Maverick and Company

If your computer crashes, it’s pretty easy to see that you need help, and fast. When it comes to YOUR performance however, it can be tough to tell when it’s worth it to call in some professional help. Here are 7 Times When Business Coaching is Worth the Money.

1. La Brea Syndrome: You’ve Been Stuck for a While
2. Repeating Patterns
3. Borrow a Brain
4. Develop New Skills
5. You Have Plenty of $ but No Life
6. You’re Working Hard but Have No $ AND No Life
7. Crunch Time

1. La Brea Syndrome

You’ve Been Stuck for a While The La Brea Tar pits are a legendary collection of fossils. Animals would wander into the tar, get stuck and eventually die there. La Brea Syndrome is when you’re too stuck to be able to get yourself out. When you’ve spent weeks or months thinking you need to make a change but still haven’t made it…it’s a good idea to get professional help. You may not be able to get unstuck on your own OR it may just take a long, long time to do it. You don’t necessarily have to sign up for a year long package…a really good coach might be able to get you unstuck in a single session. How much work you need, and how long it will take will vary from situation to situation. Don’t kid yourself about whether or not you’ll be able to deal with it on your own. If it’s been going on for a long time you’re wasting money, energy and time spinning your wheels. Get help. It will definitely be worth it.

2. Repeating Patterns

Over the course of your professional life, you’ll find some patterns repeating over and over. When you have one that is particularly damaging, it’s usually worth the investment to work with someone who can help you create new processes and paradigms so you don’t keep doing the same thing over and over. One example, you overbook yourself, work really, really hard for a while and then retreat into a work coma where almost nothing gets done. This type of cycle can kill a business if it’s not properly managed. The worse the impact of the pattern is on you and those around you, the more important it is to get help dismantling it. If you’re not sure it’s all that bad, check in with the people around you. They can usually provide clear feedback about the true impact.

3. Borrow a Brain

We can’t all be experts at everything. A good reason to hire a coach or consultant is that you want to borrow their brain. An expert, or someone with a lot of experience in a particular area or industry can add enormous value to your business for the cost of just a few hours time. If a project’s success hinges on a factor or area where you don’t have expertise, consider hiring one and borrowing their brain. Technology upgrades, major changes to your sales process, even hiring decisions are all events that often justify an investment in coaching to produce the desired result or avoid costly mistakes.

4. Develop New Skills

Professionals should be consistently and strategically growing their skill sets. If you’ve identified a set of skills you want to develop, executive coaching can be a very cost effective way to get the results you want. Unlike classes which are generally designed for a general audience, a professional coach can design a program specifically for you. You’ll avoid reviewing lessons you’ve already learned and can often learn your new skills inside of a real project you’re currently working on. That way you’re producing great results as you build your skills. This is a great way to improve the R.O.I. on a coaching investment. Great examples would be leadership skills, confrontation, marketing, time management, etc.

5. You Have $, But No Life

It’s not unusual for life to get wildly out of balance. We tend to focus our energy on the places where we feel good and confident, places where it’s likely we can produce results. For many of us, that’s our work. If you find you have plenty of $, but not much of a life, a coach is a good investment. Look for one who won’t just tell you how you should live your life, but who can help you understand your true priorities and motivations and design a good life to fulfill those needs and desires. Plan to work with this person for several weeks to help you design a life you want and develop the strategies for putting in the new priorities and breaking old habits.

6. You Don’t Have Much $ OR Much of a Life

If this describes you, it’s likely you’re missing a critical component of a successful business. You may not be charging enough, you may be giving away too many freebies, you might just be working with the wrong people. You might be in an unworkable business altogether. It’s more likely however that your approach is off. A good coach with experience analyzing and diagnosing business processes can help you isolate where you’re going so wrong and get things back on track. Remember that not all of what’s true is true everywhere…meaning a solution for a corporation may not work for your small one-man-show and vice versa. Make sure you’re working with someone who has experience with either your symptoms or your specific size business, industry, etc.

7. It’s Crunch Time

When you’re buried in an avalanche of projects, when you’re getting ready to go public, when you’re growing really fast, all of these are good times to get help. When it’s crunch time, every minute matters. A coach can help you pause to do the big picture, strategic thinking and short-term planning that can make the difference between success and failure. If you don’t feel like you have time to meet with a coach, that’s probably a good sign that you need one. Just like a hiring a trainer helps get you into the gym, a coach helps get you to do the pausing and planning that often produces your best thinking and best results. They can also provide an emotional outlet to help you deal effectively with a high pressure situation.

A REALLY GREAT YEAR, like a really great life, almost never happens by accident. If you want one, you’ve got to CREATE it. Since I’m turning 33 this year, I’m looking for help making a great big list of 33 things I could do this year that would help make the year GREAT. And I’d like your help.

A LITTLE HELP, A LITTLE FAME–If you’ve got a good idea, send it in. I’ll compile a big list of the best and republish them (up to 100.) If you make the list and would like a little bit of fame, I’ll also publish your name, company name and website. Same goes for the final list of the 33 I like most.

SMALL THINGS, BIG FUN–While any suggestion is welcome, I’m especially interested in the little things that you think would make a big difference. Hiking Mt. Everest may have changed YOUR life but odds are it won’t be changing mine. You might instead suggest climbing a single 14’er (mountain with an elevation over 14,000 feet for those of you not from Denver.)  While moving to Maui or spending a month in a monastery might be fun…I’m mostly looking for the little things that have made a big difference in your life. TWEAKS are the small changes that can change everything.  It might be a book you read that changed your life, a movie you can’t forget or the scheduling habit that made your life workable.  It could be the one feng shui idea or the single habit of drinking more water, or the way you started scheduling vacations in advance, limiting the time your phone is on or just that you made a Sunday dinner with the family a priority.

WHATEVER little thing worked for YOU, I want to know about it.   SEND ‘EM IN–I’ll take suggestions for the next week and then publish the big list within the next couple of weeks. I have a feeling people will come up with some pretty good stuff so you may want to check back and look the list over. You may even want to take on doing the final 33 with me, or make your own list. A great life is CREATED. Thanks for helping me create mine and make sure you’re also creating YOURS. Reply to project33@maverickandcompany.com with your suggestions. And stay tuned for updates!

We all want to be remembered so we can be referred.  We want to stand out in their memory.  But the smartest way to do this is to first focus on fitting in. Ever notice that there are certain people you just click with?  Certain people who seem to like you and you seem to like them, almost from the get go?  There are some people on this planet that you don’t have to work hard to connect with.

These are what I call your Blue Fish people.  There is something about them, something about you, that just goes together.  When you find these people they tend to stand out in your memory…almost like a Blue Fish in a sea of Red Roses.

If you want to stand out, be remembered and get referred, I recommend you start by seeking out the people who you have that click with…your Blue Fish people.  It’ll be easy to connect with them.  It’ll be easier for them to remember you.  And because you do have that friendly connection, they’re more likely to refer you.  AND because their connections are probably a lot like them, their connections are likely to be more Blue Fish people, people you will naturally connect with as well. Don’t try to impress everyone.

Don’t try to be remembered by everyone.  And CERTAINLY do not seek referrals from everyone.  Find your Blue Fish people, the places where you fit in.  It is there you are most able to Stand Out and reap the rewards of doing so.

A few weeks ago I received an email invitation to a launch party for a BNI group.  BNI, Business Networking International, is a great organization with lots of chapters all over the world, and oodles of dedicated members who pass millions of referrals.  In general they do a great job of providing businesses and sales people with good training and a good set-up to build relationships with new referral sources.  In general, I am a fan. Specifically, the series of interactions I had with the person inviting me were a case study in how NOT to invite people to events you’d actually like them to attend.  Which brings us back to that first email. 

1. It was a generic email…which is NOT a problem.  It contained NO personal reference at ALL which IS a problem.  Primarily this is a problem because I had no idea who the person sending the email was.  I meet lots of people and maybe everyone else on her list knew her name immediately but I did not.
2. I received a second email about a week later. Good on the follow up, again bad because I didn’t want the email to begin with, had no idea who was sending it or how I might have met them and therefor the series of communications is now, technically, SPAM.
3. I write a very polite, very nice response letting the sending know I had been a member of a BNI chapter a few years ago and was not currently interested.  I also said I couldn’t remember how we had met and asked her to please remove me from her mailing list.  I added that I wished her great success with her new group. SHE NEVER RESPONDED. This was her big chance to actually communicate with me, build a relationship with me.  She could have apologized, asked questions, asked if there was anyone else I’d like to send, never explained how we knew each other…nothing.
4. Today, the coup de grace. I receive a phone call from a person who sounds like they’re two minutes away from falling asleep or comitting suicide who tells me she’s with a company that sent me an invitation to a BNI meeting.  She could not be LESS enthusiastic about talking to me or her group.  Worse than going thru the motions, she actually sounds like she’s so bored she’s in pain.  I politely inform her that I had received a couple of emails, one of which I’d responded to saying I was formerly a member and not interested in joining at this time.  She then says, “O.k. thanks,” AND HANGS UP. I know we’re all guilty of skipping a couple of steps in the interest of saving time but a couple of hints: 1. As email has become more and more widely USED, it has become more and more widely ABUSED which leads to less use.  A mass email used to have some pull, not anymore.  Any communication will go a LOT further if you can be specific, talk directly to me and at least fill in any missing information about how we know each other.  Adding a detail or two to a generic email means that yes, you sent a generic email but you also gave enough of a damn to tweak it for ME.  The least I can do is read it for you. I once watched an insurance salesman send out 500 personally signed Christmas cards, not a single one of which contained a personal message.  Better strategy, send out 50 with a personal note.  They’ll actually get read, you’ll actually forward those relationships and you’ll save at least one tree and and a bunch of stamps. 2. Respond to any response communication. It’s an opening you worked hard to create, make sure you USE it. 3. FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, at least be interested in your own invitation!  If you don’t care, why should I?  You don’t have to jump up and down like a cheerleader on speed, but you could at least be interested in talking to me, somewhat happy, excited about your own event, your life, your phone, the possibility of caffeine in your future.  Sound alive…please.

Invitations are powerful tools for building relationships.  Even if people don’t accept them, it’s a real reason to be in touch, to communicate their value to you, to be on the lookout for what might benefit them…all things that help solidify their connection to you. As with all powerful things however, you must use your power for good and not evil.  Used carelessly, a badly made invitation can do a lot of damage to your relationships and reputation. Invite well and prosper.

Remember, even though people may be spending more carefully, plenty of them are still SPENDING.  One of the best ways to make sure the people who SHOULD become your clients actually BECOME your clients is to get smarter about referrals. Most people think that if they do a good job and know enough people, they’ll get referrals.  But you know lots of great people that you may have NEVER given a referral to.  While I can’t teach you every secret about getting more referrals right here, I can let you in on one of the simplest, MOST EFFECTIVE secrets for REFERRAL RESULTS.

STORIES For a very long time human beings communicated and remembered information primarily through stories.  And even now with our books and directories and our Google, the number one way people transmit and REMEMBER information is through STORIES. This is important because if you want referrals, people will have to remember you and what you do.  STORIES can quickly and easily make you memorable, likable, and trustworthy.  Perhaps even more importantly, a good story can make it SUPER EASY to refer you.

A Quick Case Study: THE MORTGAGE GUY A mortgage guy I know once asked me to take a quick peak at his marketing materials.  I started by asking him to tell me what 3 things he’d want people to know and remember him for in the referral process.  He, like many of you, was trying to let customers know he had integrity.  Unfortunately, that word, by itself, doesn’t work very well.  When pushed, he gave me the perfect example of how he has integrity.  He told me the following story: “This couple came to me for a second mortgage.  I spent a couple of hours with them, looking at their entire financial picture.  In the end, it didn’t really make sense for them to take out a second mortgage and I told them so.” This STORY is brilliant.  He can tell his referral sources to talk about his integrity but in one simple, fast story he can make sure they know it.  More importantly, it’s an easy story for them to tell to potential referrals.  When you make it EASY for people to refer to you, you DRAMATICALLY increase the odds of them doing so.

BONUS ROUND: For those of you who want to go past being a rock star and become a referral ninja, look at some simple edits I taught him. “A few months ago one of my clients referred her sister to me. They were a really nice couple who wanted to take out a second mortgage.  I sat down with them and talked to them about their overall financial picture–that’s important to do because a house is most people’s single biggest financial investment.  I spent a couple of hours with them and ultimately recommended they NOT take out the second mortgage.  I showed them some other options that made more sense for them.  So I actually didn’t make any money working with them but I believe in looking out for people.  That’s the way my dad did it and I think it’s one of the reasons people do refer me.  They know I’ll do the right thing with their people.”

The reality is that both of these examples work just fine.  Remember, your goal here is to train people to refer you AND make it easy for them to do that.  So I added some specific elements.

1. Be specific where you can.  If Mary referred you, talk about Mary.  It humanizes you and adds credibility.  Obviously a mortgage broker has to protect confidentiality but he can talk about a sister.
2. If your story includes a referral, make sure you say so.  It helps train people to think of you as someone people REFER frequently.
3. Add an extra nugget.  The focus of this story is that this particular mortgage guy will give up a deal for himself if it’s the right thing to do for the client.  We added a couple of extra nuggets.  You don’t want to tell a 20 minute story.  Simple is important.  But a couple extra QUICK nuggets put some very important ideas into the story.  Our first one is that he spent time looking at their entire financial picture.  Lots of mortgage guys might not do that.  It’s something that is different about him.  Second, we added the piece about his dad.  It’s TRUE, it humanizes him and helps people know that he’s from the old school, a highly desirable quality, especially in this industry.
4. Reinforce why people refer you.  At the end, we wrap it all up and bottom line it for people.  He’s a good person to refer because he not only says he’ll take care of people, he does it–EVEN WHEN it means he’ll lose a deal. Odds are YOU will remember this story. You might even tell it to someone else.  You might even want to refer someone you know to this broker (Jeff Aronheim)

What stories are you giving your fan club about you?

The MAVERICK GUIDE to GETTING MORE REFERRALS is being pre-sold at a HUGE DISCOUNT right now.  It’ll be out on April 15th.  Order your copy today and start working  A LOT smarter.  Your network likes you and knows people who should work with you.  Do you know how to connect the dots so their REFERRALS become YOUR CLIENTS?  For more information and to pre-order visit www.maverickandcompany.com and go to the CLASSES & BOOKS tab–get ‘em while they’re hot.

If you expose yourself to too much sun for too long, you’ll burn.  If you expose yourself to a lot of negative ideas, your brain will get burned too.  You’ll have a hard time staying positive, taking positive actions toward your goals or even having much fun. In order to stay sane, you’ll have to WORK AT IT.  That means making sure to limit the amount of negative information going in and actively put good stuff into your head.  Some suggestions:

READ, READ, READ–Read things that make you feel good, things that inspire you, things that remind you that life is worth living, goals worth achieving and people worth loving.  It doesn’t have to take a lot of time each day but the payoffs can be huge.

LEARN a NEW SKILL–When you learn new skills, gain new knowledge, your confidence goes up.  It’s almost as though your brain believes that you alone may not be up to the task, but you + this new info / new skills might just be able to pull it off.  What new skills could you learn that would help you deal with your hard times?

TALK TO POSITIVE PEOPLE–We all know people who seem to be both grounded in reality yet not bogged down by it.  Find these people and make it a point to call them.  Let their natural energy and optimism rub off on you.  Go out of your way to be one and associate with others.  The conversations you have matter.  Have good ones.

SHUT OFF THE UGLY–One of your very best strategies is the “OFF” button.  Use it.  Turn off the t.v. when it’s featuring only gloom and doom.  Change the radio station when the d.j. starts complaining.  Leave the room when the conversation turns negative.  You have a choice about how much “ugly” you let into your life.  In one of my favorite books, the author makes the point that it’s good to be informed but you don’t have to be inundated.  A great way to stay positive is to let less negative in.

At the end of the day, the first rule of sanity is that it takes work to stay sane when the world around you goes crazy.  The crazier the world, the more work sanity requires.  Most people either don’t know or aren’t willing to do the work of staying sane.  Be someone who makes that investment and you’ll reap major rewards.

Twitter, sounds so simple but where do you begin?  There are (literally) thousands of experts on Twitter who according to reports, can help you make millions and possibly become a divine entity.  Many for only $19.95. I am not an expert at social media.  (Although, as they say, “I’m kind of a big deal.”)  I am a Twitter user and fan.  Since I get a lot of questions about Twitter, I put together a simple starter kit for people joining Twitter to help them figure out the first 5 things they should do as they begin their quest for global twitter domination.  Here’s how to get started on Twitter. First some language lessons.

HOW TO SPEAK TWITTER TWEET:  A tweet is a short message, under 140 characters.  It’s like a mini-blog.  You can write your own or read the one’s posted by people you FOLLOW.

FOLLOW:  This is sort of like being someone’s friend on Facebook.  Basically it means you want to see their TWEETS.

UNFOLLOW:  What you do if you don’t want to follow someone’s TWEETS anymore.

TWITTER STREAM:  This is the running flow of TWEETS posted by people you follow.

RT: Means “retweet” and indicates that someone thought the original tweet was worth resending out to their own twitter followers. @: This symbol appears in front of a name to form a call sign and a link to the person.  You might see @AleciaHuck if someone RT’d one of my TWEETS.  This symbol can also be used to reply to someone you want to talk to, as in @AleciaHuck I like your profile picture! This would be you telling me directly you like my profile picture.  (Thanks, I have a great photographer.)  You might also reply to several people this way, as in @AleciaHuck I didn’t know you were friends with @MattDollinger (I am, he’s awesome.)

DM:  This stands for “direct message.”  When you send someone a direct message ONLY they can see it so it’s more like a private email.  #: This is a way for everyone to track and speak into a particular conversation.  For example on Fridays, you’ll see a lot of #followfriday with a bunch of @’s behind it.  This is a way of telling other people who you think is cool to follow.  So if you were following me you might see:  #followfriday @RickBakas the inventor of the bacon martini (and you SHOULD follow him by the way.  He also has a bacon smoothie but THAT I cannot vouch for.)

FLITTERING: Flirting via twitter (I made this one up.)

Now that you know some of the basic lingo…

Step 1:  Go to www.twitter.com and sign up for your very own Twitter account. Two tips:  First, use a REAL PICTURE of yourself that isn’t creepy or wierd and hopefully features you smiling.  People like to talk to people they feel they know.  It’s hard to have a conversation with a pink bunny or a logo.  Second, use your real name.  Different people have different ideas about this but your real name makes you easier to find.  Whatever you chose, it’s an astronomically BAD idea to have your name be “FOLLOWME2MAKEMONEY.” 

Step 2:  Follow some people. Twitter has a nifty feature that will search thru your online contacts to find people you know.  When you see someone you want to follow, you just click the follow button below their picture.  Then their tweets will show up in your tweet stream.  You can also go to “Find People” and enter specific names of cool people who might be on Twitter. Great people to follow @JimmyFallon, @unmarketing who always gives a lot of nice tips and things to think about w/out being pushy, @AleciaHuck cuz I’m awesome, @MattDollinger cuz he’s awesome too, @mashable for brilliant stuff, @DarthVader for fun, @ev cuz he’s a big deal, @BryanBrinkman cuz Jimmy Fallon said so on.  There’s no magic formula.  Follow people you like.

Step 3:  Sign up on www.tweetdeck.com This is another super easy to use service that will divid your tweet stream so it’s easier to follow and post tweets.  Don’t freak out, it’s super easy to use and you’ll really like it.  Just sign up and let it rip.

Step 4:  Tweet A Bit, Read A Bit Remember, Twitter is basically like a giant cocktail party.  The same rules of ettiquite apply here as in other places.  Don’t talk about only 1 thing (especially if it’s you.)  Don’t try to sell people stuff when they don’t even know you.  Be polite.  Be generous, RT (retweet) other people’s tweets when they’re good or helpful.  It’s o.k. to bring up your business or offers but don’t bore or annoy people with them.  In all, HAVE FUN, BE YOURSELF, TRY NOT TO SUCK.

Step 5:  Get Yourself a Sweet Background on www.twitbacks.com Twitbacks is one of a whole slew of nifty little sites that can help you enhance your twitter existence.  It’s also easy to use and will make you look like a Twitter Ninja even if you only have 7 followers and one of them is your mom.    Again, this is not an exhaustive list but instead is designed to get you started.  Other people will have other opinions about the best this or that, and that’s cool.  In the beginning, it’s about beginning.  Now it’s time to begin.  Send me a DM when you get on-line, I’ll say hi back.

O.k. kids, lets have some fun.  You’re great.  People love you.  You do good work.  So how come you’re not getting referrals?

The 3rd Party Problem:  Let’s say you have a client or contact who WANTS to send you referrals.  You’re the 1st Party, your client is the 2nd party and their connections represent the 3rd Party.  Between you and their connections is a giant wall that I call the 3rd Party Problem.  It’s a barrier made up of two basic problems that keep them from connecting you to that 3rd Party.

Problem #1: EVERYBODY = NOBODY  Unless you tell people SPECIFICALLY who your clients are, they have no way to differentiate between the people they should be talking to about you and EVERYBODY.  Therefore, they see a big pack but do NOT see your potential clients.

Problem #2: WHAT TO SAY  Provided your people, by luck or your brilliant referral cultivation strategy, have figured out WHO to talk to about you…they next have to figure out WHAT TO SAY.  They’ve got to come up with something clear and simple and compelling to make the connection between you and that 3rd party.  Considering that most people can’t do this for themselves, what are the odds your 2nd party people will figure out how to do it for YOU?

More specific solutions to come, for now, consider: How can I make it easier for my contacts to recognize WHO they should refer me to? What would I want them to say if they happened to know the perfect client for me? ULTIMATELY you getting referrals is your responsibility.  The more work you make them do, the less likely you are to get results and referrals.  They’ve got other stuff to take care of.  Make it easy for people to send you new business and you’ll be a lot more likely to get it.

Need some help developing your own REFERRAL STRATEGY?  This month’s (March 2009) SCREAMIN’ DEAL is a $50 First Hour.  Get your FIRST hour of help for ONLY $50!  Contact me at info@maverickandcompany.com regarding scheduling.

Many of you may be landing here because you saw my recent post to one of the more interesting conversations in the world of real estate online.  (To read the entire conversation, visit http://www.webinknow.com/2008/10/top-10-ideas-fo.html )

You’ll find some additional information on CLIENT ENGLISH, and other ideas in past blogs here.  Let me just add a few things… For years we’ve all been focused on SALES (directly reaching out to clients) and MARKETING (sending out “stuff” so that clients will reach out to us.)  A lot of the old paradigms are based on persuasion and manipluation…MAKING people buy thru elaborate techniques and sophisticated methodologies.  I am more and more convinced that the death of this old model of generating business is fast approaching.

While SALES and MARKETING won’t ever go away, it is DEFINITELY time to make them the servants of a new philosophy. After working with several hundred individual business owners and service providers, I am convinced that the smartest among us have stumbled upon a new model that we should all be working hard to understand and take advantage of.  While the language I’m about to present isn’t perfect, essentially I think the next 100 years will be less about SALES and MARKETING and more about STRATEGY and MESSAGING.

The world we sell our services in is profoundly different than when the techniques of SALES and MARKETING were developed.  Our clients are more savvy.  They have an unprecedented level of access to information.  It’s time to adapt to the world we now live in–and doing so will require more than a facebook page and a blog.

STRATEGY is about intelligently and creatively selecting from the myriad of ways we COULD connect with new business and picking the smartest methods for US and our CLIENTS.  It’s about giving up techniques to persuade and manipulate and focusing on making it easier for clients to buy, accelerating the natural processes that occur before they hire us.

MESSAGING is about learning to speak the language of our clients:  CLIENT ENGLISH.  Learning to think as they do, to understand and articulate back their problems and our solution in the language THEY are familiar with.  Learning to send out signals that they understand and are LOOKING FOR to tell them who to buy from, work with, etc. Social Media these days is seen as a magic formula for EVERYONE to get new clients, which is massively stupid.  As a tool, inside the context of a STRATEGIC plan, and one that helps you deliver smart MESSAGES, social medial is BRILLIANT.  As a magic formula, it’s a waste of webpages.

Look for more posts with more details in coming days.  You’re also welcome to agree or fight with me.  It’ll be a combination of conversations and ideas that eventually produces the best strategies for us all.  (We’re in the process of updating the site so please forgive the parts that aren’t pretty.)  Cheers to David Scott (www.WebInkNow.com) for his initial writing, Matt Gentire (Director of PR and Brand Communications at Century 21 Real Estate LLC) for inquiring in the first place and of course, Matt Dollinger (www.TheYouFactor.com) for his original thoughts to me and for not being smarter than the army of people who think a twitter account and a youtube video are magic formulas for generating clients.  (While this may be true for some, it’s mostly an impossibility for most people.)

I met with a new client today and had a chance to pull out this oldie but goodie. It’s a magic phrase that makes talking about yourself easier and makes you easier to remember.

Reason #1: People’s brains are busy trying to remember and organize billions of bits of information. Giving them 3 things means they’ll at least have a fighting chance at remembering one or two of them.  Don’t try to tell them EVERYTHING about yourself.  Just give them 3 points that actually matter.

Reason #2:  Saying “I’m so great blah blah blah” is generally frowned upon in polite society.  Saying “This is what people seem to like/appreciate/love about me” is different.  It’s giving the person you’re talking to insight into the opinion and approval of others.  It’s still about you being awesome, but the delivery isn’t snooty (Snooty, oh yeah, it’s a word.)

Reason #3:  When done correctly, this phrase will seem like magic because it’s a STRATEGIC MESSAGE, designed to highlight qualities MOST DESIRED by the type of people MOST LIKELY TO BECOME YOUR CLIENTS. That means it’s not a general, vague bunch of crap designed to appeal to everyone.  It’s a specific, strategic combination of information highlighting stuff about you that YOUR ideal clients care about. 

REAL LIFE EXAMPLE:  The real estate agent I met with today wanted to make her listing presentation more effective.  Her new presentation includes the following (shortened for convenience.) “There are 3 basic reasons people love having me list their house. 1.  I’ve SOLD 100% of the homes I’ve listed since 2005.  I will get your home SOLD. 2.  I get it and I’m easy to work with.  Most of the people I’ve worked with in your neighborhood weren’t necessarily selling because they WANTED to.  A lot of them had a death, divorce or new marriage.  I return calls right away and generally just make it as easy as it can be.  I know you’ve got other stuff going on. 3.  I may seem pretty laid back, but I’m a very strong negotiator.  Nobody messes with my kids or my clients.  Period.” In each of the examples, she is SHOWING her potential clients an important piece of her brand.  She doesn’t TELL them she’s compassionate, she SHOWS it by talking about having more important things going on and using examples of people in unfortunate situations.  When she talks about being a negotiator, she needs to SHOW that she’s strong, let herself get AND LOOK a little fierce. If you’re in a sales conversation, talking about yourself can sometimes feel a bit awkward.  Use this method to make it more natural, more memorable and more effective.

Need some extra help getting more clients?  One of the things people LOVE ABOUT ME is the SCREAMIN’ DEAL I run each month.  This month (March 2009), you can get your FIRST HOUR for $50 (a $200 savings).  (We don’t call it the SCREAMIN’ DEAL for no reason.)  So if you need some help with your strategies, figuring out what to say to YOUR potential clients or where to find them, get in touch.  alecia@maverickandcompany.com (Supplies are limited and restrictions apply–mainly, we don’t work with people who suck.)