Strategy

I am furious (this is about ethics, people)

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I am just furious. Last week I learned about a very well-known, highly polished “Success Coach” who charged a colleague of mine $10,000 for a two-day one-on-one retreat.
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That’s not even the infuriating part. Wait for it…

They met at the coach’s home both days of the retreat. Not only did this coach NOT deliver the promised results, she used a majority of the time to show off her lifestyle and then made a pitch for her $25,000 program.

Rather than bash this coach (which, admittedly, was my first instinct), I’d like to take this opportunity to share some tips to consider when investing in a training or coaching program:

  1. Have they “been there, done that”? If they are promising 2,000 followers on Twitter, check out how many followers they really have. If they are promising to help you double your income, find out whether they’ve doubled their income.
  2. Are they promising unrealistic overnight success? In general, programs promising overnight success are the ones to avoid. Any successful person will tell you there is no such thing as an overnight success. Anyone who makes this promise is probably hoping they will become an overnight success by selling you their program.
  3. Do they claim you can’t  get what they teach anywhere else? The overwhelming majority of claims of this type are false. While every coach brings a unique voice and perspective to their area of expertise, there is (almost) nothing new under the sun. This claim is generally made to elicit feelings of desperation to acquire/buy.
  4. Do they spend more than 10% of the time at their events selling? If a coach uses most of the time at an event selling (themselves), it creates tension and stirs up fears. Tension is a natural part of the sales process, but constant tension-building is a manipulation technique which creates an environment where one can no longer make rational decisions.
  5. Are you feeling desperate, needy or overwhelmed? This is the bottom line. Regardless of what someone is selling, or what their motives are, remember, the buck stops with you. Be present when making buying decisions. Be clear about what you need, and if the program presented is the best option, then invest! However, if you feel desperate, you will very likely make a decision you’ll regret. You’re allowed to step back and decide tomorrow. Be wary of anyone who pushes this boundary or tells you otherwise.

Disclaimer: Please understand that NONE of the above definitively identifies someone being unethical. In fact, because of the vast influence of a few big names in the training industry, it is almost impossible to sort them all out.

What do I mean? Coaches and Business Development Experts like me seek out expert advice when looking to grow our practices. Problems arise because the most well-known industry experts advocate the use of some of the practices above, often presenting them as the only way to succeed (see #3 above). Consequently, we feel backed into a corner, and like we don’t have any other options (see #5 above), even though it feels icky.

And yes, I do know this personally. In the past, I (cringe) used some of these methods, mirroring what I saw as acceptable business practices in my industry.

The good news is I sucked at them.

I was nervous, shaky and totally unconvincing, and people didn’t hire me. These accepted “techniques to help more people” were totally out of alignment with the way I wanted to treat fellow humans. So I tossed all of them out the window (the techniques, not the humans) and started just talking to people, finding out what they wanted, giving tons and tons of value, and then letting them decide to work with me when the time was right.

The result? Prospects feel empowered, whether they hire me or not. Plus, I teach these methods to my clients (see #1 above) so they can grow their businesses in alignment with their values, too.

Final Thoughts. Investing in yourself to work with a coach is an incredible display of courageous vulnerability, and I take that responsibility seriously. Every time someone hires me, I think, “This is one amazingly brave soul – let’s get moving!

Mind the Gap

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I work with driven people. Smart people who are constantly growing themselves and their businesses. I am one of those people. Our natural state seems to be one of mild to severe dissatisfaction. We are constantly are asking, “What are we missing? Who is ahead of us? What’s the next opportunity?”

Screen Shot 2014-06-09 at 11.42.14 AMWhat would you call this? Greed? Lack of gratitude? Insanity?

I call it the natural mental environment brought on and sustained by entrepreneurship.

Here are a few simple truths about the gaps that exist when you work for yourself, and some do’s and don’ts to help you survive them.

There is always more to learn.
DO implement your current knowledge. The BEST ideas are not theoretical, they are the ones that are put into action.
DON’T drown yourself in so much learning that you avoid implementing.

There is always someone doing better than you.
DO recognize yourself for what you’re doing great, and learn from those ahead of you.
DON’T paralyze yourself with comparisons.

As long as you’re an entrepreneur, you live in the gap between where you are and what you want.
DO find ways to be conscious of that gap, and co-exist with it peacefully.
DON’T define that gap as evidence that you are wrong, broken or less than anyone else.

DISCUSSION: What has been your experience with the gap? How do you take care of yourself?

Solve Sales Call Reluctance in 1 Step

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“How can I make myself do phone calls?”

I have heard this question again and again from clients in industries ranging from financial planning to direct sales to graphic design. There are even coaches who have built their entire practices teaching strategies to get on the phone without fear. But the truth is, there is only a small handful of business owners who absolutely must get on the phone in order to succeed.

I have a different approach, and one I know you’ll like. Ready for the one step to solve your call reluctance? Here it is:

Step 1: Stop wasting your time making phone calls, and instead invest your energy in activities that you’ll do with confidence and without resistance.

Resistance wastes valuable time. Even if phone calling has brought results in the past, if you take 4 days to work up the nerve to pick up the phone, you’ve wasted 4 days you could have been emailing or texting or in some other way reaching out to potential clients.

Times have changed. Stop buying the myth that phone calls are the end-all be-all of marketing activities. Phone calls used to be accepted as most effective way to reach people. These days, the majority of people reluctantly answer their phone (or don’t), they don’t listen to voicemail, and tend to want to spend as little time on the phone as possible. Phone calling is no longer the gold standard for communication with prospects.

No, it’s not a cop-out. Don’t judge yourself for deciding not to make phone calls, and to move on to actions you don’t resist and actually (gasp!) enjoy. It’s your business. You’re allowed to make executive decisions on how to run it. You have tons of options: email, social media, note cards, texting. Find alternative activities that work for your prospects, and lead to the results you want.

So give yourself a break. Keep consistently reaching out to prospects, just do it in a way that doesn’t stress you out.

Get Out of Negativity Instantly

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This morning I woke up feeling tired and grumbly with my internal dialogue turned up to 11 on the negativity scale (“Why do I bother? Where are my results? I’m going back to bed…”), I came across this post on Facebook from a friend who had a back injury decades ago, and still suffers daily:

“I remember how I could stand, sit, walk, bend, twist, jump, flip, do handstands, dance, skydive, throw a ball, take a shower, swim, run, shoot pool, wrestle, play guitar, perform, write, concentrate, think, sleep, wash my car, build things, etc. But I can’t remember what it feels like to live without pain… Don’t take it for granted.”

Thank you, my friend, for reminding me to get over the petty stuff, and get seriously grateful.

Marketing at the Top of My Lungs

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You’ve seen crazy, shout-y headlines like these, haven’t you?

Attention frustrated business owners – get ready to learn the secrets that will double and triple your income!

REVEALED: the secret formula to getting everything you want in business and life by tomorrow at noon!

IMAGINE – sitting on a beach knowing your business is producing BIG results while you sip a pina colada!

Again and again I see this shouting, overblown marketing style. And when I encounter it, I feel simultaneously aggravated and compelled to read more. So, while there is a part of me that suspects this must be the correct way to attract clients, there is another part of me that is rolling my eyes and thinking|||, “There has GOT to be another way!”

I have experimented with this style from time to time, but I always feel faintly ridiculous. Will my marketing reluctance ultimately prevent me from serving potential clients, or am I on track to do it my own way – a way that works better for me?

I’d love your feedback here. Do you know examples of successful people who market without the hype? I would find it really inspiring to discover new role models who succeed without having to market at the top of their lungs.

Reach Any Goal in 3 Steps

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A few weeks ago I noticed my clothes were a bit tight, and it occurred to me that I never really got back into the swing of healthy eating after Christmas.

So I started the battle to reestablish my healthy habits. Eating right, exercising, and then falling off the wagon for my birthday. I got back into the swing of things, and finally about a week ago, I got into the routine where exercising and eating right finally feels normal, rather than a struggle.

This morning, one short week after the commitment really took hold, I hopped on the scale. Prepared to be dazzled by my progress, I quickly discovered I’d dropped only .6 pounds. My mind started racing, “Should I cut back more? Exercise more? No fruit? Eat more at lunch and less at breakfast? What should I change to reach my goal? I’ve been doing everything right, what’s the point?”

All of a suddenly I felt like I was talking to clients who, just because they had a bad week in business, want to start changing everything. The parallels are striking, and whether you are looking to fit into your skinny jeans or working towards a big business goal, here are 3 simple steps that will help:

  1. Get clear. Set a goal and make a decision to work towards it.
  2. Get a plan. Define the steps necessary to reach your goal.
  3. Get into action. Execute your plan consistently, track your results, and adjust as needed.

You’ll know you’ve missed one of these steps if you’re constantly overworking, reinventing, and everything feels difficult. And if you have these steps in place, but you’re constantly looking for new opportunities and feeling hopeless and impatient, you’re not giving enough time for the steps to produce results.

Whatever your goal, when these steps are in place, your progress is consistent, and you experience a profound sense of ease and accomplishment.

So even though it’s challenging in the hustle and bustle of everyday life, take the time to step back and evaluate. Get your plan together. Then go out there and do it. Stop driving yourself crazy trying every new fad out there. Business, and life, is so much easier if you just take a little time and let it.

And if you need help, get in touch. Achievement through simplicity is my specialty.