Prospecting: Sometimes you need to Slow Down to Speed Up
Do you ever have this desperate, panicked feeling while prospecting, that you need to hurry and tackle everything at once or you won’t get it done? That you need to be a multi-tasking whirlwind tornado to be productive? Are you doing one task while thinking of another? Worse, are you thinking of your work while you’re supposed to be relaxing with your family?
In our microwave society, everyone is looking for the fastest fix for everything. Sometimes, though, you need to slow down to speed up in prospecting.
What do I mean by that?
In our profession, it’s all about being prepared and focused with your time and mindset. You didn’t start a part-time network marketing business to have another 40 hr/week job right? It’s designed to be done “part-time”, as in, a few hours a week. So how do you make that happen in prospecting when life “comes at you fast” as the commercial says? You slow down so you can speed up. This is what that looks like:
“If we fail to plan, we plan to fail” – so very true in our network marketing business! I know you want to make your first check as soon as you can, but you need to take a minute, and slow down to speed up by doing a few simple things first:
Prospecting Tip #1: Be crystal clear on your WHY
Write this down and have it in front of you EVERY DAY, to remind you of WHY you are prospecting in this business. It has to be a very serious reason, so serious that you may not be able to accomplish it without this business being successful. In other words, you’ve “burned your ships” and there is no turning back, you HAVE to make this work. Think about how you will FEEL when you have accomplished this why and write that down. It’s not the money, it’s WHAT the money will do for you that counts.
Prospecting Tip #2: Train before you talk
What is the first thing you do when you start a new job? Train, right? It may work for some, but for most of us prospecting BEFORE you train is the fastest way to “burn” your best prospects. Before you go out to recruit the whole world into “the best income opportunity on the planet”, get some training. Get trained on how to talk to people, your company’s system, how to enroll prospects and get them started. Then and only then, open your mouth. If you don’t get results (they enroll), get coaching immediately to see where you need to improve. Most of us are just a tiny tweak away from greatness. Don’t keep banging your head against the wall of ignorance. Perfect practice makes perfect, NOT just practice!
Prospecting Tip #3: Get prepared
With your list-take some time in the beginning to develop this list. Then have this list for your business all in one place. It won’t work to have some of it on your cellphone, church roster, PTA list, etc. Have one dedicated list. Remember, this is your inventory. No business, traditional or otherwise, would ever start prospecting without a resource list, so you shouldn’t either.
With blocks of time – you’ve got to plan on when you will make those connections, whether it’s commute time, lunch time, after dinner time. It won’t go perfect all the time but you must be intentional. Go buy an At A Glance, Week at a Glance calendar and highlight blocks of time in your day (work time/family time/biz time). Even if you transfer this to electronic, you need the visual somewhere for the whole week so you can see when you PLAN to work your business, even if it’s 15 min/day to start. Set reminders in your cell phone to make that initial call or follow up call so you don’t forget even if you’re not in front of a physical calendar.
Most of all with your mindset – be ready to be prospecting everywhere you go. Be “open for business” as you interact with people throughout your day, asking them questions about themselves. This way you can always be expanding your list.
If you’re armed with your WHY, trained to talk, and prepared…congratulations! You have slowed down, so you can now SPEED UP your Success!!
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Elizabeth Oliva’s Network Marketing Blog
Call me: 469-224-7898
Email me: elizabeth@elizabetholiva.com
Skype: elizabetholiva2
P.S.: Need More Prospecting Tips? Check out this great training on prospecting…
