What I’ve Learned About

FEARLESS Selling!

Speak up for what you want. If you don’t spell it out, no one will ever know where you want to go. Solicit feedback.

When you state a feeling, opinion or belief, SAY that it’s your feeling, opinion, or belief…instead of implying that you’re stating “facts.” Imagine standing in your listener’s shoes.

STOP saying “all” and “every” and “ever” and “never” because you’ll start to believe yourself…and others will start to doubt you..

When others tell you your idea won’t work, don’t believe them. Instead, give it a goal and a strategy. It’s easier to move forward with a map.

STOP, LOOK, and LISTEN isn’t just for railroad crossings. Ask questions, observe and listen hard. But as Einstein said, “all we ever have is limited knowledge”…so when it’s time to move on, go with what you know!

Turn off the news. Bombardments of negative, tragic events will invade, disrupt, corrode and corrupt positive attitudes. INSTEAD: Sing. Dance. Read. Laugh. Play. Walk. Take pictures.

Positive attitudes are preserved when you respond instead of react. If you don’t react, you can’t over-react. Learn to blame less and forgive more.

Stop worrying about how you look and pay attention to how you behave. Entrepreneurial leaders instill confidence and inspire action no matter what they wear. Contrary to popular myth: Clothes do not “make the man.”

Look everyone and every thing in the eye. Good contact, not staring. Looking at your feet or over someone’s shoulder broadcasts ambivalence and fear…feelings that fail to: sell, instill confidence, inspire trust, communicate authenticity, show interest.

When the competition gets tough, get tougher by being better informed, by delighting (not just “servicing”) your customers, and by being honest.

Keep your eyes and ears alert, and your mind open. Take more deep breaths to keep your SELF in the “here-and-now” as much as possible . . . because success is the journey, and expectations breed disappointment.

Remember your family, your friends and how to laugh. Above all: Trust your SELF!

Live. Love. Make it easy.

 Some concepts inspired by www.FEARLESStheMusical.com

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Hal@Businessworks.US          931.854.0474

Open  Minds  Open  Doors

Many thanks for your visit and Make today a GREAT day for someone!

YOU’RE 70+ YEARS OLD?

There goes your past. Here comes your future. But
it’s only this very minute —this very split second
as you read this sentence— that counts!
Popular observations about your age:

YOU’RE 70+ YEARS OLD

God Bless You! You’re still alive and pretending to be younger . . . probably 50-60. Occasionally, you might even make believe that you’re in the 30-40 age bracket (though, depending on activity levels involved, that can readily get you in trouble, like cut, bumped, bruised, or thrown out of a bar, an airplane or someone’s bedroom!).

Bottom line is that you have at long last arrived at the point where no one can tell you much of anything that you don’t already know from experience.

Well, okay, you may be a little slow on the uptake when it comes to storing your pdf files on the cloud or testing the new contact lens that takes photos when you blink (something like 1 blink for yes and 2 blinks for no and 3 blinks to snap a picture of what you’re looking at that you’re not supposed to be looking at. Hmmm, and that could spell trouble with a capital “T”!). Anyway, who knows what’s next in tech? You can bet the farm that the answer to that is: No one older than fifty years younger than you, right?

So here you are: 70+ and you have no doubts about what you don’t know. You’re still working at something or you wouldn’t be around. Life is not a breeze, but waking up every day is certainly a gift you want to make the most of — especially after all that work just to get from the bed to the bathroom!

And you are, after all, happy and productive, yes?

Interesting isn’t it, that being at the happiest and most productive place in the world—“here and now”—is most often shared by people under 7 and over 70? Most everyone in between spends all those other years worrying about the future which hasn’t come yet (and may never!) or dwelling on the past which is over (and can’t be changed). But then, you already know that, right?

Here’s how I figure it: AGE only matters when you choose for it to matter. We made a lot of choices to get here. And whether it’s been easy, hard, or in between, it all comes back to choices we make and have made—conscious or unconscious, but always our choices lead the way.

So, just choose to make it easy! Choose to make whatever work you still do work for you, to be happy and healthy and rewarding for you and all those who surround you. Is that too hard? Well, it’s simple if you choose for it to be simple. Besides, what’s the alternative? You stop working and then you die of retirement? Not a great choice.

REALITY IN LIFE AND BUSINESS:
Now is the only time!
How thankful are you to be who you are,
headed where you’re headed?

CHECK BACK TO THE LAST 5 POSTS BEFORE THIS FOR THE
COMPLETE “AGE SERIES” [20-30, 30-40, 40-50, 50-60, and 60-70]
~~~ NEXT WEEK: A SPECIAL CHRISTMAS MESSAGE!
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Hal@BusinessWorks.US or 931.854.0474 or comment below

OPEN MINDS OPEN DOORS

Thanks for visiting. Go for your goals! God Bless You!

Make today a GREAT Day for someone!

YOU’RE 50-60 YEARS OLD?

There goes your past. Here comes your future. But
it’s only this very minute —this very split second
as you read this sentence— that counts!

Popular observations about your age:

YOU’RE 50-60 YEARS OLD

Congratulations! You’ve finally learned some stuff. You know better, for example, than to think you’re so omnipotently brilliant and untouchable—not weak by any means (you did after all get this far!)—you’ve simply become more realistic.

Realistic is good. More realistic is even better. At 50-60, you start going to church more than just weddings, funerals, Christmas and Passover, and you’ve given up worrying about your hair.

Your business enterprise is shaky but working (after learning from a handful of failures) as usual — and you live for your annual vacation, your spouse, and your offspring. Your new puppy just chewed up your tax returns, but that truck you always wanted is now in your driveway . . . and who knows? Ray Kroc was 57 years-old when he launched McDonald’s! Makes you think of trading in those daily nuts and healthy fruit for a drippy fat burger and those fries (Ah yes, the fries!) . . . am I right?

Yup! And, at long last, you’ve come to the point of accepting the reality that you may actually be a bit on the stupid side when it comes to home and car repairs, budgeting and bank account management, or selling yourself to get customers. You’ve no doubt figured out how to apply all the gems you learned in your school studies of Tree-Hugging, Trigonometry, and Global Warming to market your line of new improved toilet plungers.

Oh, and this is not even to mention your half-century (whoops! Sorry to mention that) of accumulated street-smarts that have prompted you to realize that you can be easily clobbered by a 20-something who cuts you off in traffic and that your best defense is to keep your middle finger in your pocket. Your love affair dreams have narrowed to a handful of gorgeous TV superstars and a neighbor with 9 children and 17 grandchildren swarming over the house, porch, yard and driveway 24/7. Oh, well . . .

REALITY IN LIFE AND BUSINESS:
Now is the only time!
How thankful are you to be who you are,
headed where you’re headed?

WATCH THIS BLOG NEXT WEEK FOR MORE
  AGE COMMENTARY~~~~ NEXT WEEK: 60-70
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Hal@BusinessWorks.US or 931.854.0474 or comment below

OPEN MINDS OPEN DOORS

Thanks for visiting. Go for your goals! God Bless You!

Make today a GREAT Day for someone!

YOU’RE 40-50 YEARS OLD?

There goes your past. Here comes your future. But
it’s only this minute—this very split second as you
read this sentence—that counts!

Popular observations about your age:

YOU’RE 40-50 YEARS’ OLD

Now you’re getting serious about life. You cut your hair and consider the economies of a wig vs. hair transplants vs. shaving your head. You buy your first wrinkle cream and think about Botox. It doesn’t take more than a backache or two to realize you’re no longer the superwoman / superman you thought you were, but you will no doubt continue trying to prove otherwise—switching perhaps to “softer athletics” like pinball, slot machine pulls, darts, bathtub backstroke, and computer solitaire.

You’re still haunted by being covered with lettuce, smothered in mayonnaise and stuck like a pickle in the middle of the parents/kids sandwich . . . trying to break through the crust and please the whole world as you get chewed first on one side and then on the other. You probably thought you were over the hill when you were thirty, but now, well, “It’s the real thing!” . . . You worry more.

When you lose a close friend or family member, it gives you cause to pause. You rethink your job, church, life, love, yourself as well as where the hell you’re going, and how long it’s taking to get there. Retirement planning? Nah! That’s a long way off.

Earning a decent living has turned out to be harder than you ever imagined. Maybe you should do that year-with-a-yogi-mountaintop-meditation deal? Marriage or roommate relations get rocky. Your own or parent health issues command the stage center spotlight.  Healthcare insurance options suck! You sleep less. You start eating more yogurt and granola, but struggle with the booze, coffee, anything chocolate, bread and butter. Sometimes you feel like you’re playing football on a chess board. Try answering this: “What Sport Is Your Business?”

Having your own small business is looking more attractive. You decide to test the waters with a weekend garage-based product business or bedroom-based consulting service. The startup costs are staggering. You consider seeking investors or a rich partner. Somewhere you learn that when two partners agree on everything, one is not needed. Two investors you speak with want 65% of your business. No way! Way! No way! Way! No way! You go it alone and sweat it out. Welcome to entrepreneurship! Are you spontaneous enough?

REALITY IN LIFE AND BUSINESS:
Now is the only time!
How thankful are you to be who you are,
headed where you’re headed?

WATCH THIS BLOG  FOR THE NEXT 3 WEEKS
FOR YOUR AGE COMMENTARY~~~ NEXT WEEK: 50-60
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Hal@BusinessWorks.US   or 931.854.0474 or comment below

OPEN MINDS OPEN DOORS

Thanks for visiting. Go for your goals! God Bless You!

Make today a GREAT Day for someone!

YOU’RE 30-40 YEARS’ OLD?

There goes your past. Here comes your future. But
it’s only this minute—this very split second as you
read this sentence—that counts!

Popular observations about your age:

YOU’RE 30-40 YEARS’ OLD

It’s inconceivable that those under 30 consider you older than dirt, so you do everything mentally and physically possible to prove yourself otherwise. You get a little achy-breaky once in awhile, but–after all–you still feel invincible enough to beat yourself to a pulp on the athletic field, go cliff-climbing, hang-gliding, whitewater rafting, buy a horse, and race jet skis. Maybe you’re a late bloomer, but you fall in and out of love 15 more times, then soul-mate with one of your original 25, from when you were (aaaaah!) in your twenties.

You gloat at being able to buy your first house, then quickly realize—as nasty things go wrong that require hiring contractors—that you’re in over your head. But now, for the first time, you at least have your own neighbors and your own on-the-job friends (and a soul-mate) to commiserate with. You try a couple of churches. You drink a lot of fancy-brand beer.

If you weren’t having young children and old parents when you were 20-30, you’ve probably got both now, and you feel like you’re in the middle of a sandwich, ready to be eaten up by stress and time pressures, especially with so fewer opportunities for self-indulgence. Getting your fingers burned and knuckles rapped as you learn the politics of career pursuit, you think about starting your own business. You Google a lot.

Approaching 40, you own up to the fact that maybe you don’t actually know as much as you thought you did when you were ten years younger. You trade your Camaro for a minivan to get the kids to baseball, soccer, dance lessons, Cub Scouts, Brownies, fast-food spots. You love your spouse, but the minivan . . . Your smartphone keeps you connected to the world, but you somehow still feel disconnected. The kids anchor you to living in the present. These years are all about making and spending money, getting promoted, researching startups.

In your heart, you know there’s hope for you yet. It’s true. Just choose it. Oh, and hang in there, Kiddo! Time Heals.

Business Life Reality: Now is the only time!
How thankful are you to be who you are,
headed where you’re headed?

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WATCH THIS BLOG THE NEXT 4 WEDNESDAYS FOR

YOUR AGE COMMENTARY~~~ NEXT WEEK: 40-50
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Hal@BusinessWorks.US or 931.854.0474 or comment below

OPEN MINDS OPEN DOORS

Thanks for visiting. Go for your goals! God Bless You!

Make today a GREAT Day for someone!

YOU’RE 20-30 YEARS’ OLD?

There goes your past. Here comes your future. But

it’s only this minute—this very split second as you

 read this sentence—that counts!

Popular observations about your age:

YOU’RE 20-30 YEARS’ OLD

Likelihood is that you think you know it all, and shrug off what you don’t as if it didn’t matter. Physically, you act like you’re invincible and indestructible because somewhere deep inside, you actually believe you are. Your wiseguy/smartass attitude gets you in trouble more often than you care to admit.

When things go wrong, you slink off and sulk or get angry, or high, and pretend to be beyond reproach even when you know you’re at fault. You grow lots of hair, work at keeping in shape, and give up church.

You are excessively self-indulgent when it comes to pleasure or idleness, and probably only think of others when others think of others. You are obsessed with your smartphone and all gadgets techie, but regard talking on the phone or acknowledging voicemails (if you even listen to them) as a fate worse than death. You got the car you always wanted, but it makes you broke… so maybe you settle for a junk heap.

Old people—over 30(!)—are constantly in your way, in your space, in your face, and challenge your skills to get around or over or through or past them. You think they’re all dumb, obnoxious and weak-willed. Rules and laws are made to be broken… until you join (Thank you for your service!) or toy with the idea of joining the military, which puts rules and laws in clearer perspective. You fall in and out of love 25 times. Somehow, you live to see yourself as 30-something. Congratulations on making it over the hill!

Business Life Reality: Now is the only time!

How thankful are you to be who you are,

headed where you’re headed?

WATCH THIS BLOG EVERY WEDNESDAY FOR 6 WEEKS

 FOR YOUR AGE COMMENTARY~~~ NEXT WEEK: 30-40

# # #

Hal@BusinessWorks.US or 931.854.0474 or comment below

OPEN MINDS OPEN DOORS

Thanks for visiting. Go for your goals! God Bless You!

Make today a GREAT Day for someone!

The definition of a consultant: someone from over 100 miles away who jumps hurdles and carries a briefcase—but it’s, oh, so much more!

The Way to Get Consulting

  Clients is to BE a Consultant!

• Ask any sales pro! It’s the truth! You want to be a great baseball player? Stop thinking contracts and play baseball! You want to be a great consultant? Stop thinking contracts and BE a consultant!

• Oh, and don’t bust a gut trying to be a lawyer. (Great lawyers are great actors, not great thinkers!) You’ll grow old fast trying to draft a contract for every prospect. Besides, odds are that even if you make the sale, the contract will be broken, which creates the need for lawyers!. [Save contracts for major corporate and airhead government clients.]

• Smart rule of thumb: If a handshake’s not acceptable to a prospect, the prospect’s not acceptable as a client, even (and probably “especially”) when you’re broke!

• Pull-ease: STOP WRITING PROPOSALS! Don’t be a proposalaholic! It NEVER pays! You’ll waste a gazillion hours. Everyone wants a proposal so she or he can decide if you’re worth it, and to use as a guideline for hiring someone else who’s closer or less expensive. Some will take it and follow it and do the work themselves, or hand it off to a staff person to do it in-house. “BAM” (with thanks to Emeril!)…screwed again!

• “Well, I charge for proposals,” a consultant once told me. Seriously? Good luck with that. Yeah, seriously.

• Don’t waste time sending out emails trying to schedule in-person appointments. Just get on the damn phone and make the appointment!.

Okay, now that we’re past the preliminaries, consider this: The only efficient and surefire way to get clients is to start from the very first minute of discussion to serve the decision-maker AS IF YOU WERE ALREADY the consultant. In other words, BE a consultant.

Don’t worry about giving away your services on a first/second visit. Worry about not getting the business because you failed to demonstrate how much value you can contribute (which btw, does not translate into overwhelming your prospects). Focus instead on making pinpoint airstrikes.

Ah, and remember there are always three decision-making entities involved (sometimes one person with three different hats): The CEO, the CFO and the COO, or (depending on your expertise) the VP of Sales and/or marketing. A “sold” CEO may yield to the money-manager. And, the purpose of every first sales call is not to make a sale; it’s to get another sales call!

Great consultants (and great salespeople) listen 80% of the time. They suggest with questions–have you considered…? Great consultants call on practical and directly-related examples of experience or knowledge-base. Great consultants ask for examples and diagrams and opinions, and then weigh it all before offering recommendations.

When you demonstrate your thinking approach and knowledge base, and do it in a passionate but gracious and understanding manner, you are clearing a path for a prospect to experience how you’ll work and what you’re all about right from the git-go. Consider it a “test drive.” Consider how different the consultant model was just five years ago!

Instead of asking endless stupid questions, ask enough to find out the biggest surface problem and make simple, straightforward, practical (but not know-it-all attitude) suggestions. Express these as what you BELIEVE (not “think”) might be the most productive or meaningful or rewarding solution direction (What has the prospect suggested as a goal or pursuit direction?)

Here’s the thing. If you can’t sit on the same side of the table physically, sit on the same side of the table mentally. And you may not like hearing this because you may think it’s “old-fart” stuff, but you should know it is the truth: What all of us buy all of the time is TRUST. So put yourself in the other person’s shoes. Period.

Happy Consulting!

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 Hal@BusinessWorks.US or 931.854.0474 or comment below

Is Your Star Falling?

Even once you accept and get past the awareness of every behavior being a choice, self-doubt doesn’t simply float away off into the ozone. And similarly, pats on the back, “Go get ‘em, Tiger!” coaching, and double booze drinks can feel like gasoline drips flaring up out of your emotional bed of glowing embers.

Even when you know that every circumstance—regardless of intent or time period involved—is the result of a conscious or unconscious choice, you will not necessarily feel reassured about your own sense of stability. You’re more likely to hibernate, or beat yourself up, or do or say something stupid.

Your concept of yourself as a leader or as a mover and shaker, or as The Wizard of Oz, is bound to crumble to some degree at some point (or points) in your life. You are, after all, human. And emotions, after all, are not logical.

So, did this post’s four-word question headline catch you in time, or have people around you already been suggesting vacation destinations and urging you to “chill,” “get out more,” or “get out of Dodge”?

How can you turn this around?

• First, stop whining, bitching, complaining, blaming, punching walls, and—if you’re a thrower—you may want to consider a temporary switch from glassware and your fine china, to Styrofoam.

• Second, question your intents and motives. Ask yourself what’s at stake? Your survival? Your health? Your ego? Your relationship? Your business? Your career? Your family? All the money you have in the world? (Hint: If any of these were probable, you wouldn’t be reading this now.) How about “HAPPINESS”?

• Third, accept the fact that, considering the odds, it’s not likely your upsets are permanent, never-ending, all-inclusive, irreversible, or literally Earth-shattering. It’s probably just that your brains are scrambled eggs and your musculoskeletal system is JELLO. So, think substance!

Pretend your flight is overbooked and over-cargo’d and you need to toss your baggage off the plane in order to get where you’re going. Go ahead. Toss it! If it’s not life or death, just let go. You’ll be surprised at how liberating that can feel.

Next, decide the three most important things to you in your life and list them in order of importance. Then add the next seven items. There you have it . . . your “TOP 10.” This list alone warrants a brief time-out celebration (Uh, sorry, no shots or drugs — just a few whoop-de-do’s will be fine!)

Now, unless you’re on the edge of a cliff, racetrack, or a quicksand pit, take a step back! Look at where you’ve been these past two minutes. Think about where you need to go and what three different ways there are to get there. Take one. GO! If it doesn’t work, you still have two shots left! And one will work!

Congratulations on catching your falling star and for coming a long way (Baby!) from this blog post headline. You may want to consider one last thought:

“A word to the wise is sufficient.”

(Origin unknown . . . but if you are, it is!)