7 Steps to Setting Sales Goals With Pin-Point Accuracy

The ancient question asked by countless sales managers: "How many units will you sell this month?" Then you are encouraged to answer with a number. And then... you lie ! You are forced to lie because you have been asked to put the cart before the horse so that you can be pummeled by disappointment. Take a moment to examine how you can establish unit goals with pin-point accuracy.

How many units do you want to sell?

• Be honest with yourself.
• Don't set your unit mark just to beat someone else . (We'll talk about establishing purpose next time.)
• This is your decision, because different levels of achievement are harnessed at the sacrifice of other components of your life such as family time, hobbies and other activities that are important to you.

Write your mark in positive language :

• I will sell _____ units this pay-period!

Forecast the activity necessary to achieve your desired outcome:

1. Contact _____ fresh leads.
2. Create _____ new buyers from the fresh leads.
3. Follow up with all buyers.
4. Present your offering to 100% of your prospects. (Achieve an 80% presentation rate)
5. Present purchase/enrollment proposals to 100% of your prospects that have received a feature/benefit presentation of your offering. (Achieve a 50% proposal rate.)
6. Come to terms and close 30% of those that have received a written proposal from you.
7. Now, your realistic Unit Goal is ______. (You may need to reconsider that number you shared with your sales manager!)

Example: I have 15 prospects rolling into this period. I make 10 calls per day (or more, depending on your industry) to create 30 interested individuals, businesses or organizations. (This is a 12% success rate.) Of the now 45 buyers that are in my sights, I successfully present my offering to 36 (80%) of them. 18 of these buyers accept proposals so that they have all the information necessary to make an intelligent decision. 6 buyers (30%) take ownership of my product or service offering and live happily ever after.

What you have now established is a method with which you can measure the results of your efforts. At any given time during your sales period you can make necessary adjustments to either stay or get back on track. Keep in mind that as you hone the skills necessary to move to each subsequent stage your closing ratio will improve thereby allowing you to revisit your Activity Forecast success rate.

Prove me wrong.

Now, get out there and sell something !

Attitude Shift: 4 Steps to a Positive Attitude

Habitually, life is a grind, don't you think? Ask your friends, "Why do you go to work everyday?" Nine out of ten of them will probably say, "Because everyone else does." How about that for inspiration? It's that painful attitude that we find ourselves subjected to every living day. Therefore, you could ask me, "What makes you think that I can break free from the bonds of conformity?" And I would answer, "Because you can. It's a choice; as your attitude is a choice and not a feeling."

So you wake up this morning still thinking about last night's argument you had with your spouse about the pile of debt you have collectively constructed. You swing your feet off the couch only to feel the cold remnants of the dog relieving his bladder in the middle of the night because you were too depressed to let him out. You ooze into the bathroom to rinse off and take the obligatory shower and there stands your counter-part. With the argument still lingering in the air you both choose to avoid the topic by not speaking at all.

How frustrating can this be since your son has the biggest game of the season tonight and your daughter's performance at her dance recital this evening will make or break her scholarship opportunity. You have a mountain of responsibility riding on a positive attitude today, but your ghastly experience of last night still lingers like a leach; slowly draining your life's energy one little suck at a time. How do you let go? How do you strap on a positive attitude?

Here is a short process that you can put to work right now to brighten you life...for at least a moment. You decide whether to change your life forever. It just takes a little courage.

First, connect yourself with the discomfort that wrecked your attitude. Whatever created this mountain of debt must be recognized. You granted the power to create the situation that brought on this discomfort, so be proud! At some point, this situation you created served you well, didn't it? It just took a quick turn for the worse. So forgive yourself. Express your gratitude towards the ability to have created the mountain of debt to begin with. Express your gratitude towards the ability to pay the bills that support your purchases. Forgive yourself! Now, reclaim your power so that it can be used for a greater purpose. Reflecting on the current example: to support your children in a time when they need your positive attitude the most. Serving the greater purpose with a positive attitude is a choice.

Secondly,allow your reclaimed power to rush through you like you have just leaped into a cool, fresh-water spring in the middle of a hot summer day! Feel it. Really feel it. Then remember this feeling and revisit this place over and over and over again. Indulge in the wonderful feelings it conjures. Smother your children with a positive attitude when they need it most. Serving this greater purpose with a positive attitude is a choice. And be happy you made the choice.

Third, now that you have reclaimed your power, choose your attitude. While experiencing your heightened state of happiness, make the choice that will carry with you an uplifting, positive attitude throughout the rest of the day. And when you begin to feel the intrusion of discomfort, immediately revert back to step two and remember that you have reclaimed your power. Remember the rush of energy that consumed you and brought you to this happy, powerful moment. Smother your children with a positive attitude when they need it most. This is your greater purpose.

Lastly, practice, practice, practice. Once you become even moderately efficient at reclaiming your power, your positive attitude will become a clear choice. Doors will open that will lead to places and dreams that you had only imagined for you and those for which you feel deep affection.

Make the choice to spread the virus of "positive attitude" with everyone you encounter and try to encounter as many people as you possibly can everyday. This epidemic you create will spread faster than you can presently imagine. However, with practice, you will soon realize how commonplace choosing a positive attitude can be.

Vision to Ashes?

I don't read the newspaper, I don't watch the news on television nor do I listen to the radio for concern that I will encounter some depressing situation. Saturday mornings, however, I break my rule so that I can enjoy the heart-felt, down-home humor of "Only a Game" on National Public Radio. If you're a sports fan (especially baseball) you owe it to yourself to give it a listen at 7am EST some Saturday morning. I am not a sports fan, but my Saturday isn't complete without "Only a Game."

W.C. Heinz, a celebrated sports writer, died in March of 2008. This past Saturday, host Bill Littlefield had a very nostalgic conversation with Jeff MacGreggor (who profiled Heinz for Sports Illustrated) about the work and life of the writer who truly left his mark on sports, and on writing.

During an intimate interview with Heinz, MacGreggor ask him a simple question that would typically warrant an intricate response. "Mr. Heinz, just how do you do it? What is it that makes your writings convey such vivid mental pictures...words that make a page live? And why are you so different from most other writers of today and many of the past?" The question was answered simply:

"You know, Jeff, I'm always thinking about what I want to convey to readers. And I feel like I've been delivered a gift...the gift to precisely put on paper the vision I have in my mind. Or maybe it's not a gift...it's probably because I just think about it throughout each day. And I think that other writers of today are conforming to what they think other people want to read; therefore, once their words lie on paper, their vision turns to ashes."

A powerful statement...and a concept worth a little reflection, don't you think?

Share your thoughts...

From a brief conversation I engaged today: Mgr vs. Ldr

The fundamental difference between someone who manages a group of individuals versus someone who leads a group of individuals is that managers tend to focus on protecting or ordering their little flock in hopes of managing outcomes. Leaders, on the other hand, concentrate on preparing their staff, thus fostering the creation of outcomes that can become measurable criteria used to promote improvement.

A manager will, with good intention, make sure their staff is educated in their respective field of duties.

A leader will begin working with their staff at the earliest stage of their employment to create experiences through graduated tasks that prepare them to achieve their desired career outcome.

See the difference?

Share your thoughts...

Be well and experience a little bliss today.

JC

Give, Give, Give...

That's it in a nut-shell. Each night before our four-year-old son drifts off to sleep, my wife and I encourage him to recall the day and share with us that for which he is most grateful. Some days it's popsicles, other days it might be his "blankie." But tonight our little guy was grateful that he was able to help a butterfly get away from some birdies. My wife asked him how he did that. He replied, "I just gave the birdies some more sunflower seeds!" You could have knocked me over with a feather.

Our son loves to watch butterflies when he is playing in the yard and the birds keep him company outside the windows when he's eating breakfast. This was not premeditated in the least. It was simply a thoughtless, innocent gesture that provided perpetual joy for our little guy. There is a lesson here, don't you think?

The innocent perform acts of giving that we pass by everyday. He gave without even considering how he would benefit from this act of giving. Not as most adults would do. Most of us would not have noticed the natural progression of nature that was taking place, but through the repetition of reciting that for which he is grateful every night our universe, or God if you will, returned the gesture by allowing him to continue to enjoy the butterflies as he frolics in the yard and the birds as he prepares to take on the day (with unbelievable fervor!).

It's as simple as that and you know it. The more you give the more you will receive.

Lend a hand and be grateful that you are able.

A Brief Introduction:

Motivation and Inspiration are commodities that are in more demand now than ever before.

When organizations are going through changes and facing adversity, now is the time to awaken the spirit and charge the resilience of individuals and organizations as one body. For a motivational speaker like me that takes pride in my course of life and my purpose, now is the time that I feel compelled more than ever before to deliver strong messages that remind corporate as well as many other audiences that the true power will always be found within rather than without; that adversity presents the choice to succumb to circumstance or to rise above the circumstance as a matter of choice...and that responsibility yields power.

You will find that I am a messenger of empowerment, encouraging the human spirit and bringing back to life the greatness born to all of us. A true motivational speaker is one that lives his messages as oppose to putting on an act for an audience. Motivational speaking is not a trade that can be learned. It is not the words that make the difference but rather the person uttering them.

As you learn more about me and what I share, keep in mind anyone or any organization that would benefit from my message and, please, touch base with me so that we can determine the best way to introduce my services.

Please, join me again.

Live in harmony... JC