You’ve Been Given a Gift. Are You Using It?

/in /by

I heard a commerical the other night that posed a profound question: “Are you using all of the gifts (talents) that you’ve been given?”

Thoreau said many of us, “live lives of quiet desperation.” To me that means we sort of meander through life–taking what’s given us, but not really exploiting our gifts and talents.

As sales professionals, we have many gifts–the gift of creativity–the gift of being able to touch people with our work–the gift of solving problems–etc. But how many of us really “exploit” those gifts?

One Gift That Stands Above All Others
In sales, one gift we’ve been given, that most of us fail miserably to exploit, is the gift of intuition. That gift is a sixth sense…a  feeling…a notion of what’s not right in the relationships we have with prospects and clients. Yet, how often do we follow that intuition–and act on it? Not often.

I was working with a group of accountants last week and we talked about that very thing–“acting on your intution.” If you feel something isn’t right, you must call it out to the prospect–not in an angry, accusatory way–but in an honest, all-truth-on-the-table way.

I was taught early in my career that when you disregard your feelings and hold them to yourself, you bottle up  your creativity–and your ability to be in the present moment with people. Plus, you “own less of your self.”

I hope you’ll think about your intuition–listen to it–and follow it.

It’s a gift you’ve been given.

CORPORATE SELF ESTEEM-Well Kept Secret? Or BS?

/in /by

You all know Dr. Phil. He talks of self-esteem and how important that is in leading a life of well- being and happiness. We all know the price we pay for a poor self image—lack of assertiveness, no dreams, unworthy goals, self-sabotage, little energy.

I am not a social psychologist, an Organizational Theory specialist, or a corporate counselor. And I have only had experience in consulting with over 100 companies and a few thousand people in the last 19 years.

But my belief is that a Company does have a self-esteem. And it impacts EVERYTHING EVERY PERSON does in the company.

Clues
The following are clues that lead one to believe there is a Corporate Esteem problem:

• Energy low inside your company (the physical part). Think about Starbucks vs. your company. Any difference?
• Do you have to sell your product OR are people attracted and compelled to buy it? The more you have to beg to sell, the less corporate esteem you have.
• Attract low vibrating people or high vibrating people. Do your people “humm” throughout the day or merely sputter around?
• Discounting price. You should NEVER discount price. If you do, you have an esteem problem.
• Can’t follow a process. Create a sales process that is in the prospect’s best interest. If you can’t follow it, look inside — not at the customer.
• Don’t have a comprehensive business plan (real and authentic). No vision…no well thought out strategy for getting to the vision.
• Have no cause beyond bottom line. It’s all about money. One sure way to zapp people’s energy for motivation–and that is to make EVERYTHING about money and profit.

The Solution-Some Suggestions
These are five things you can do immediately to improve the CE of your company.

• Connect with the cause (these are the root issues of why you’re in business…the human cause…why did the company start? What did the founder want to accomplish by starting the business? What is the soul of your business? Why do people come to work everyday? How much extra capital do you invest in a cause outside of stakeholder wealth?

• Understand your value.  What is your company value in the products you sell and the services you provide? How does your value impact the people of your client company? How are your clients’ lives better because they have you in them? Don’t have meetings on successful implementations of systems…have meetings on successful results your clients realized as a result of your value. Usually the only time we do that is when we’re creating a company brochure.

• Find customer “pain.” Understand how your value solves problems and make an all-out assault on problems your clients (prospects) have.  Be relentless about understanding the pain, the impact of the pain on the people in their company. Be indignant about ‘denominating the pain’ into $ prior to proposing. Pay no attention to competition. They are irrelevant if you do well here.  If you say you are a “hawk for pain” then do you see the drive to find problems in your client business?

• Have conviction in your process. This speaks specifically to sales people. Does your sales process really have the best interest of the prospect in mind? Do you just jump to RFP’s or do you take the time to really understand the problem, the economics of the problem and the solutions process? You will find this conviction when you do steps 1-3.

• Stop Discounting. You might think discounting helps you get the business. It might, but it also wreaks more damage than it fixes. When you discount and you get the deal, then you have just confirmed that your value isn’t what you said it was. Many times, the prospect sees your value at a higher level than you do.

• Have honest dialogue with people. We live in a corporate America where there is a never-ending supply of babble…blah blah blah. Everyone loves to hear themselves talk and justify, and rationalize and make excuses. Most of it is not lies and deceit, but it’s far from truth. One sure way to live in continuous web of lack is to never talk the truth. If it’s good and the truth, talk about it. If you’re the best in the world at something, tell people. But don’t dress up the pig and pretend it’s something that it isn’t. Your employees and team are on to that. Everyone sees the truth, but if you aren’t talking about it, shame. If your competition is better at something, tell your customer that. If you lose deals because of that, then why haven’t you changed it?

These are some sales rants I had the other day. We’ll get back to the Lost Journal later this week.

Why Prove Myself? (Part II-The Lost Journal)

/1 Comment/in /by

(This is another post from a Journal I found from some of my self work several years ago).

What is it inside us that tells us we have to “prove ourself” to others? What is it that warns us that we “just aren’t enough the way we are”? Fascinating questions–ones I ask myself (since I’m a bit afflicted with this condition).

We Are Enough.
My life coach says we all have a basic question, “Will my life matter when I’m gone?” WOW! That’s a bit too deep for this post, but when you think about it, that very question is at the root of why our behavior becomes “prove-myself-behavior.”

In our work with sales people, who I find to be massively afflicted with this condition, I find that we are all starved to be thought of as “credible.” Yet, the prospect cares a lot less about you than they do about their own struggles and pains (a lot less!).

And if you move into that space of “how can I get them to see my value?” then you’ll move away from where you should be, “how can I contribute value by solving their problems?”

So in a sick sort of way, when you are more interested in proving yourself (how smart you are–how great your product is–how valuable your company is) then you do a major disservice to your prospect–you’ve closed up space for him/her to tell you about their issues.

The very thing you’re working toward — a sale — slips away because your intent drifted from the prospect to your ‘self.’

So when you have this feeling that you aren’t enough the way you are, stop and think about your customer and their issues. And focus on those.

Lost Journal (Part I)

/in /by

When my mom died this year, I was amazed as I cleaned out her home, as to how many journals she had, most with only a page or two filled out. Well, it must be in the Caskey DNA because, come to think of it, I have a lot of journals started as well.

In fact, I came across one last week that was more than half full. And it had recaps of some of my personal therapy/coaching/counseling sessions. I give this to you because some of this informs the training that we do at Caskey. It’s “the inner game” work we do. I hope some of these notions can make a slight difference in your life–as they have in mine. I’ll be exploring a few each week until the end of the year.

====================================================================

It’s never about me. It’s about the problem I’m put on this earth to solve.
This was a good one to start with. It came as a result of my resistance to moving out of my comfort zone. In my training work with people, I see comfort zones as a big roadblock to people (me included) making serious, sustainable changes in their lives. We forever talk about how we “aren’t where we want to be,” but if it takes change, then we resist.

This quote helps me reframe the game–if I see everything as being about me (the money I make, the customers I sell, what I can get out of something), then I will forever be a hostage to my comfort zone.

But if I’m on a journey larger than just satisfying my own needs–and think about my life as having a purpose beyond me, then comfort zones won’t be a problem. If I feel like I have an obligation to live a bigger life, ask a bigger question, serve a bigger purpose, then all the right results will happen.

If you’re a manager, and you have people that you believe are operating inside their comfort zone, have a conversation with them about their bigger story. If they don’t have one, then don’t expect them to move outside their zone much. You, as a manager should use 2007 to help them reframe their bigger journey.

Comments welcome and wanted.

Indicators There is Something Wrong With Your Business Life

/in /by

We’re producing a program called The Elite Seller on November 9-10 in Indianapolis. This is a post I did for our Faculty Resource Blog site. Thought it had appropriateness for all subscribers to this as well.

=====================================================================

Thoreau said “most men live lives of quiet desperation, and go to the grave with their song still in them.” Do you feel like you’re sleep-walking through life—doing the same thing over and over? If so, you are not at your creative best.

So “how do I know this is appropriate for me” is a relevant question. We’ve assembled this list of conditions that you might find yourself in. If you check more than 7 of these 14, then The Elite Seller Retreat is appropriate.

__  I have been doing the same thing in the same way for so long it seems like I’m in a rut. I feel like I could be leveraging my talents better.
__  I watch other people have a lot of success in my field, and I wonder “what do they know that I don’t know?”
__  The training I’ve attended leaves me cold and unmotivated. I feel like I could teach it better than the instructor.
__  I’m already working a lot of hours—I would like a way to be more effective in that time. I don’t want to work longer.
__  I feel like the prospect doesn’t get my value. Sometimes I feel like my message leaves them cold and unmotivated to take action. Therefore, selling cycles last too long—and it keeps me from calling on other prospects.
__   Even though I have a lot of experience in sales, my confidence sometimes slips back to where it was years ago.
__  I’m sometimes bored with my job. And occasionally I have this feeling of emptiness. Like what I do isn’t full of meaning and joy.
__  I feel like although my company supports me, I don’t always feel there are mentors inside the firm to take me to the next level.
__  I feel like I don’t have a good plan for my higher success. I sometimes feel like I just go “do” everyday without a good sense that I’m making progress on my personal goals.
__  It’s been years since I’ve worked ON myself and ON my business. Consequently, I’ve been  “doing” and not “thinking intelligently” about whether I’m doing the right things.
__  I feel like those around me are making progress and are using the latest tools and technology. I sometimes feel like  … I’m back in the stone age.
__  I sometimes wonder if my goals are big enough—meaningful enough—or achievable. And therefore I never know if I’m following the right path to get them accomplished.
__  I feel like the game of sales is changing around me—and I’m not sure I’m prepared for it. Not even sure if I’m using the latest sales strategy to acquire and keep customers.
__  I feel like for as long as I’ve been in the business, that prospects should be chasing me. But they aren’t. And I don’t know why.

Take a look again through those. These have come from actual people who have engaged us over the years with the intent of solving those exact problems. Hope this helps to decide if you have enough reason to come to the event.

It’s Never Price!!

/2 Comments/in /by

In my observation of sales people, I’ve come to the conclusion that everyone falls on a continuum between highly skilled professional and poorly trained amateur. The people at the latter end of that scale are not bad people–they are just badly trained.

And nowhere does it become more apparent than when the sales person talks about the customer’s perception of “price.” If you want to move even one notch up the scale toward the highly skilled professional then, come to your own conclusion that if you’re talking about price with a customer you’re talking about the wrong topic.

It is never the price.

It is ALWAYS the perception the customer has about your value in relation to the price–but it’s never the price. Not only is it ‘never the price,’ but the words you will use to defend the price are irrelevant.

I could sit here for hours and give you all the clever moves and tactics upfront and in the eleventh hour negotiation process that will help you get out of that price mode, but if your “mind about price” is not right, then the words will never matter.

So I suggest the one thing you do over the coming weekend is get your mind straight about the price of your product/service. And get even more clear about the problem you solve for your customer rather than the price he pays to solve it. Dissect the value you bring the customer with the purchase of your solution–and forget about “justifying price.”

“How Do I Start The Sales Process?”

/1 Comment/in , /by

Question From Blog Reader:

I’m assuming that you mean: “how do I start the process so that I can control it all the way through?” That’s a better question. In this post, I give you several components of how to handle the very first call.

Read more

Your Prospect is Not Your Enemy!

/in /by

We really waste a lot of energy sometimes, don’t we? In a profession that relies on our mind to do the heavy lifting, we certainly fail to think about things in the right way. One example of that is “who we see as the enemy. Read more

Use Your Best Prospect As Your Standard

/in /by

We’ve all had that great prospect–the one that invites you in to his office, tells you all about the issues he has, expresses hope that you can help him, pays you what you ask, and faxes in the PO. Wouldn’t it be great if they were all like that. We’ll call that the IDEAL PROSPECT.

I want you to think back to that prospect (it’s irrelevant whether it was last week or last decade). Because as of today, that becomes your standard to which all other prospects are held.

The reason is simple: Most sales professionals have very weak standards when it comes to prospects. We let ’em get away with lying to us, we let them skate the important answers, and we keep calling them back, chasing them like we were pirahnas. In selling, the way I see it, that’s mechanically wrong.

It’s wrong because the person with the solution is the one that should be in control. (That would be you.) And if the prospect isn’t behaving correctly, it’s either bcause he really isn’t a prospect at all. Or, it’s because you haven’t helped him become a good prospect.

So if you find yourself doing the chasing (instead of them chasing you), then you have to raise your standards. And the way you do that is to remember that IDEAL PROSPECT.

What do you do if you’re in front of a prospect who is not behaving correctly? Call him on it.

Say: “Mr. Johnson, usually at this point in the conversation, we’re talking about your problems and we’re discussing solutions. But in this process, all we’re talking about is how great your company is doing without a service like mine. So, it appears that we’re at the end of our dialogue, unless I’m missing something.”

Remember, you are not manipulating him–or trying to make him say something you want him to say. You are simply calling the game on him, and letting him know that he’s not a prospect because he’s not acting like one. And then you proceed to tell him exactly how most prospects act at this time.

This keeps you strong and in control by raising the standard of how ALL of your prospects should act. If they don’t act that way, move on.