Do You Reek Of Desperation?
What might an observer say when asked how committed you are to growing your business?
Would the observer be impressed with your level of commitment or would you reek of desperation? What about your dedication to expanding your skillset? And last, what observations would they make about your willingness to invest in your personal and professional development?
Over the last few years, I’ve had the honor of interacting with business owners in all stages of business – people just starting out, people who’ve been in business for 30 years, and everywhere in between. What’s been fascinating to witness is the people who are “all in” when it comes to moving their business forward. These people take action, put themselves out there, and surround themselves with experts to learn the important skills they need to stay competitive in their marketplace.
On the flip side, it’s been sad to hear of so many people struggling to make their businesses work. And one of the biggest struggles for them is finding prospects willing to invest in their products/services.
And maybe not so shocking are these same people struggling to make money tell me they want to hire this person or that person to teach them how to grow their business but they “can’t afford it.”
Do You Reek Of Desperation Continued…
Here’s the tough truth for these people with the “I can’t afford it mindset,” – why would people invest in your product and service when YOU don’t even believe in your business/self enough to invest in what it takes to get to the next level? Bottom line, until you're willing to invest in yourself, nobody else will be either.
Clients aren’t going to show up magically, so you’ll then have the money you need to learn how to get more clients. Where's the logic in this? It makes no sense. You’ve got to invest FIRST in learning the skills you need to attract clients for them to say yes to working with you.
It’s about risk vs. reward. Without risk, you’re unlikely to reap the rewards. Of course, I’m not implying to blindly spend money on every program, service, etc. out there.
I am suggesting that you think about how you’re showing up to prospects. When you show up as someone lacking and desperate to close business, prospects sense it.
Reek Of Desperation Continued…
And who wants to do business with people who reek of desperation? This desperation is repelling prospects.People who invest in their business and themselves show up from a place of confidence. It’s this confidence that attracts prospects.When you’re deciding who to spend your money with, don’t you want to do business with confident and successful people? I know I do. It’s one of the reasons I highlight the participants in my programs. I want others to see these are serious business professionals investing in themselves and their businesses. Think about how much time, effort and energy you’re wasting on networking when you’re unable to close a sale.
Let’s break down the numbers:
Annual Networking Membership $200/Avg $17 per month
Monthly Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner $45 registration fee
Time Spent at Event 2 hr – lost wages $250 (hourly wage of $125)
Time spent getting to & from event – lost wages $187.50 (1.5 hrs at $125)
Total cost to participate: $499.50
That means you’re spending $5994 per year just on networking.
You have to book 6 clients per year at $1000 each to pay for your time and investment to network.
Now let’s say you’re not even booking 6 clients a year because you don’t know how to close business and you lack selling skills. Is this a good use of your time? And how much longer are you going to keep throwing money away on things that do not serve you or your business?
Now, what if you were booking 6 clients a year at $1000 each and by investing in learning how to be more effective, you double that number to 12 new clients. What would you invest in yourself to make another $6000 a year?
Would you invest:
$3200 to make $6000?
$600 to make $6000?
$200 to make $6000?
Do you know how many people tell me they can’t even invest $200 into their business? Whatever you think the number is, double or even triple it and you then might be close to how many people tell me, “I can't afford it.”
Now imagine that after learning the skills you need to close business, you book 30 new clients at $1000 each.
Look at the numbers again. Would you invest:
$3200 to make $32,000?
$600 to make $32,000?
$200 to make $32,000?
The people walking around with the mindset, “I can’t afford it” should instead be thinking, “I can’t afford NOT to invest in myself.”
Someone mentioned to me recently that a lot of my techniques involve mindset work first. The truth of the matter is when you don’t have your mind right, all the other stuff gets forgotten, overlooked and left behind.
The people that do have their mindset right can apply what they’re learning. They’re ready to take action, and they’re willing to take risks to reap the rewards.
More often than not when people are struggling to use what I teach it’s because they need to work through the mindset stuff first. The selling skills are simple to apply when you commit. You’ve got to be ready and willing to do the work.
Decide for yourself, which category to do you fall into for your business –
- Category 1: I can’t afford it.
- Category 2: I can’t afford not to.
I suspect if you’re struggling to find prospects, you’re likely in the “I can’t afford it” category and you’re hurting your business because of it. You're repelling clients and you're likely wasting your time and money.
Consider setting up a time for us to chat about where you are in your business and what’s needed to take the next step in your business growth. Set up a time to chat here: Chat with Nikki.
Wishing you continued success this week.
Agree? Disagree? Have additional comments or thoughts on this article? Please share.
