Stick to “The Process” and Build Rituals for Your Goals

Have you ever wondered how many people achieve their sales goals and others don’t? It’s all about preparation and developing the routines and rituals that reinforce the actions that produce the goals.

The other day I was watching a golf tournament and I noticed something that reinforced my thoughts on this subject. The best players have a pre-shot routine that is unshakeable. They do the same things over and over again, each and every shot. Before the tee off, they go through their routine. When they get over the putt, they address the shot the same each time. We’ve all read the stories about the #1 golfer and the #100 golfer. The difference in stroke average can be very minor, but oh what a difference in the trips to the bank!

OK, so how does this relate to sales and my reaching my goals? It’s all about the preparation, the discipline, the ritual, and the action. You see, you must have a process that develops a ritual in your life and that ritual must be directly related to success. In order to do this, you must first:

1. Have a clear and precise vision of your goal and what it looks like when you accomplish it. Remember, this is your goal and not someone else’s goal that was assigned to you.
2. Understand why this goal is important to you. Again, goals are extremely personal and if you can’t get a clear picture of why this is important, then move on to your next goal.
3. Develop a 5 step action plan for each specific goal. Be realistic about how the goal can be put into action. Some ideas might be adding a specific number of calls each day so I can grow my business. (If you don’t know your numbers, get your sales manager to help you. Knowing your numbers will give you a look at you and your business. Some examples are if I make 60 calls, it will result in 5 appointments. If I open an account, that account is worth $1,000 per year to me. You must know your numbers!) Other action steps could be I need to get to work earlier to get my day started. Another could be to vow to never eat alone or with a co-worker; always with a customer or prospect. (Read the book “Never Eat Alone” and get a real understanding of power networking .)
4. Take your plans to your “Success Partner” and let them help keep you accountable. There is an old saying in sales management, inspect what you expect. Think of it this way. If you are not accountable to anyone, how hard will it be to change? If you went home today and your son said to you, “What did you get accomplished today that will insure that I can go to college”, what would you say? Get the accountability clear now!
5. Go to work. Take action, massive action. You see, a little action is never enough. If a little action is enough, then redo your goals. Think of it as your personal “Presidential Campaign”. Make things happen or you are out of the race. Take massive action!
6. Repeat your actions and commitments each and every day. Make the actions you do become rituals. Rituals make actions easier; not easy. Get there quickly and see drastic change in your life’s outcome.

Rituals and routines are a part of Becoming Deliberate. Deliberate actions are the cornerstone to building a selling machine for yourself and your team. Build your rituals and routines now and enjoy that extra trip to the bank.