Old Habits Die Hard

You really want to stop procrastinating, turn off the distractions, and do the work of opening new relationships (or prospecting, if you prefer). But you’ve caught yourself—again—inbox and browser open, attention somewhere else.

You want to stop trying to go too fast for your dream clients. You that you need to slow down and stay true to the process that works for you and your dream clients. But there you go again, pitching a solution before your dream client has even finished their thought.

Your dream client asks you if you can do better on your price. Before you even process the statement, the words “I’ll ask my sales manager what we can do here and get back with you.” You know that you need to reiterate the value you create, and you know that caring about your clients means helping them to make the right investment in the solution they need.

Hard to Kill (In a Good Way)

Old bad habits die hard. Like gravity, it takes an extraordinary amount of effort and energy to break free. But there is an upside to the fact that old habits die hard. Old good habits are equally hard to kill.

The first time you close the browser and concentrate on developing new relationships, it’s difficult. Honestly, it’s difficult for a few months. Then, it becomes and old habit.

The more you follow your sales process, asking for and obtaining the commitments you need—and nothing further than you deserve—the easier it becomes. And the more effective you become in its execution. Soon, it’s another old habit.

The more you practice pausing for 8 beats after your client is done speaking, the easier it becomes to slow your desire to solve their problem right there on the spot. You also find out that your dream client really wasn’t done speaking, that the deeper, more important, and more interesting thoughts were just finding their way to the surface.

We are all creatures of habit. The key is to choose effective habits instead of letting bad habits choose you.