How Persistence Removes Obstacles
The other morning as I was out running with my dog, it started to rain. No big deal, I thought; I trained for a marathon up in Portland, Oregon (translation: I've run mile after mile in the rain). Now that I am living in Phoenix, I was sure that having a jog in the rain would be a nice change of pace. WRONG. Within a few minutes it went from raining to POURing, and I still had 2 miles to go before I would be home. I had no choice but to keep running. Not fun.
Then, after a mile or so, just as quickly as it began pouring it suddenly stopped. In that moment most of my misery dissipated and I could not help but think, "Isn't this just like a business in Direct Sales or Network Marketing?" No kidding, I really did think that.
Persistence is a major player in the sales world of success. Most days, rain or shine, you have to put yourself on the playing field.
It is not always easy, is it? Sometimes you work and work and work, but it does not appear as though you are making headway because the results seem minor. Sometimes things are going fine when something unexpected sucks up your enthusiasm and momentum. During times like that, one might think, "I'm not cut out for this kind of business."
My response to that is, "Who is?" No one is "cut out for" or "made" for this business. Only through persistence does one develop the attributes to become "cut out for" Direct Sales or Network-Marketing. And one of the most powerful attributes you can develop is mental toughness.
However, when I speak of mental toughness, I'm not talking about becoming invincible to the word, "No." I am talking about persisting even when you've yet to see the results of your work, even when you don't feel enthusiastic, and even when a little voice tells you that you're just not cut out for this.
I believe that to achieve the extraordinary you have to do the unreasonable. You must believe before you see, and you must persist when the goal ahead appears impossible.
A good number of years ago on a Sunday morning after church, I drove 45 minutes across town to a hostess' home. When she opened the front door, instead of looking happy to see me she looked horrified. "Didn't you get my message?" she asked. I could not believe that after years of running a successful direct sales business, something like that could still happen to me. It was so humiliating. Did I feel like throwing in the towel? You bet! Did I? Not a chance. On that long drive home I not only decided to keep persisting, I reviewed every step in my hostess coaching process to pinpoint where the communication with my hostess had gone awry.
The conclusion I reached was that I was at cause for the result I ended up with that day. Then I vowed not to put another woman's name into my calendar as a hostess, if I was not willing to thoroughly coach her to having a truly successful show. I went home that day and established a hostess coaching system that would prevent all the irritating things my distributors and I had all experienced. I developed a system that I could easily follow, teach others to follow, and most importantly, a system that could insure the success of each hostess I booked in my calendar.
By persisting even when I felt humiliated and discouraged, I revolutionized my business. The hostess coaching system I put into place made postponements a thing of the past, boosted guest attendance and sales, and increased my profits. You see, in the kingdom of direct sales and network-marketing, persistence is king, and right when things look at their worst is when they can turn around for the best. Only by persisting do we discover how to unleash the creativity of our minds and remove the obstacles that have been blocking our success. Indeed, those who keep going, even when things don't look bright, end up on the sunny side.
Last Saturday, my daughter, Tess, asked me how my morning run went. I told her, "Not so well. I had a bad cramp most of the way." She laughed and said, "But you probably kept on going for 4 miles, didn't you, Mom?" With a lousy French accent I replied, "But of course." The reason I didn't turn around after the first half-mile is the same reason I kept running in the downpour a few days earlier -- I know that persistence is king.
Then, after a mile or so, just as quickly as it began pouring it suddenly stopped. In that moment most of my misery dissipated and I could not help but think, "Isn't this just like a business in Direct Sales or Network Marketing?" No kidding, I really did think that.
Persistence is a major player in the sales world of success. Most days, rain or shine, you have to put yourself on the playing field.
It is not always easy, is it? Sometimes you work and work and work, but it does not appear as though you are making headway because the results seem minor. Sometimes things are going fine when something unexpected sucks up your enthusiasm and momentum. During times like that, one might think, "I'm not cut out for this kind of business."
My response to that is, "Who is?" No one is "cut out for" or "made" for this business. Only through persistence does one develop the attributes to become "cut out for" Direct Sales or Network-Marketing. And one of the most powerful attributes you can develop is mental toughness.
However, when I speak of mental toughness, I'm not talking about becoming invincible to the word, "No." I am talking about persisting even when you've yet to see the results of your work, even when you don't feel enthusiastic, and even when a little voice tells you that you're just not cut out for this.
I believe that to achieve the extraordinary you have to do the unreasonable. You must believe before you see, and you must persist when the goal ahead appears impossible.
A good number of years ago on a Sunday morning after church, I drove 45 minutes across town to a hostess' home. When she opened the front door, instead of looking happy to see me she looked horrified. "Didn't you get my message?" she asked. I could not believe that after years of running a successful direct sales business, something like that could still happen to me. It was so humiliating. Did I feel like throwing in the towel? You bet! Did I? Not a chance. On that long drive home I not only decided to keep persisting, I reviewed every step in my hostess coaching process to pinpoint where the communication with my hostess had gone awry.
The conclusion I reached was that I was at cause for the result I ended up with that day. Then I vowed not to put another woman's name into my calendar as a hostess, if I was not willing to thoroughly coach her to having a truly successful show. I went home that day and established a hostess coaching system that would prevent all the irritating things my distributors and I had all experienced. I developed a system that I could easily follow, teach others to follow, and most importantly, a system that could insure the success of each hostess I booked in my calendar.
By persisting even when I felt humiliated and discouraged, I revolutionized my business. The hostess coaching system I put into place made postponements a thing of the past, boosted guest attendance and sales, and increased my profits. You see, in the kingdom of direct sales and network-marketing, persistence is king, and right when things look at their worst is when they can turn around for the best. Only by persisting do we discover how to unleash the creativity of our minds and remove the obstacles that have been blocking our success. Indeed, those who keep going, even when things don't look bright, end up on the sunny side.
Last Saturday, my daughter, Tess, asked me how my morning run went. I told her, "Not so well. I had a bad cramp most of the way." She laughed and said, "But you probably kept on going for 4 miles, didn't you, Mom?" With a lousy French accent I replied, "But of course." The reason I didn't turn around after the first half-mile is the same reason I kept running in the downpour a few days earlier -- I know that persistence is king.
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