#1036
Work More. Sell Less. The New Formula for Success.

I am sick of people telling me I work too hard.
I am sicker of people telling me that I can be successful working four hours a week.
But, I am sickest when I scan the books and their hype. Their content is not only bogus; it’s also dangerous.

You’ve seen the ads, the emails, the spam, the posts, the blogs, the Facebook pages, the tweets, and all the other hype: how you can be a success, and cut your workload and hours in half. Work less. Earn more. Work less. Sell more.

Yeah, all you have to do to get the deep-dark secret they want to share with you is give them some of your money, so THEY can work less and earn more. Funny – in a pathetic kind of way.

Yesterday I saw an email from a purported sales expert. Part of his email banner consists of the words “Work Less.” Okay, but the piece he wrote on how to be successful this year had a bullet point – be prepared to start earlier. Am I missing something? What part of “start earlier” is “work less”? Kinda sounds like “work more.”

“Working less” and “selling more” are mutually exclusive words. So are “working less” and “success.”

Lemme get this straight. I can get to work at 10, leave around 2:30, and make more money? Uh, I doubt it. And I doubt all the “make millions from home” hype too. Ask any real millionaire if he or she just kicked back, cut their hours, and watched the dollars roll in. Uh, I doubt it.

Early bird – worm. That’s my mantra.

Here’s my quote: “The less you work, the less you’ll sell, the less you’ll earn, the more broke you’ll be.”

If you’re REALLY interested in making more money, you’ll have to decide how much, and be prepared to work for it. Work hard. Work long and hard.

Here are a few things to do that will work, if you’re willing to work. And you don’t have to give me any money or fill out any form to get them:

1. Start early – stay late. The early bird does not get the worm. He gets the order and the money. Expand hours and you’ll expand income.

2. Business social media. Get involved in every aspect. Allocate two hours a day to get literate and attract followers.

3. Stop wasting time. Turn off your TV for one year. You’ll never miss it, and you’ll gain at least 10 hours a week – to invest in something you’ll earn a return on. Start with attitude.

4. Be available and accessible. Your customers and prospects need you, not your voicemail.

5. Be easy to do business with. 24-7-365 is the new 9-5. Your customers and prospects need your products and services, not your computerized answering device.

6. Network face-to-face. Make a game plan to attend events and functions where customers and prospects might be. Allocate five to ten hours a week.

7. Build existing relationships. Your present customers are the BEST place for more business and referrals IF they perceive you’re helping them win.

8. Earn referrals. Not ask, earn. Referrals (better stated: unsolicited referrals) are given for superior product and service. Referrals are a report card that everything you did was great. And when you “ask” for them, you put the customer in an awkward position – especially if you ask too soon.

9. Earn testimonials. Testimonials will actually shorten a sales cycle if you use them as proof of your claims. And testimonials will increase volume. BUT testimonials come as a result of solid relationships, which take time to build and nurture.

10. Speak in public. Give a 20-minute compelling talk at a civic organization. Leads and connections will follow.

11. Ignore the lure of the light bulb. Salespeople are like moths; they’re easily attracted by bright lights and shiny objects.

11.5 Random acts of kindness. Do things for others and have no expectation of return. They take time. They don’t fit into a 4-hour workweek. But random acts of kindness feel GREAT. Try a few.

REALITY: The 50-hour workweek will earn you ten times more money than the 4-hour workweek. I promise.

I don’t think that “work less” ever entered the mind of Steve Jobs, or Bill Gates, or Warren Buffett, or Steve Forbes, or Tom Brady, or anyone who has ever achieved real wealth in their chosen profession.

Have you been outside working lately? It’s not a take-it-easy world.

DO THIS: Make a list of the things you need to achieve in the next 30 days, and the things you want to achieve in the next six months. Post them one-by-one on your bathroom mirror. Then set your alarm for 5:30 a.m. tomorrow morning.