I love music, lots of genres – artists – songs, which made it easy to play along with one of those silly Facebook challenges…
Of course, I had to add a twist – I was determined NOT to repeat an artist. Which is:
Lesson #1: Don’t make things more difficult than they already are.
Seriously, why do we do that to ourselves? Take something that is already difficult – complex – complicated – etc. and add EXTRA difficulty – complexity – complication. It’s JUST silly.
Yet in inside sales I don’t know that we often say (to ourselves); “How can I make this easier on myself?”
I’ve started asking that, it’s crazy what I’m uncovering – try it.
Lesson #2: Preparation isn’t cheating – it’s SMART!
I realized that trying to come up with a song a day was not necessarily making me feel joyful. The pressure of *poof* coming up with the song in my head on the day itself actually added stress (which was NOT the point).
I printed out the sheet and as I thought of a song that met a category, I wrote it down. It changed my outlook completely! I started glancing at the sheet as a welcome distraction, wracked my brain… sorted through memories that were attached to different songs.
Inside sales can be more joyful when we’re prepared as well. Having a theme (aka call purpose) for your day makes it effortless to make calls – you don’t’ have to figure out what you’re calling about as you’re making your way through the activity of the day.
Having a list of questions to ask, means you can listen without worrying about what you’ll say next. That email template is easier to edit than creating an entire new email every time you leave someone a voicemail message.
Putting in a little effort over time is much more effective than cramming.
Lesson # 3: Pivot if you don’t have an answer
Day 19: was a song that makes you think about life… I didn’t have anything, nada, zilch. Yet I’d participated along for eighteen days… what was I going to do QUIT? I had to think of something…
Has that ever happened to you on a call? It’s happened to me. I think the key is, making sure you keep track of pivots that have worked for you in the past. That way you can pull them out when you need them again.
- Know what tangent you can go toward when a topic doesn’t hit the mark with a particular prospect.
- Have questions that open conversations up for when it feels like you’re not going anywhere with the current topic.
- Be willing to say you don’t know, will find out, then continue on.
Lesson #4: Ask for help.
Day 26: was the next time I didn’t have an easy answer. Remember from lesson #2 I’ve been thinking about songs all along, yet nothing was coming to me.
I started to ask different people for their thoughts. Interestingly, their answers and ideas unstuck my brain and allowed me to come up with something.
This is where I use my Chinese Buffet Theory of Learning the most – when I don’t have an answer for myself, get lots of ideas from different people and take bits of each to fill my own plate. Making it my own.
You can do the same thing in sales – take bits from books, blogs, videos, courses – combine them all onto your plate and create something all your own.
Lesson #5: Don’t give up!
Day 30: here it is the LAST DAY and I truly was having difficulty – of course for some reason it felt like this should be meaningful (being the end and all).
I have to say I used lessons 1-4 to come up with what I wanted. That is the key to inside sales success as well.
Use everything you know, all your resources, every… single… day… and add in tenacity. Don’t give up.
All that from a silly Facebook 30-Day Song Challenge.
Musically yours,
Lynn
ps: here are is my 30-Day Playlist (I was told it would be annoying not to have it included)
Day 1: Baby Blue, Jeff Healey
Day 2: 35 Miles Outside of Memphis, Slam Allen
Day 3: Workin’ for a Living, Huey Lewis & the News
Day 4: Similar Features, Mellissa Ethridge
Day 5: Chemical Wire, fiREHOSE
Day 6: Turn It Up, Save Ferris
Day 7: Surrender, Cheap Trick
Day 8: I Ain’t Drunk, Mell Brown
Day 9: Ain’t Nothin’ Wrong with That, Robert Randolph & the Family Band
Day 10: I Can Change, LCD Soundstation
Day 11: I Need a Miracle, Grateful Dead
Day 12: Camptown Races, Stephen Foster
Day 13: Mohamad Radio, Waren Zevon
Day 14: Into the Mystic, Van Morrison
Day 15: All About That Bass, Katie Davis
Day 16: Bourée, JS Bach performed by Jethro Tull
Day 17: Shook Me All Night Long, AC/DC
Day 18: Make Someone Happy, Bill Evans
Day 19: Total Destruction of the Mind, Santana
Day 20: Take Five, Dave Brubeck
Day 21: Corrina Coririna, Bob Dylan
Day 22: The Bounce, The Blue Method
Day 23: Ab Minor jam, Christian McBride
Day 24: Let’s Dance, Ramones
Day 25: Matchbox Blues, Stevie Ray Vaughn & Albert King
Day 26: Right by Your Side, Eurythmics
Day 27: Indoor Fireworks, Elvis Costello
Day 28: Sister Midnight, David Bowie
Day 29: Sentimental Journey (Green & Brown) sung by Ella Fitzgerald
Day 30: Goddess of Love & Beer, Popa Chubby
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