The Seven Secrets of Top Performers
Let's put to rest the fallacy that success, in sales or any
profession, is due to luck, chance, and/or hard work. There is
nothing further from the truth. Think about it, you and I both
know people who work incredibly hard, putting in long hours,
they may even have two jobs, but they are not consistently (if
ever) successful. Hard work certainly contributes to success,
but hard work alone will not make you top-flight in your
industry. Is success due, then, to luck or chance?
After years of study, in a multitude of industries, I have come
to the conclusion that success is an absolute science. In other
words, there are exact principles of thought and action that all
top performers universally and consistently exhibit. Let's
examine seven of these principles more closely:
1. High achievers know exactly what they want. I was recently
working with top sales professionals on a seven-city tour of
Canada. In these seminars, I invariably asked people what they
wanted to achieve in the upcoming year. Many people had a vague
idea of what they wanted (or what they thought they could
achieve); and even more knew what they didn't want; but the high
performers knew in measurable terms, what they wanted to
accomplish in every area of their life. Without a doubt, this
type of clarity and focus is power!
2. Top performers visualize themselves in possession of their
desired results. I have interviewed thousands of the worlds most
successful and without fail they see themselves winning every
single day. Whether in business or athletics: Jack Nicholas in
golf, Michael Jordan in basketball, the million-dollar sales
producer I spoke with last week, they all have this in common.
Visualizing is the key to realizing!
3. Highly successful have an unbending belief in themselves and
their abilities. Winners believe they will win in advance, and
it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. A common mistake among
would-be achievers is the notion that "if I become more skilled
in my profession I will succeed." Yet how many highly skilled
people do you know that are not profiting every single day?
Often two people go through the same training course and acquire
the same skills -- yet one becomes a huge success and one
accomplishes nothing. The answer lies in the individuals belief
system and the unshakable conviction that he or she will win.
4. Achievers take action "as if" they were already in
possession of the goal they desire. High achievers think, work,
talk, play, and take action like the person they want to become.
This means turning away from current results and focusing,
believing, and acting "as if" you were already there. Understand
that your current results are the direct outcomes of the past.
The past does not equal the future.
5. Winners take full responsibility for their own destiny.
Winners get results! Results are not equal to
no-results-and-a-good-story. Many sales professionals are better
at making excuses than they are at making money. "It's the
economy, it's the location, my prices are too high." You can
always come up with a good story, but winners hold themselves
accountable. Only when you take accountability for everything in
your life can you be responsible to change anything.
6. Top performers build high-leveraged partnerships. No one in
today's world can make it alone. There is just too much to learn
and things are changing too rapidly. High achievers always spend
time with other high achievers. Like attracts like. They attend
the same events, eat at the same restaurants, join the same
churches and clubs. Your business and social environment is more
important than your heredity, choose your relationships and
partnerships wisely.
7. Great achievers are great givers. Achievers ask: "How can I
provide more value? How can I give to others, to my teammates,
employees, clients. What can I do to make it better?" Winners
always give 10 times more value than they ask for in return.
Success happens according to universal laws and timeless
principles. Understand and utilize them and you will win. It
works for everyone....every time.