Every time I post "This Week in the Copier/Office Equipment Industry 10 Years Ago," I'm always thinking about what I was doing ten years ago, both in business and in my personal life. It’s a gentle reminder of how fast time moves past us.
My wife always tells me, "Don’t sweat the small stuff," her way of calming down after a mentally draining day or when I’m nearing the end of the quarter.
Keep in mind that we (salespeople) are not in a horse race; rather, we need to play the part of the tortoise more often. Slow and steady wins the race, with emphasis on the steady part. Use the steady part of your business time to plan your prospecting for the week.
Generally, I’ll set Monday aside for a day in the office to clean up odds and ends, research, follow-ups, and finish up proposals. On Tuesday and Wednesday, I try to schedule my call blocks for reaching out to my database. Thursday and Friday are the days I like to schedule all of my appointments. Sometimes it doesn’t work out that way, but the plan helps me maintain a rhythm throughout the week.
I mentioned that I "try"—there are always things that come up, and you need to adjust your schedule. On Thursdays and Fridays, I’ll start my first appointment at or before 9 AM and try to have five scheduled appointments. Friday, well… that’s getaway day. Again, I’ll start at or before 9 AM, and I aim to finish up by 3 PM. All in all, I can schedule nine appointments over those two days.
I spoke about the rhythm of the week: having the same schedule each week allows me to control my week. I said this the other day when someone asked how I was doing: "I’m just trying to manage my life instead of letting life manage me." Kinda funny when you think about it—getting out of rhythm with prospecting, researching, quoting, learning, and appointments can wreak havoc on your mental state.
For those of us who manage our lives on commissions, we’re always under pressure to perform, sell, and make a living for our families. Pretty stressful, right? I believe that having some type of plan for each week will let you manage your sales career instead of your sales career running your life.
-=Good Selling=-
Comments (0)