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Here’s an intriguing question that you likely haven’t answered before; Have you ever invested time into analyzing what has contributed to your success? If so, what are the major contributing factors that have led to your success? It’s difficult to measure but I’ve recently discovered a formula that I believe has contributed to your success without you even realizing it. The best part is once recognized and applied properly, it’s nearly impossible to stop.
Preparation + Proactive + Persistence = Momentum
What is everlasting is this; Preparation breeds confidence, being Proactive leads to progression (progression is living), Persistence is resilience, thus Momentum is activated and becomes constant. There are many peaks and valleys in everything we do. The challenge lies in maintaining a peak state when we’re in the valley.
Positive momentum generation comes down to a routine of behaviors that are repeated regularly, become automatic, and tend to occur subconsciously. We’re talking about habits. The goal is to get tomorrow started today by helping you get started with implementing Preparation, being more Proactive and Persistent, which will get you building an unstoppable momentum.
Let's start with Preparation;
“Give me 6 hours to chop down a tree, and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.” – Abraham Lincoln
Wouldn’t you agree that preparation breeds confidence? For example, are you more or less confident with sufficient product knowledge? Are you more or less confident building healthy relationships with clients when you’re energy is high versus running low? Are you more or less confident going into work when your day is organized versus winging it? Being prepared has a direct impact on our confidence, attitude, and energy level.
Preparation Habits;
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Take the last 10 minutes of your day to set goals for tomorrow
Get enough rest (7-8 hours of sleep) to wake up energized
Meal Preparation
Schedule your day in a daily planner as accurately as you can
Begin and end each day with a thought of gratitude
Say “Good Morning!” to everyone in the dealership when you get there, in every department
Being Proactive;
“Some people want it to happen, some wish it to happen, others make it happen.” – Michael Jordan
In my early days of selling, there were optional Thursday morning training webinars that started at 7:30am. This is back in 2007 when most people didn’t know what a webinar was yet. The other 5 Sales Consultants who lived in town, weren’t able to make the weekly meetings. I had a 30 minute drive and was at the dealership for every one of them.
Was there mornings where I didn’t feel like going? Definitely. Were there mornings where the 30 minute webinars felt like a waste of time? Absolutely. But was it imperative to my development? You bet.
Being proactive when you don’t feel like it is a test to your character. It’s not always easy but it’s always rewarding. Much the same as going to the gym when you don’t feel like it and then after thinking to yourself “I’m glad I went!” The same feeling occurs when you are proactive with goal-setting, structuring your day, development, and taking action on the little things. When you start setting yourself up for small, daily wins, you are building subtle momentum that will one day hit full stride.
When we are feeling emotionally and physically drained, it can be near impossible to encourage ourselves to get up early or take appropriate action on what must be done. A simple “hack” to use that will get your proactive habit developed is what Mel Robbins calls “The 5-Second Rule”.
Proactive Habits;
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Master the 5-Second Rule
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Get moving!
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Avoid being reactive
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Visualize your day to encourage action
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Plan your day the night before
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Participate in Roleplays, meetings, training, etc. at work
Persistence;
“Patience, persistence, and perspiration make an unbeatable combination for success.” – Napoleon Hill
I love that Napoleon Hill (author of Think and Grow Rich) included perspiration in this quote about persistence as well as patience. Perspiration because without a strong work ethic, you’ll never obtain true success. You want to work your body and mind every day. And patience is something everyone needs but nobody wants, especially in today’s seemingly fast and entitled society. Momentum takes time to build up. Some days you’ll feel like the boulder is rolling back against you down the hill and other days it will feel like a massive gust of wind will help you push that boulder up and over the hill. Staying persistent in either situation is crucial.
There is great responsibility with persistence however. By that I mean, you don’t want to be the person calling a client 5 times a day with nothing new to tell them. That’s a negative approach to persistence. But if you have a process in place and contact them 5 times over the course of 2 weeks to close a deal, that’s a positive approach to persistence.
One of my favorite books of all-time is “The Greatest Salesman in the World” by Og Mandino. His persistence quote is perhaps the most valuable and relatable to me -“I will persist until I succeed. Always will I take another step. If that is of no avail I will take another, and yet another. In truth, one step at a time is not too difficult. I know that small attempts, repeated, will complete any undertaking.”
Persistence Habits;
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Review your goals daily as a motivational reminder
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Determine your “Why” (we’ll talk about finding your Why later in the book)
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Become disciplined
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Set reminders in your phone that will go off periodically throughout the day
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Build confidence to stay the course
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Make a commitment to progress daily
Momentum;
“While a good leader sustains momentum, a great leader increases it.” – John C. Maxwell
One of the biggest challenges of momentum is getting it started. It’s relatively easy to maintain once activated and in full effect because you’ve developed the proper habits to keep it going. You’re making decisions for the better automatically every day from the healthy habits you’ve developed, which takes time. This is why it’s important to have patience and build mental strength as we’ve discussed throughout my new book, ReThink Selling: Why You Only Know 20% of Sales.
There will be months, weeks, and days where you feel like sales is easy, and there will be months, weeks, and days where you will feel like sales is the hardest job in the world. The goal should be to make it as easy on yourself as possible. By gaining momentum, and as importantly, mental strength and healthy habits, you give yourself the best opportunity to succeed over the long-term both personally and professionally. Unfortunately, this is often overlooked in our industry and requires more attention. We get caught up in the sales strategies, forgetting that it’s not the strategies that sells the car, it’s you that sells the experience and that all begins with mindset and the 3PM Rule.
Momentum Habits;
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Follow the 3PM Rule!
You have an opportunity right now to speed up your momentum if you already have some going, or you now have the tools to get momentum started if you’re feeling stuck. You have the ability to control the speed of your momentum! You can do this! It’s like Zig Ziglar says “You don’t have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great!”
TO EFFECTIVELY BUILD AND ESTABLISH MOMENTUM YOU MUST….
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Be Prepared
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Be Proactive
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Be Persistent
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Have Patience!
