Are You Pushing Business Or Pulling Business ?

Time and time again sales people have pitched me with features and benefits before they have even asked me if I have any knowledge of what they have to sell or program they propose. They just keep talking and move to a close. Two things come to my mind. That poor person just does not get it. Even worse that poor person's boss does not get it. These types of people are the types who give sales people a bad wrap. I honestly could not sleep at night having sold someone something they did not need or want.

We all have to carve a living out of life. Some of us get the chance to do what really turns us on. How good is that? For me I get to do two things that really excite me. One is being the sales leader for a contact centre. I work with companies who have some pain in their processes that I help resolve. Having been an entrepreneur most of my life I know that the biggest issue with business is growing business. More important is growing business profitably. Most successful business owners know they can't be good at all things. Basically I love helping my customers grow their business. I am also a business coach. I help my clients turn their dreams into successful businesses. I also help business owners turn their struggling companies around. This is all very rewarding to me. I am a lucky guy. For me it's not sales.

I ask that you think hard about what I have stated in the previous paragraph. I get joy in helping other people find their success. The only way I can do this is to find out what they want to achieve. I can only do this by asking questions. This is where the pulling business part kicks in. It is only through asking the questions and really listening that the solution become obvious. I should point out that it should also be obvious for your customer or client too. It is when you get to this stage you can then ask your potential customer how would it feel if this was the solution that would benefit their business. Please note that I have asked two questions here. One was the emotional part and the second being the good for your business part. I truly believe if you marry the two questions together and the answer is yes to both you have sale. The potential customer came to the determination of what they need to do. They are making the purchase. I did not sell them anything. This is what I call pulling business.

I agree that at some point of the process there has to be a features and benefits conversation. To be really successful at selling you have to be good at pulling. This is achieved by asking good and thought provoking questions. It is only after answering these questions that you can move to the benefits and successful ending. My experience is, don't rush. It pays to be patient. When your customer has made a purchasing decision it has been made for the right reasons. Have you noticed that no where in this article did I mention price? If you do not focus on the price your potential customer will not focus on the price either. Isn't it time you started pulling your way to successful selling?

Does Your Positive Attitude Run On Automatic

Recently while attending a Rotary District Leadership weekend, I found myself in a room full of people with high energy and positive attitudes. People who want to effect change and make the world a better place both at home and in countries in need. It's one of the many reasons I belong to Rotary. My article this week is not about Rotary but it's the people of Rotary who planted the seed for this weeks positive attitude article.
I find personally that I focus on the positive result and not the act of being positive. Spend the energy on the result. The only way to obtain the positive result is with a positive attitude. This means that you are already in the positive attitude mindset. Say good-bye to that voice in the back of your mind saying, " I have to be positive, I have to be Positive". Do you see what I mean by this? One of the keys to getting to this space is to be cognitive of your thoughts. If your thoughts are positive outcome based, it's about the outcome.
I often refer to myself as the opportunity salesman. Do you suppose you can be the best you can be with a limp attitude? I don't think so. Do you want to go through life without becoming better than you are today? I would hope not. The human race is evolving. Do you suppose that evolution is taking place because of the doubters and negative minded types. I don't think so. The can do positive minded individuals are leading the charge. To use an analogy. Many of us in North America are disgruntled with politics and politicians. So what happens. We vote leaders and governments out. All the energy is spent combating the other political party. I ask you. What do suppose would happen if all were pulling in the same direction? I expect the social and business agendas would be met. That's why I don't watch the news. It's counter productive. I get my news from the Internet. My reading includes business news and good new stories. There is no room for negativity in my mind. Yes I would agree that we can not go through life with blinders on however I prefer to spend time in the space that I have some control over.
Here are some simple tips that will certainly get your head in a positive state of mind.

1. Start a gratitude journal and write in it every morning. You will discover you have much to be thankful for.
2. Review your goals. To do lists are good however they are activity based and not big picture. I caution you not get your to do list and goals mixed up. You may find that if your trying to change a habit that is related to a goal you will need to put this on your to do list until it becomes automatic.
3. Look for a couple of inspirational web sites and save them on your favorites list. Read a few of these each morning.
4. At the end of each business day write down what you will do first thing in the morning. Open your email second as that creates reacting to external forces. Yes you will have to deal with these emails but you should deal with them on your terms.
5. Look for positive minded new friends whether they are social or business.

It is my belief the can do people are those who have their positive attitude in automatic. All their energy is focused on the end result. The bonus is, that it's one heck of allot more fun to do than grinding through things you deem a pain in the butt. How are you going to start your day tomorrow? I know how I am going to start mine.

Life Lessons In This Message

We as humans generally become more risk adverse as we mature. Why do you suppose that happens? I believe there are two answers to that question. With age one has less time to recover from a set back, financial or otherwise. The second is that we have become conditioned to react from certain events because we have been there before. I will share some of what I have learned from both my successes and my failures. Making sound decisions should be a process whether you are young or old. This is where the study and reading part plays a role. Knowledge can be learned through study, while wisdom for the most part is earned.
Quite simply it shapes up this way. I have been broke twice in my life and lived to tell about it. Yes, this builds character but it should not have to be that way. Both set backs were a result of bad decisions. In both instances I was owner of bricks and mortar businesses. Yes industry consolidations played a large role in the failures. But, to be perfectly honest some impulsive decisions in my personal life played a big part as well. You will notice on my Linkedin Profile that my education is a Masters In Common Sense. I can honestly say I gained this degree the hard way. I grew up with a strong family background that included decency and work ethic. The common belief in our home was this is a land of opportunity and you have loads of talent. I did not formally go to university however I was continually taking courses in business as well as attending personal development workshops. I was heavily engaged in personal development long before it became in vogue. Being an ADHD I knew I must invest time in this area, as it would help me be more cognitive of my decisions. I believed it would help me make more rational decisions. For the most part it did. ADHD's are emotionally charged and running with your heart is not always the best practice. This life course has brought me to where I am today as a coach to business owners. I have learned that many entrepreneurs get so emotionally involved it often clouds the decisions they must make.
One of life's toughest experiences came during a period when I owned a small business with a staff of 12. It was a successful business for 9 years followed by 2 years of a living hell. A consolidation in the industry coupled with a large life style left myself and the business with little wiggle room during a down turn in the economy. I lost everything including my pride. I managed to hold on to our house with the help of family. Through these times I lost my self-esteem and confidence. I hit rock bottom. I wondered. Could things ever get better? I can assure you they can.
This is where the lesson part comes in. I felt I always took the responsibility for my actions. For the most part that is true but it is easy to blame external forces. I also blamed these external forces as a form of personal denial. Taking responsibility for your actions is only half of what is required for you to move on after such events. One must make changes in how we approach the next steps. More of the same way of doing things will produce the same results. You need to understand why things went wrong. Were these events things you had control over? If that is the case it's time for some real soul-searching and understanding of yourself. Ask yourself. Is a change required of your habits and the way you do things? You have to peel back the layers of the onion and see what's in the middle. Often there is a smell associated with this exercise. It takes courage to look that deeply inside ones inner self. I did it and I moved forward.
Lessons can also be learned from our successes. I believe time should be taken to reflect and learn from our success. It's only natural to take success for granted. Success and victory feel great and do not carry the anguish and pain that comes from failure. You should take a step back and look at what took place to reach your goal. Was there pain, or were there roadblocks that you over came? What I have learned from my success as a businessperson is that I work well with people. I love to grow business and relationships. I am good at letting staff be the best they can be and to allow them to learn from their mistakes and to grow. What I am not good at is too much structure and repetitive work. I hate being managed. I need things to be fresh and engaging. I like strategic thinking that is solution based. I like projects because they have a beginning and an end. I ask many of my clients. Whats your end game with your company? What's your exit strategy? Many do not have an exit strategy. You should build your life or business plan around that outcome. That was one of my toughest lessons in business. I had an opportunity to sell my business at it's height. The irony is that three years later the business collapsed. You can not begin to appreciate the pain associated with that decision. But I learned from that.
Yes the toughest lessons come from failure. It is through your failures that you are able to have bigger success in the future. Success is rarely easy. You see, even in success we often say to our selves "I would do it a little differently next time".