Earlier this week
John Woeppel, our VP of Terminal Services, sent a note reminding all of the
sales people about planning activity for the week. He referenced Cato the
Elder, a Roman Senator and historian, in discussing how important it is to
remain productive in our daily lives. In order to be productive, one has
to be prepared with a plan or find himself flittering about without any
purpose. Cato and John’s point was that we should constantly strive to
find something worthwhile to do even if our original plan is foiled.
Having alternative actions (contingency plans) is paramount to remaining
productive.
My focus today is to
build on that email and discuss how productivity affects our mentality.
How often have you been stuck in a rut? All of us have gone through
periods where we just do not seem able to ‘motivate’ ourselves. We
struggle to make the first call of the day or just decide to blow off the plans
to meet some customers for happy hour (OK, maybe that does not happen and if it
does, you are really in a depressed state). When we find ourselves in low
places at work or at home, it becomes extremely difficult to start working in
the right direction.
Studies have long
shown that there is a connection between our brains interpret the world and how
our body reacts. Psychoneuroimmunology has shown over and over again that
depression weakens the immune system while feelings of happiness can boost the
body’s resistance to illness. What is amazing is that the brain also
reacts to physical stimulus. When a person smiles it can have the
positive affect of tricking the brain into thinking a person is happy or
joyous. This action actually begins the process of making a person
happier and reducing their stress and heart rate.
The same type of
reaction happens to us when we are being productive. The old saying that
success breeds more success is absolutely true in terms of how we orient our
routines and actions we take daily. If we begin to plan our work, work
our plan and find success from the endeavors, that experience begins to provide
the positive feelings needed to sustain prolonged periods of
productivity. It also begins to shape our attitude which is transmitted
to those around us. When we feel confident and self-assured based upon
our own actions it is reflected in the way people will react to us.
When someone is said
to have ‘presence’ we are acknowledging that there is some reaction to them
that is not quantifiable, but is readily apparent. People with presence
are generally self-assured without being arrogant and cocky. How can we capture
that same sense of confidence so that it excludes forth? It is through
being productive. When we are working hard and finding success, even in
small areas, that success builds upon itself. As a sales person, when in
a slump, we find that small wins begin to build upon themselves until we are
closing sales on a regular basis because our mindset has been changed by the
productivity we are experiencing.
Just like an athlete
that is ‘in the zone’, so can each person find the zone at work. It is a
combination of belief and action that is the result of proper planning, effort
and execution. If you start to find yourself in a low state of productivity
or find yourself just not feeling productive start finding small wins in your
day. It may be that you set a new goal of making 5 calls today instead of
4. It may be that you are going to plan on following up by phone with 10
customers each day that have not shipped with us in the last month. As
you start to create these small goals and you fulfill them, two outcomes will
occur…the first is that you will begin to feel a sense of accomplishment that
will push your sense of worth higher creating the mindset of success required
to continue to improve. The positive actions will create a better
mindset. The second outcome, which is even more pressing to your success
is that your attempts to change your mentality through creating achievable
goals will actually also lead you to creating new sales opportunities and
converting them to successful outcomes. 10 extra calls WILL create more
sales. More sales will create a better mindset. Your mindset will
create more success. It is a circle that feeds upon itself. Just
remember, YOU can change both your mindset and your results through your
actions. Be not only active, but productive!