We All Know This Feeling…… Your feel a rush of excitement as your appointment reminder on your outlook tells you it is time to call your biggest prospect. You quickly review in your mind what you want to say. You envision their positive response. You get in your last “cheerleader” words of encouragement and you finally dial! As you wait to hear the ring your heart rate increases even more, you can hear the “Hello” on the other end. One ring…..two rings…..three rings….then voicemail. As you disappointedly listen to the recording you go from discouragement to frenzy in a millisecond as you realize you need to leave a message since they were expecting your call. Your mind races in a thousand directions as to what you want to say. Before you can gather your opening line, you hear it…….”BEEP.”

I dare you, no; actually I double dog dare you to right now think about how many New Year’s resolutions you’ve made that didn’t last or didn’t work. Now, think about how many resolutions you did make, that did last and did work. Well? If you’re like me and most breathing human beings, the list of resolutions that did NOT work could fill up a Public Storage facility, while the resolutions actually accomplished could fit on that tiny, tiny sticky note where you can fit about 1 “to do.”

This past week I was helping a sales person put together their 2011 business plan. They were prepared for the exercise, but the information, priorities, and thoughts were scattered. I told him to stop. I drew a box on the top of a piece of paper and asked him to write in the box what his job was in as few words as possible. Here’s what he wrote: “My job is to provide income for me and my family and to make as much sales as possible.” OK. That’s too many words, and that’s not really what your job is. I grabbed the piece of paper, crossed out his sentence and wrote 2 words: