Too many people limit themselves by the narrowness of their vision. They think small, like a frog at the bottom of the well who looks up, believing the sky is only as big as he can see at the top of the well. If he climbed up, of course, he would have an entirely different view.

There is a story about how the late Martin Luther King, Jr., was sitting in the back of the bus saying to himself, “I may be in the back of the bus, but I left my mind in the front of the bus. One day I am going to put my body up there where my mind is.”

He had a vision of equality that he crafted into a reality. Vision holds promise and possibilities. However, vision without work is a dream; and work without vision is drudgery. You need both.

At the end of the day, what would you rather say? “I’m glad I did” or “I wish I had.”

Posted In: Personal Development

Tags: dream, Martin Luther King Jr, motivation, vision, work

The only way to make a change is if you feel some degree of pain. That may not sound motivational, but until the pain of remaining the same outweighs the pain of making the change, that’s when you will change.

So how do you make that change? You have to do what you have to, when you have to, whether you feel like it or not. This concept by Elbert Hubbard, American writer and Philosopher gets to the root of how to make a change. It’s discipline.

If you want to change a behavior you have to do things that you don’t want to do when you don’t feel like doing it, whether you like it or not. Otherwise you spend your life in one of two zones, the pain of discipline or the zone of regrets. Do you want to look back at your life and say I wish I had done? What zone are you going to live in?

Posted In: New Home Sales Training Video, Personal Development

Tags: change, discipline, Elbert Hubbard, motivation, regret

People set off on magnificent journeys, to be something, to go somewhere they’ve never gone, and to achieve something that they’ve longed for. It’s an exhilarating experience when you’re fueled with the intense desire to move outside your comfort zone to achieve a goal. But before you set off on that adventure you need to first establish your “Why” statement:

Why do you want what you want?
Why did you set that benchmark?
Why are you willing to take the risk to achieve this goal?

There is nothing more powerful than the “why”, not even the what. If you want to travel the world, it’s not the trip as much as the lifelong memories you will gain.

My “why” statement was to become successful enough in my career that I could build a financial wall around my family that no one could penetrate. I didn’t want to put our lives at risk because of lack of effort. The “why” was the desire to protect my family, no matter what threats arose. The means to that end was aggressively pursuing a career that would allow me to profitably accumulate wealth.

A compelling reason is your motivation. And it must be strong enough to sustain you during challenging times. I didn’t want to be on an airplane 250 days a year, and there were many times when I questioned my decision to leave home again. In the end, however, I remained committed to my “why” statement, confident that it would lead me to my goal. When the wall was strong enough, I could cut back on the travel, but not until then.

When you can produce a strong enough “why” statement, you can achieve anything you want.

Posted In: Leadership, Personal Development

Tags: comfort zone, goal, journey, motivation, profitability, why statement

Motivation makes things happen. Motivation is driven by the motive to do, act, or change. Break down the word:

Motive + Action = Motivation.

Motivation is the compelling "Why" statement. “Why change?" "Why act?" "Why react?".

I’m not concerned with what you want, but rather why you want it. What is the compelling reason that lies beneath that desire? It’s not the "what" the gets you up in the morning, ready to tackle challenges and surge ahead. No, the motivation is the "why" statement. The desire to close a sale is the "What", but the "Why" reflects your ambition, the driving force that pushes you to reach a sales goal. Your "Why" statement is the reason you stay late, arrive early, overcome objection, swat away rejection, and keep moving forward, day after day.

When I work with clients, I tell them, "If I know why you want something, then I can help you get it." What is your motivation? Financial success? Personal gratification? The ability to take a nice vacation twice a year? Expansion? Exit strategy?

It’s fine to know what you want, but if you haven’t yet invested the time to determine why, then you might discover that there’s just not enough motive to trigger the action you need to achieve. Giving up on a goal means you didn’t have a strong enough "Why" statement. Before you give up, revisit the "Why".

Posted In: New Home Sales Management Training, Personal Development

Tags: action, goals, motivation, motive, overcome objection, Why, youtube video

When the news broke that Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich had been arrested on charges of corruption, I was stunned at first by the audacity and greed of this public official. Can you imagine trying to "sell" the Senate seat of President-elect Barack Obama to the highest bidder? He was seeking money, favors, and even a high-paying job for himself and his wife. Apparently, Blagojevich felt these rewards were out of his reach through the traditional means of hard work, dedication, intelligence, and skill.

What Blagojevich has failed to understand is that there is no shortcut to success. You can’t skip key steps like hard work, motivation, dedication, and vision. People who attempt to do so end up with one of two results: either they crash head-on into a brick wall that prevents them from proceeding, or like Blagojevich, they rise to the top of a mountain and fall off the other edge because they weren’t properly equipped to plan the ascent.

I encourage you to take the time to map out your blueprint for success. Where do you want to go? What are the necessary steps to get there? What extra efforts do you need to make to achieve those goals along the timeline you have established? Then look at this plan and remove one step. What does it do to the potential outcome? Will it prolong the schedule? Will it reduce the results? Or, like Rod Blagojevich, will it place you in a position that leaves you on shaky ground?

Overnight sensations do not happen overnight. They may suddenly achieve the recognition for their efforts but I guarantee you they did not find some magic shortcut. That road is a dead end.

Myers

Posted In: Personal Development

Tags: ethics, motivation, success

How Committed Are You?

A newspaper reporter secured a private meeting with the devil. The reporter was especially curious about the misleading method around which the devil had built his reputation. What is the most useful technique you use to trick people, he asked? Is it Dishonesty? Greed? Lust? Jealously? Vanity? What do you do to confuse a person from reaching their maximum potential?

The devil chuckled and said, "All you have mentioned is of little consequence. The most useful weapon I have is Apathy."

So there you have it, straight from the mouth of the lowest of the low, an "I Don’t Care Attitude" will strip life from the loftiest of possibilities.

Here is a barometer to judge your level of passion toward your career. I call it the "last minute, first minute, and every minute in between attitude." If you arrive at the last possible minute, and leave at the first minute the clock strikes 5:00, having counted every minute in between until quitting time, you are involved in the wrong career."

Jim Rohn said, "Average people look forward to getting off. Successful people look forward to getting on." My personal credo is, "If you can’t get out, then you better get in, but if you cannot get in, then you better get out."

So if you think I’m being hard on you today, just consider that every message cannot be easy.

Be productive!
Myers

Posted In: Personal Development

Tags: motivation

So what’s the cure for the tough times, those periods when you experience the emotional roller coasters and challenges of selling? The remedy is MOTIVATION.

But how do you stay motivated? You’ve been to the seminar, listened to the tapes, read the warm and fuzzy feel-good books, but the moment the world and its real challenges hit you head on, your motivation diminishes or completely disappears. That, my friend, is because the motivation you have received in the past was outward motivation and designed as a temporary fix.

Outward motivation is the rah-rah, bouncing-around expression of feelings. True motivation is a result of an enhanced feeling of competency. Competency comes from having skills and being excellent at what you do. Closing-the-sale skills provide you with the competency to be excellent, the best in your field.

Closing, like any skill, can be learned, mastered, and internalized. When you finally apply the skills, your competency will increase. Increased competency leads to greater results and more production, and whenever you are producing results you are internally and permanently motivated.

Whether you’re a seasoned professional or just starting a sales career, understand there is no such thing as a natural-born salesperson. Rest assured, as the doctor delivered you at birth, she did not exclaim "Now here’s a natural-born closer!" Nor did the doctor make predictions to the parents of the Olympic athlete or the accomplished musician. Both athlete and entertainer achieve greatness by mastering their skills through practice, repetition, and application.

Posted In: New Home Sales, New Home Sales Training

Tags: Closing-the-sale skills, motivation, New Home Sales Training