Are You Relentless?
There’s no doubt that 2020’s been a slog. A lot of people are looking forward to turning over a new leaf and using a new calendar very soon. But I need to remind you… this year ain’t over yet, and there’s still work to be done.
Here in the U.S., Thanksgiving seems to be the turning point in the mindset of a lot of sellers. Why the holiday season signals the end of the selling season isn’t quite clear to me, but salespeople seem to be more intent on thanking their current customers than finding new ones.
I get it. Year-end means different responsibilities for most of your buyers. You also have to remember that you trying to hit a number sometimes flies in the face of them minding their budgets. And let me be clear: it’s important to thank your customers and tell them that they mean a lot to you. Hopefully there’s a reminder in there of why you mean so much to them, too.
Here’s the problem: when it feels like there’s no new business to close, it’s as if you forget there’s still a ton of new business to open. Now is precisely the time to start planting the seeds of how you can help new prospects. Not just because it’s always a good time to do that, but because most of your competition isn’t doing that right now.
I’m not a big fan of the “always be hustling” mindset. Frankly, I think it’s irresponsible to glorify working while everyone else is asleep. That kind of messaging needs context almost as much as people need sleep. But right now, I want to challenge you.
I’m challenging you to keep going for just a few more weeks in order to gain an exponential advantage in 2021.
While your competition is getting ready to put their feet up and practically hibernate for December and the early part of January, your job (and you see it at the end of every one of my Sunday emails) is to keep. moving. forward.
I know you’re tired. Everybody’s tired. The fog that COVID has surrounded everybody’s business with is real, and I’m not telling you to pretend it doesn’t exist. I’m telling you to ignore it just a little while longer. If you can manage to do that, you’ll see big results in Q1.
Keep moving. Keep winning.
There are a couple of ways to win a race. You can get out to a fast start, develop an insurmountable lead, and coast to the finish line. This is what it feels like for some businesses that have thrived this year because of COVID.
If you’re clearly the fastest or most talented participant, sometimes that talent is just enough to keep you winning. This might be what it feels like to be the market leader in your industry right now.
What if you’re not gifted with circumstance and market share? What if you’re not staked to a large lead, and don’t have the leverage the behemoths have?
You need to win by being relentless. You need to execute when others don’t in ways others don’t. You have to keep going when they slow down. In a very real sense, you win by attrition.
My relentless clients are winning big right now. Their businesses are holding steady amid the pandemic, and even growing, when others are failing. The revenue growth is noticeable, and the market share gains aren’t even tangible yet.
Can you be relentless?
Can you stay active for the first few weeks in December instead of writing them off? Instead of shifting into low gear for the entire month and operating at 60%, can you keep prospecting for the next two or three weeks and then shut it down completely for the last ten days? Get the rest you need, but don’t half-ass the opportunity that’s in front of you.
I said this in When It Goes Sideways. When things are going well, you can get away with being a little loose in your processes. When the going gets tough, you need to tighten up. You need to be sharper, more focused, and you need to execute on your highest priorities.
If your game can be tight when others’ games aren’t, you’ll make big gains. You can perennially make those gains this time of year, but this year more than most because so many people are ready to tie an early bow on 2020.
The prospecting work you do now will pay dividends early in the first quarter. Instead of starting to work on deals in January, you’ll be closing them, and setting a pace for what could be your best year ever. What a way to wash the bad taste of 2020 out of your mouth.
Yes, 2021 could be your best year ever. What if you got out to that hot start? What if the momentum you created helped you realize exactly how much you could do next year? What if you were relentless, all the way through the finish line? What would that make possible?
You get to decide right now. Are the next couple of weeks going to slowly close the book on 2020? Or, are they going to set up an unforgettable 2021? Join the conversation in the Rethink The Way You Sell Community.
Jeff Bajorek
Real. Authentic. Experience.
There’s a big difference between knowing how to sell and being able to. Jeff Bajorek spent over a decade in the field as a top performer. He’s been in your shoes. He knows what it will take. He can help you succeed.
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