Go Deeper!

Happy Friday and Happy Labor Day Weekend!       My math scholars will immediately recognize this symbol.   Participants in my trainings will also recognize it.  I use it to demonstrate a basic principle of life.    I hold up a dollar bill and ask the group, "For a dollar, who can tell me the first 3 digits of Pi?"   Usually, a decent number of hands go up and people start shouting out...   3.14   I give the dollar to the first right answer I hear and congratulate them on their smarts.  Then I hold up a crispy new $20 bill.  The crowd is now on the edge of their seat.  I then say,   "For $20, what are the next 3 digits?"    Silence.  I wait. They ponder. More silence...then after about a minute someone shouts out...   3.14...159!   I gladly hand her the $20 bill.  Someone in the group says, "No fair, she used her cell phone to find the answer!"   Life doesn't care where the answer comes from, you have to use every resource available to you to get the answers you need.    Why do those "extra" 3 numbers matter?  Have you ever seen the movie Apollo 13?  Tom Hanks, Kevin Bacon...directed by Ron Howard (yes. Opie from Andy Griffith!)?  After their craft was damaged, they were trying to figure out how to get home.  There were no fancy computers...only slide rules (anybody?) and good old-fashioned formulas to calculate the trajectory needed to "slingshot" off the moons gravitational field to make it back home.   3.14 wont get you back home...3.14159 will.   There is an expression I coined a few years ago and I now use it everywhere I go,   "Smart skims the surface, but genius goes deep."   To get the answers you need to "slingshot" out of your current situation or get to a higher level, you will have to Go Deeper.  Being smart can make you money in sales, going deeper will help you "get rich"!   Take another look at the tools and resources around you... something is there that you didn't notice before.   I consider myself technologically savvy.  I do my all my own book design, layouts, websites and use all kind of technology to do the things I need to do.  I have always shied away from Word Press.  At the time I was introduced to it years ago, it was an open source program and only "real" geeks and geniuses could use it...there I admitted I don't know everything!   Recently, I have been working with a partner to develop a platform and content for insurance agents and his young son said, "You need to take another look at Word Press...it does amazing things!"   On the word of a technology "young gun", I decided to take another look.  I went to YouTube, forums, blogs and support resources and spent a few days trying to get it to make sense.  Then, in a flash, my eyes opened.      I could see it.   The answer I needed to "raise my game", develop content, training platforms and other ideas have been shown to me this week because someone made me Go Deeper.   What will you see if you look again?  If you Go Deeper?   I did a webinar yesterday and showed a group of agents a true ground floor opportunity.  Many of them had heard of it and even sat through a meeting about it already...but not one of my meetings!   I do more than rote training.  I am always focused on showing someone why Opportunity Is Now Here...to give them a in-depth sense of how things come together so they can see the entire picture...not just the surface...I make them go deeper.   One more time for emphasis...Go Deeper!   A BIG Happy Friday shout out to Justin B.!    He spent 2 hours walking me through it...showing an old dog new tricks...helping me...   Go Deeper!    Until next week, I wish you Money, Power, Success!

The Be Back Kid!

Running the road can be an adventure.  You never know day to day and appointment to appointment what is going to happen.   You stare at the list of opportunities for the day and try not to assess who will buy and who will be a challenge.   But we are human and some amount of prejudging is what we are wired for...Miss O'Malley sounds like she need insurance but not so sure about Mr. Johnston.   Yes...we all do it.   We all have our own set of credos we operate by.  They may not be written down and we can't  recite them, but we tend to live by them.   Met an agent about a month ago that said he hated "Be Backs".  For him, this was anyone that canceled, no showed, or didn't buy but said he should contact them later. He said it was a total waste of time and that his time was too valuable to chase people down.   I told him he should rethink his position and strategy...that it was costing him.  I explained that real life happens to people and, yes, some are stalling or letting him down easy, but some of them really forgot about the appointment, have a sick relative in the hospital, or need time to make a decision.   He would have none of it.  Good kid...building a solid business...but missing the mark on this subject.   One day, we had a scheduled call and even though we allocated a specific time, I always ask, "Is this a good time for you?"   He said, "I need 10 minutes to wrap up a client matter...please call me back then."   10 minutes passed and I did not call.  In 20 minutes, he called me and I did not pickup.  He texted me and I did not "hit him back".  He called twice again that day leaving voice mails...I did not respond.  That evening he sent an email saying,   "Where are you?"    I answered...   "I don't do be backs."   The next day we spoke and laughed at my "lesson" that I had tried to impart.  He said he would try the approach I suggested and we agreed if it did not bear fruit in 30 days, he could go back to his old credo.   Didn't take long.  The first week he had 5 no-shows and 4 cancellations - almost half of his appointments.  He followed up with each of them and reset 5 (55% appointment save rate) of them.  He ran those appointments the following week and closed 2 (40% close rate) but also got 2 referrals that he sold the same week.     4 sales that were generated from "be backs".  Nothing like a few sales to change your philosophy.  Yes, he will still have to deal with no-shows, cancellations and people who put off making a decision.  Sure, there are times with clients where you have to know when to fold'em and when to hold'em and stop chasing.   Then there are times you have to be the...   The Be Back Kid!    Until tomorrow, I wish you Money, Power, Success!

Stay the Course - Keep Running!

Ever seen a baby giraffe take its First Steps?   Gangly and awkward. Their front legs are about 10% longer than their hind legs (National Geographic.com!) and their weight isn't optimally distributed.   No matter...the baby giraffe keeps on struggling...just to stand up.   The struggle continues as they get their balance and take those crucial first steps.    As with nature and our lives, it is not the starting that determines success...it is the continuing... Staying The Course...to Keep Running.     When full grown and developed, the giraffe can run at speeds of up to 34.3 mph (that .3 matters when your predator can only run 34 mph!)...amazing!   Goes to show that things don't always have to go right, look right and there are time when you will look awkward, but stay the course...keep running.   Can I admit something?  The last few days were tough.    I am an encourager (couldn't tell, could you?).  That is what a coach/mentor does...he inspires and instructs...he encourages.  I don't know any other way.  I even use exclamation points in my text messages.    When you are an encourager, you hear a lot about peoples challenges (I don't mind...I am built for this!).  This week was full of them for people.  Not the normal, "it will be ok" kind of stuff, but "real challenges".   I am also a problem-solver.  As a result, I get vested into the persons challenge and try to determine strategically what can be done.  I offer my own brand of tough love when the person seems to be off-course from what they said they wanted.  I hold them accountable.   Last night, the "little voice" that is in each of us spoke to me and told me to tell them to,   "Stay the course...keep running."   Whatever you are facing today that seems insurmountable I want to tell you to Stay the Course...keep running.   "I didn't pass the insurance exam" - Stay the course...keep running.   "I am down to my last $100 dollars and don't have gas to run appointments" - Stay the course...keep running.   "I am struggling to turn my business around and I'm scared I am going to fail" - Stay the course...keep running.   "Something big I had counted on fell through, I don't know what to do next"- Stay the course...keep running.   "I am overwhelmed by all the things I am facing"-  Stay the course...keep running.    When a child takes their first steps we celebrate the moment but we know it is just the beginning of the process.  Many of us are engaged in things that are new and we expect that life would "celebrate" us for taking the initiative.  The euphoria of first steps makes some of us think that the rest of the new journey should be a cakewalk.  That taking the first step is all we are required to do and the rest will fall into place.   If only life were that easy.  Life is not always fair, but it is just.    Fair would be to give everyone the same thing, regardless of merit or effort.  One for you...one for me.  Ever had somebody get something that you got, but they didn't work for it?   Just means people get what they pay for, what they sweat for, what they earn.  Success requires a price.  To pass a test or make it through a test. To build a business or handle your business.  There is a price to pay.    The currency of life is persistence, tenacity, stick-to-itiveness, grit, hutzpah, staying power, fighting back come hell or high water.   Think you have run out of the currency of life?  Check your pockets...you have some left...   Stay the Course...Keep Running.    Until tomorrow, I wish you Money, Power, Success!

First Step!

When the kids were small, we used to celebrate the end of summer with a little luncheon or picnic.   The most memorable was the summer that my daughter, Faith, was going into 1st grade.   It was at Applebee's and to commemorate I went "all out"...everyone got their own desert!   The table was covered with Molten Lava cake, Cherry Cheesecake and my favorite...Walnut Blondie - a delicious cake with ice cream and hot white chocolate maple syrup icing drizzled and served in a small cast iron skillet.   Ahhhhh...I need a moment!   In the middle of the grand finale, I noticed big tears coming from Faith.  I have learned with kids (and people) you don't always rush to ask what's wrong.  Sometimes they just need a moment...sometimes they need a "quiet" ear...sometimes they need help.   As the tears continued to flow, Natalie asked, "Are you ok?"   "No."   "What is it?" I asked trying to be compassionate as my blondie melted faster than I could eat it.   "I can't read."   The admission burst the dam and she sobbed all the more.  No one tried to console her, not even my young boys...we all instinctively knew this was one of those times she just needed to cry.   There is so much more to the story, but she ended up getting an award as the best reader in the school that year.  A week ago, she entered her Junior year (with only 2 semesters behind her) with a perfect 4.0 in Russian studies.  We just moved her and the dogs into her first place...she is amazing!   Think back to some First Steps in your life...your career.  I bet that you are still experiencing First Steps...right?   Today, I am doing a training webinar entitled - "Help!  It's My 1st AEP!"   Doesn't matter if you know what an AEP is or not (Annual Election Period), just understand that for a few hundred agents that will attend...it is a   First Step.   I have some people I work with in a call center (good morning Princess Warriors!) and some of them are going to get their insurance license today...good luck!  Some has passed already (congrats!)...that is a major   First Step.   My colleague in Trinidad is prepping her second book release.  Even if you have done something before but are doing it in a new way...it still requires a   First Step.   What is it about 1st steps that challenges us, scares us?    I always say that anxiety is 99% excitement and 1% fear of the unknown.  We take First Steps believing a positive change will occur in our lives, but that doesn't take the fear away.   Am I good enough?  Can I learn what we need to learn?  Am I wasting my time, money and energy?   If those are the thoughts going through your head, take comfort...you are normal...you are human.   Be encouraged....you can do this!  Say that to yourself 3 times...   I Can Do This!   Go on...say it!   That potent mix of excitement/fear coursing through your veins causes adrenaline (natures performance enhancement drug) to kick in.  Your blood pumps, the heart races, the lungs breath faster and deeper...your mind is alert...ready to take on the challenge of your next   First Step!    Go on...take it!   Until tomorrow, I wish you Money, Power, Success!

Chess Anyone?

Happy Monday!   I used to play a lot of chess with my kids when they were growing up.  They are smart...and very competitive.   Of course, their young minds were no match for my superior intellect (plus they were just learning to play!).   To get into their heads even further, I would ask them, "Do you want me to play like a first-grader...or frustrator?"   Depending on their answer, I would play at their level or I would give them my Fischer...my Kasparov.   Kind of like choosing your level against the computer.  You can dial in whether you go for simple (level 1) or world-class (level 10).   After a few times of getting beaten by the frustrator, they would invariably ask me to play like a first-grader.  As a good father, I would comply and they would win...   Everyone wants a chance to win.   If only life would allow you to "dial in" the level in which you play it...right?   It does.   Think of the levels as income possibilities.  We all get a chance to come in at "entry-level" income.  To get to 6-figures we have to work our way up through the levels.  The only way for us to go to higher levels is with the 3 Ingredients;   1. Margin - The Profit 2. Core Compentecy - The People 3. Strategy/Tactics - The Process   Most sales people and business owners have products and contracts to sell products that would allow them to be profitable - check   Most sales people and business owners have the Core Competencies (gifts and skills) necessary to make a go of it - check!   What keeps their business struggling is a lack of effective strategies or the tactical will to do what is necessary to grow...or they don't have strategies and tactics to begin with.   A sure recipe for remaining in first-grade...or getting frustrated.   Sales is like chess.  You have to know the value of each piece (margin), what each piece can do (core competency) and you have to put it all together to play effectively (strategy/tactics).  The better your strategy and the better you execute the tactics of that strategy the more effective you will be and the higher you will go.   Do you have a business or marketing plan?   When you wake up each day do you have a preset agenda or do you just "go with the flow"?   Have you evaluated your portfolio of products and figured out the best strategy to distribute them?   Sure there a lot of moving pieces (pun intended!), but all of them are necessary to make your business work.  My kids used to think that pawns were not valuable...until I turned mine into queens!  Every tool you have can be used effectively if you look at it differently...strategically.     "These young guys are playing checkers. I'm out there playing chess." Kobe Bryant     The best people in your industry are playing chess.  I challenge you today to get better strategies.  Once you outline that strategy, implement the tactics then measure, monitor and manage them until you climb through the levels and become a world-class business.    Everything you need is around you...step up to the table and challenge yourself...   Chess Anyone?   Until tomorrow, I wish you Money, Power, Success!