser
Small Business, Schmizness
