- by Pete Zdanis
I talk with fellow network marketers every day, and questions I am frequently asked include, "What should I send to a prospect? Which audio/video CDs and DVDs work best? Should I call them first? What should I say when I call? What should I say in a cover letter or e-mail message?" Others tell me about how they are busy setting up their business checking account, or buying a new laptop or tablet to help with their business, adding a separate phone line for a business phone, etc., etc.
Now, don't get me wrong. These are all good questions, and good things to do to run an efficient network marketing business. What I am hearing from some people, however, is that they are BUSY, but not taking ACTION.
Let me explain: I'm reminded of the definition of "inertia". For those of you who have studied physics in high school or college, you know that the textbook definition of "inertia" is - "The tendency of a body at rest to remain at rest, and the tendency of a body in motion to remain in motion." This natural rule applies to our business just as much as it applies to a boulder sitting on top of (or rolling down) Pike's Peak.
While people are doing "busy" work, they are not taking the necessary "action" to put their business in motion. They are doing the easy and pleasant things like sorting the paper clips, rather than talking with prospects. So, guess what happens? NOTHING!
This all centers around something which many of us are guilty of, and that is "fear of failure." It's great to get organized, set up the best personal computer/fax system, and know that we can reach a sharpened number two pencil at a moment's notice - but, how has that helped us build our network marketing business? Zip. Nada. Not one bit.
It's natural to want to have the "perfect" sponsoring process, so we agonize over it for days, weeks, or even months. Then we finally step out into the "real world" with our perfect, bullet-proof system, and - GUESS WHAT? - the first 20 people we talk with aren't interested! We then logically conclude that the company, products, marketing plan, compensation plan, upline, company management, sun, moon, and stars, all failed us, and that we could never possibly succeed in network marketing.
Do you know why we failed? BECAUSE WE WERE PROBABLY NEVER TOLD THAT WE WOULD FAIL! Our sponsor was probably afraid to tell us that there was one iota of a possibility that we might not succeed each and every time we present our extraordinary products and opportunity to everyone under the sun. Well...not to worry, because that's what I'm here to tell you: YOU ARE GOING TO FAIL!
Sure, you have the products, compensation plan and marketing tools that are among the best on the planet, but not everyone you talk to will share your vision and enthusiasm, or see the power of what you are showing them, at least not initially.
Before I tell you two very important secrets, let me ask you a few questions:
Did you learn to ride a bicycle, or roller skate, or ice skate without falling down? Do you think that Nadia never fell off the balance beam or that A. J. Foyt never crashed in a race car? Did you ever stop to think that even Ted Williams failed to get a hit more than half the time? Do you know how many rejections Colonel Harlan Sanders received before he sold his now famous Kentucky Fried Chicken recipe? - 1,014! That's right, ONE THOUSAND ONE HUNDRED AND FOURTEEN. Geez, that must have gotten pretty depressing after the first 800 or 900 rejections!
Are you ready for the secrets?
Well, there's good news and bad news. First, the bad news:
1. YOU ARE GOING TO FAIL MOST OF THE TIME.
I'm guessing that by now you're probably ready for the good news:
2. YOU WILL SUCCEED IF YOU DON'T QUIT.
These "secrets" may appear to be contradictory, but, trust me, they aren't.
EVERY successful network marketer has failed to sign up everyone they wanted to. Personally, I fail every day. In fact, I probably fail 80% to 90% of the time. Am I successful? Well, I guess that depends on your definition of success.
Those who are consistent and persistent in network marketing will, over time, build large and thriving organizations. Just like everyone else in this world, they will likely fail over 80% to 90% of the time. BUT, GUESS WHAT? After a while, those successes they realize the other 10% to 20% of the time start to add up. They eventually reach a point where all their dedication and hard work continue to reward them handsomely, month after month, and year after year.
So, what's the moral of the story? Realize right here and now that, more often than not, you are going to fail, just like everyone else. Then, go out and take ACTION to build your network marketing business. SO WHAT if you get your pride hurt, your nose bloodied, or your knees skinned up once in a while? (I just hope you don't wreck a race car!)
LEARN FROM EACH FAILURE. Go through a "Lessons Learned" process after every presentation, whether you achieved your objective or not. Ask yourself: "What (if anything) went wrong? What questions could I have answered better? What would I do different the next time?"
How many times have all of us said silently to ourselves, "Gee, I wish I would have said......"? Well, network marketing is just like the rest of our lives. We have to learn from our experiences and do better the next time. But, the KEY is that you need to make sure that there is a "next time".....DON'T QUIT! (Are you starting to detect a pattern here? I hope so.)
One of my favorite network marketing analogies is one that I learned from a fellow network marketer. He talks about the fact that 4% of oysters have pearls in them. It goes like this:
Suppose you have a bushel basket with 100 oysters in it, and your objective is to find those four pearls by shucking all those oysters. You might get lucky and find a pearl or two in the first ten or twenty oysters you shuck. Or, you may not find any in the first forty, fifty, or sixty oysters you shuck. Many people will quit at that point, and never find the pearls.
These are the same people who make a feeble attempt at network marketing, quit before they succeed, and then go on to claim that "network marketing doesn't work".
Then there are those who "keep on shucking"....they may even come up empty the first 96 times (remember Colonel Sanders?), and then have those four pearls "fall right into their lap".
Some people call these folks "lucky". I call them "people who keep on shucking". I also call them "Winners".
I could also go on about these "lucky" people who realize the success that all of us envy. These people usually simply explain their success by saying, "The harder I work, the luckier I get.", but, that's another story for another article.
Finally, there are the "Winners" who teach each and every member of their organizations how to learn from failure...these people are called "LEADERS", and you should do everything in your power to become one or get to know one very soon. It WILL change your life.
Pete Zdanis
I talk with fellow network marketers every day, and questions I am frequently asked include, "What should I send to a prospect? Which audio/video CDs and DVDs work best? Should I call them first? What should I say when I call? What should I say in a cover letter or e-mail message?" Others tell me about how they are busy setting up their business checking account, or buying a new laptop or tablet to help with their business, adding a separate phone line for a business phone, etc., etc.
Now, don't get me wrong. These are all good questions, and good things to do to run an efficient network marketing business. What I am hearing from some people, however, is that they are BUSY, but not taking ACTION.
Let me explain: I'm reminded of the definition of "inertia". For those of you who have studied physics in high school or college, you know that the textbook definition of "inertia" is - "The tendency of a body at rest to remain at rest, and the tendency of a body in motion to remain in motion." This natural rule applies to our business just as much as it applies to a boulder sitting on top of (or rolling down) Pike's Peak.
While people are doing "busy" work, they are not taking the necessary "action" to put their business in motion. They are doing the easy and pleasant things like sorting the paper clips, rather than talking with prospects. So, guess what happens? NOTHING!
This all centers around something which many of us are guilty of, and that is "fear of failure." It's great to get organized, set up the best personal computer/fax system, and know that we can reach a sharpened number two pencil at a moment's notice - but, how has that helped us build our network marketing business? Zip. Nada. Not one bit.
It's natural to want to have the "perfect" sponsoring process, so we agonize over it for days, weeks, or even months. Then we finally step out into the "real world" with our perfect, bullet-proof system, and - GUESS WHAT? - the first 20 people we talk with aren't interested! We then logically conclude that the company, products, marketing plan, compensation plan, upline, company management, sun, moon, and stars, all failed us, and that we could never possibly succeed in network marketing.
Do you know why we failed? BECAUSE WE WERE PROBABLY NEVER TOLD THAT WE WOULD FAIL! Our sponsor was probably afraid to tell us that there was one iota of a possibility that we might not succeed each and every time we present our extraordinary products and opportunity to everyone under the sun. Well...not to worry, because that's what I'm here to tell you: YOU ARE GOING TO FAIL!
Sure, you have the products, compensation plan and marketing tools that are among the best on the planet, but not everyone you talk to will share your vision and enthusiasm, or see the power of what you are showing them, at least not initially.
Before I tell you two very important secrets, let me ask you a few questions:
Did you learn to ride a bicycle, or roller skate, or ice skate without falling down? Do you think that Nadia never fell off the balance beam or that A. J. Foyt never crashed in a race car? Did you ever stop to think that even Ted Williams failed to get a hit more than half the time? Do you know how many rejections Colonel Harlan Sanders received before he sold his now famous Kentucky Fried Chicken recipe? - 1,014! That's right, ONE THOUSAND ONE HUNDRED AND FOURTEEN. Geez, that must have gotten pretty depressing after the first 800 or 900 rejections!
Are you ready for the secrets?
Well, there's good news and bad news. First, the bad news:
1. YOU ARE GOING TO FAIL MOST OF THE TIME.
I'm guessing that by now you're probably ready for the good news:
2. YOU WILL SUCCEED IF YOU DON'T QUIT.
These "secrets" may appear to be contradictory, but, trust me, they aren't.
EVERY successful network marketer has failed to sign up everyone they wanted to. Personally, I fail every day. In fact, I probably fail 80% to 90% of the time. Am I successful? Well, I guess that depends on your definition of success.
Those who are consistent and persistent in network marketing will, over time, build large and thriving organizations. Just like everyone else in this world, they will likely fail over 80% to 90% of the time. BUT, GUESS WHAT? After a while, those successes they realize the other 10% to 20% of the time start to add up. They eventually reach a point where all their dedication and hard work continue to reward them handsomely, month after month, and year after year.
So, what's the moral of the story? Realize right here and now that, more often than not, you are going to fail, just like everyone else. Then, go out and take ACTION to build your network marketing business. SO WHAT if you get your pride hurt, your nose bloodied, or your knees skinned up once in a while? (I just hope you don't wreck a race car!)
LEARN FROM EACH FAILURE. Go through a "Lessons Learned" process after every presentation, whether you achieved your objective or not. Ask yourself: "What (if anything) went wrong? What questions could I have answered better? What would I do different the next time?"
How many times have all of us said silently to ourselves, "Gee, I wish I would have said......"? Well, network marketing is just like the rest of our lives. We have to learn from our experiences and do better the next time. But, the KEY is that you need to make sure that there is a "next time".....DON'T QUIT! (Are you starting to detect a pattern here? I hope so.)
One of my favorite network marketing analogies is one that I learned from a fellow network marketer. He talks about the fact that 4% of oysters have pearls in them. It goes like this:
Suppose you have a bushel basket with 100 oysters in it, and your objective is to find those four pearls by shucking all those oysters. You might get lucky and find a pearl or two in the first ten or twenty oysters you shuck. Or, you may not find any in the first forty, fifty, or sixty oysters you shuck. Many people will quit at that point, and never find the pearls.
These are the same people who make a feeble attempt at network marketing, quit before they succeed, and then go on to claim that "network marketing doesn't work".
Then there are those who "keep on shucking"....they may even come up empty the first 96 times (remember Colonel Sanders?), and then have those four pearls "fall right into their lap".
Some people call these folks "lucky". I call them "people who keep on shucking". I also call them "Winners".
I could also go on about these "lucky" people who realize the success that all of us envy. These people usually simply explain their success by saying, "The harder I work, the luckier I get.", but, that's another story for another article.
Finally, there are the "Winners" who teach each and every member of their organizations how to learn from failure...these people are called "LEADERS", and you should do everything in your power to become one or get to know one very soon. It WILL change your life.
Pete Zdanis
Posts
Great article that I really needed to read. "Keep on shucking"! Thanks, Pete!
ReplyDeleteGreat article, Pete. Missed it the first time around but got here via Google+. Hard work, determination and persistence definitely are traits of winners. I also like your definition of leaders. Excellent post all around.
ReplyDelete