If you haven’t already heard, compounding is the key to successful financial investment. Did you know that the same is also true for successful selling? Actually, it’s true for almost anything that involves a repeated habit. The more you do something over and over again, the greater the chance that, over time, you will start to see the results that you desire. It’s the concept of change over time that most salespeople struggle with. Why? Because we want results today (and so does your boss). Well, selling usually doesn’t work like that and more than diet or exercise does. There are no quick fixes, but you can start making impactful changes today by creating some habits that, over time, will compound into big results.
You know that if you run 1 mile a day, over time you will get slightly stronger with better stamina. If you save an extra $50 every month for the next 20 years you will have $80,000. If you spend 1 hour a week reading, you will increase your knowledge base and critical thinking skills. You can see where this is going to go already. Engage 10 people every week on social media and you will get more meetings in the year. Make 20 cold calls every week and your sales will increase in one year. Attend 2 networking events a month and in 2 years you will have a nice book of business. We all know this is true in theory, but like diet and exercise, we have a hard time getting started. Here are some tips to help you get going in the right direction so you can get the results you desire in due time.
- Choose the goal – What is it that you want? It will likely be more meetings, clients, sales, profits, etc. Pick the thing that you want, how much of it you want, and over what period of time. Once you have the target, things will start to fall into place.
- Choose the habit – You do not have to redefine yourself to reach your goal. You need a habit that challenges you but does not break you. Something that, over time, will start to move the dial. It should be something that you can grow, but also grows you over time much in the same way exercise does.
- Stay committed – This will not be easy every day. Just like dieting isn’t all the time, there will be days where you will really have to push yourself to maintain your habit. Most importantly, if you go off course, forgive yourself immediately and get back on track.
- Measure – Be sure to track your habit. If it is making phone calls, tally your efforts and track them over time. Whatever is measured is what gets done.
- Adjust accordingly – Habits can, and should, change over time. Saving $50 a month may be hard when you are 20, but when you are 40, perhaps it should be closer to $200. Good habits should not drain you, but if they don’t challenge you, they may start to disappear.
