‘On the Point’ for 2011

As you make your final push to close out 2010, let me ask you this: How did you do? Did you accomplish everything you set out to do this year? Did you fulfill your promises of financial success? More importantly, in the face of all the bad news on the airwaves these days, were you able to stay focused on your economy rather than the economy?

As the old cliché goes, hindsight is 20/20. So, the question should really be: What would you have done differently? The best thing about life is that every new day presents a new opportunity to take action. If you’re focused on continuous education, then every day presents an opportunity to take greater action.

Let me share a personal story with you. Fresh from an onsite training class I gave one rainy morning in Texas, I saw two salesmen standing outside on the point. The rain began to subside, so I walked over and stood between the two gentlemen to get into the conversation.

The salesman to my left started lamenting that the rain was killing business and it was a waste of time to be at the dealership. The salesman to my right called the other guy’s comment “crazy,” arguing that customers who visit on rainy days are the best buyers. He then said he couldn’t wait for the next customer to walk onto the lot.

So, there I stood between two colleagues with the same opportunities, same business cards, and the same desks in the same showroom, both trying to sell the same inventory based on the same payplan. Now, the guy to my left just happened to be the lowest man on the dealership’s totem pole. The guy to my right was the top salesperson at the dealership, appearing atop the leaderboard on a regular basis.

See, it’s not necessarily skill level that separates the good from the bad; it’s attitude. And, as the saying goes, your attitude determines your altitude. Let’s take a look at three intangible qualities that separated those two salesmen and how a renewed focus on each can help keep you on the point in 2011:

1. Hunger: The top guy was hungry, wouldn’t you agree? Think about it: Hungry people don’t walk at the bell, ask about the lunch order at 10:30 a.m. or participate in the daily coffee klatch. You won’t hear them complaining about the advertising or the leasing programs. Hungry people aren’t concerned about who’s getting house deals and why. Instead, they are focused on ways to maximize their payplans.

Hungry individuals assume everyone is a buyer until they find out otherwise. Hungry people always have a suggestion on how to make the deal work. They aren’t scared of customers who walk in with their Internet research, and they are always ready to put a deal together. Hungry sales-people complete their work plan every day, set personal goals and work toward them. These are people who think win-win for the customer, themselves and the dealership.

2. Action: Success also finds people who take action. Those who take action are more effective because they try harder, keep things in motion, accomplish more in less time and are willing to take a shot. These individuals keep going until the deal is done or dead, and apply energy toward learning from missed opportunities.

3. Having the Right Focus: Lastly, success finds people who focus not only on what they know, but on what they can actually do. Every time I speak at a conference, there’s always one guy in the audience who will come up to me after my presentation and tell me that the presenter before me offered the same advice. My response is always the same: “That’s great, so how good are you at executing on it?” I usually hear the same excuses in return: They either forgot to use the technique, or they have a better method — even though they never seem to have the gross numbers to back it up.

See, it’s never about whether you know something or not; it’s about how good you are at it. When you take the time to focus on what you are doing, it’s easier for you to identify the things that may be standing in your way. As Confucius once said, “By nature, men are nearly alike; by practice, they get to be wide apart.”

Don’t forget to set your goals for 2011, because nobody is too high up on the food chain to set goals. And just remember this: To get to where you want to go, you first need a destination. Happy holidays to all, and I’ll see you in 2011.

Cory Mosley is principal of Mosley Training LLC, a nationally recognized training provider focused on new-school techniques, products and services. E-mail him at [email protected].