Train Your Brain: Institutional education may earn you a living, self education will earn you a fortune. (This is the single most powerful advice I can provide) Begin listening to motivational, self help, sales tapes and reading books everyday. If you take one golden nugget out of a book or learn one better way to present your value to a customer, the results can be astonishing!
Build and Mine Your Data Base: The easiest business to get is the business you already have. Ask for referrals and show them you appreciate them, every-time! Ensure the person referring business that you will take special care of their referrals and work to provide them with the best rate and products available. Always keep in touch with your past clients a minimum of 4 times per year by phone and with 12 newsletters per year (as recommended by the top trainers in the industry). There is great database software available; some of the best are InContact, Maximizer, Act, Goldmine or even the default program in Microsoft Outlook.
Remember your ABC'S: Always Be Consistent in anything you do for your personal development. If you commit to reading for 15 minutes per day, do it, if you commit to prospecting everyday, set a number of live calls to make and do it everyday!! A North American study revealed that it takes an average of 5 touches to make a sale or commit a customer to work with you, 50 of sales people wing it! If you are going to meet a customer or a potential referral source (realtor, financial planner) do your homework. Nothing impresses people more than your knowledge about them. I can't believe the number of sales people that show up to a meeting and can't wait to hear what they are going to say! Failing to Plan, is Planning to Fail!
Think Big: The power of thinking big! Every person has a pre-determined belief on what they can achieve. These beliefs typically limit our full potential. You must believe to achieve, avoid preset limits.
Model Successful People: Start reading, asking questions to anyone surrounding a high achieving professional including the high achiever themselves and begin to model or emulate them. Find out what makes them different, how they act, who they associate with, how they do business and write down what you find out.
Deliver on Your Promises: Do what you say, and say what you do! If you commit to sending something out, or doing something, do it! This alone will make you admired, appreciated and respected. Most people drop the ball on follow up and commitments, be different!
