It's amazing what you find, when you're not looking for it. Since the inception of The Results Report in 2000, I've had the privilege to share with you, interviews with some of the top thought leaders and businesspeople in the world. Dynamic insights and growth strategies for success in life and business.

Bestselling authors. Hall of Fame speakers. Successful entrepreneurs. Dynamic leaders. High achieving and award winning—celebrities, athletes, journalists and broadcasters.

In this issue, have decided to share winning ways from someone who I know really well. Actually, better than...

Any other human being. Because, it's...me! Yet, this is NOT meant to be self-serving, here's why...

In November, 2008, (during the Great Recession), Alan Rigg, a fellow speaker and author, interviewed me for a teleseminar series on how to increase sales and grow one's business. Alan titled our interview: How to Increase Sales During an Economic Downturn. After the interview, Alan sent me a transcript.

As I read it, I quickly realized, “Hey, there's good stuff here!” (It was true then, during the Great Recession and ironically, still true today in a COVID-19 pandemic world.)

While I could simply provide the transcript, thought it would be far more impactful and valuable for you, to instead, select some key keepers. Short, powerful winning ways. The kinda stuff, you can take action on, now!

So here goes:

• Life and business are about choice. So when you hear, see or read about ideas or strategies to help you grow and prosper, you can either ignore or implement them. Erase or embrace them. Or anything in between. The choice is yours!

• Success starts with YOU: your choices, your beliefs and your behaviors.

• If you want to make more, you need to do more. So start doing things differently.

• If you want to sell more, you need to think more. So start thinking differently.

• The real responsibility or accountability for your success, starts with you. It's way too easy to blame “the economy,” “picky prospects” or “conniving customers”— which is what predictors of doom and gloom, naysayers and critics do.

• Today, customers are making decisions. Deals are getting done. Money is being made. So what will you do, to make sure those decisions, deals and sales are with you?

• Eliminate moans and groans. Eradicate complaints and whimpers. Remove bellyaches and gripes. Stop whining, start selling! (Hmm, that's a catchy title for a book!)

• What one thing could you do once a day, or one more time a day, that would have a significant impact on your life or your business?

• What role do referrals play in your pipeline?

• What are you going to do to increase your expertise, industry knowledge, product knowledge or sales knowledge?

• How can you provide greater value to your market or your territory? Your prospects or your clients?

• What impact would one more daily call to a customer, client, or prospect, have upon your business and your earnings?

• Attitude without action, is merely frustration.

• You're compensated for results, not intent. Grandiose plans are wonderful, yet let your results inform the world. Get to it and do it!

• Only control those factors over which you have control. Stop worrying about the rest.

• You have to deepen and strengthen relationships with current or prospective clients.

• Discover whether or not your current customer, client or prospect has: A problem to solve. A need to fill. Or a dream or goal to realize. And if one of these three doesn't exist, you don't have a prospect. You've got a suspect. So know, the only way you can determine what their interest is, what their desire is, what their challenge is—is by asking intelligent questions or power probes.

• If you want to truly demonstrate, (especially initially), your expertise, credibility, knowledge and reliability, it's going to happen more through the questions you ask versus the statements you make. Because those questions, will demonstrate your ability to help someone else improve their condition and attain a more favorable future.

• A feature or a fact is just that—it's what something is. What you need to focus on, is what your product or service does for your decision-maker. What are the: Results. Benefits. Advantages. And outcomes it delivers.

And here's a series of nine short success strategies:

Strategy 1: Adapt and apply this four-step revenue-generating approach:

Step 1: Ask a question that helps your decision-maker identify a challenge, an issue, a problem or even a goal, objective or dream.

Step 2: Tell them a quick “tale of triumph” or “success story” about how you helped another ecstatic customer or client, solve a similar problem or achieve the same or similar goal.

Step 3: Share specific anecdotes, numbers, metrics, percentages or stats about the impact of your solution.

Step 4: Ask your decision-maker, “What impact would results like these have upon i.e., your business? Your life? Your family?”

Strategy 2: Remember to REMEMBER: Referrals Every Moment, Every Month, Bring Excellent Results!

What's your cost of acquisition for a new customer? Tens, hundreds, or even thousands of dollars?

The good news about a referral introduction, is your cost of acquisition for that new customer or client is nothing. It's zip. Nada. Bupkus. And all you've gotta do, is ask!

Your customers or clients have already proven to you, the value they perceive in you. How? Well, they know you, like you and trust you. And they prove it, every time they pay you!

Strategy 3: Know that—your past success doesn't guarantee future success, it's merely an influencer.

Strategy 4: When people whine, whimper and complain, the questions are: “What are you going to do about it?” / “What are you going to do to get out of the morass and mediocrity, to pursue the opportunity and possibility?” / “What are you willing to do differently?”

In football, teams may alter their game plan. Pilots are continually altering their route, making minor changes because of chop or turbulence.

And in this current state of being, there may be chop and turbulence. So the question becomes, “What will intelligent business leaders and salespeople do to prepare, to become more valuable and more meaningful, to their customers and clients?”

Strategy 5: Be patient. Change doesn't happen overnight. It takes time. So as much as you'd like to have a quick return or rapid reward, sometimes it ain't gonna happen in 24 or 48 hours. It might take a month. A quarter. Or longer. Hang in. Stay positive. Stay strong. Stay focused.

Strategy 6: Your integrity is a non-negotiable. You're a walking, talking billboard for your company. If one person in your company chooses to engage in something that's unethical, it could jeopardize your entire organization.

When Sales & Marketing Management Magazine called me, to do a story on ethics and selling, the journalist asked, “Hey Jeff, what do you do if one of your top producers lies or submits a doctored expense report, or is unethical with customers?”

I asked, “Is that really the question?” She said, “Yes.”

I replied, “Okay, here's what you do: (pause) Fire them!”

And I was done.

She said, “Umm, I’ve got a 700-word limit. Can you give me something else?”

I asked, “Oh, okay, you need more words?” She said, “Yes, I need more words.” I replied, “Fire them, NOW!”

Strategy 7: You can be proactive, that's okay. You can be persistent, that's okay. Yet never manipulate another human being into making a decision. That only gets you the short, fleeting, quick hit. You're in this game for the long-term. Therefore, your reputation will rise above riches. Your reputation must reign supreme.

Strategy 8: When trust is high, fear is low. When people know they can trust you, they'll buy from you. They'll recommend you and refer you. And then they'll buy from you, recommend you and refer you...

Again. And again. And again...

Strategy 9: And most important, it's not what you know, it's what you DO!

BONUS VIDEO CONTENT ON HOW TO DRIVE YOUR SUCCESS:

To learn more about the importance of trust and the significance of asking great questions, please take a peek at this short video clip: (1:28)

https://tinyurl.com/BlackmanDriveSuccess

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