The market is picking up- which camp are you in? by Rich Rudnick

As the market is picking up and gaining traction in most areas, I am noticing some camps forming:

The Complacent Performer Camp
The Overwhelmed Performer Camp
The Peak Performer Camp

The Complacent Performer

This one has surprised me the most. Even after the biggest economic downturn our country has seen since the Great Depression, too many performers are running to Camp Complacency. Think back to the hay days of 2005-06 where for many it was ducks on a pond. Business was coming in at an exponential rate. Any order taker could make a killing if they were positioned right. What happened for too many was discipline went out the window and complacency and a false sense of security set in.

Ironically, history is repeating itself and way too early. There is a false sense of security setting in that suggests no need for the disciplines and fundamentals. Time blocking, business development and certainly prospecting are not needed because there is plenty of incoming to process. A slight increase and optimism in the market and I am hearing red flag statements such as:

“Business is picking up, I am good.”

“We are hitting the busy season –I’ve got plenty of business – I will pick up on the disciplines in the fall.”

“I am way too busy and couldn’t process any more business if I wanted to.”

My response to this dangerous mindset is several points. First of all, it is too early to call this a full blown recovery. The signs are very encouraging and we have good reason to be hopeful. However, our recent economic resurgences have only come in blocks of a few months not years. Secondly, with all the attrition this economy delivered, the competitors maybe fewer in number but fiercer as a force to be reckoned with. This is a good thing as competition makes us better. However, your opponent is sharper and tighter than ever- which means you need to be as well. Third, good isn’t good enough. Good is the enemy of Great. We need to keep Insanely Great as our only goal because that is what your competition is focusing on. Fourth, abandoning the key disciplines and fundamentals is setting you up for a drop in revenue once you are done processing the incoming low hanging fruit. The Peak Performers never let this happen (see below) and for that reason always lead the pack.

The Overwhelmed Performer

Now that business is picking up steam and as a result of implemented disciplines and fundamentals-they are way up from last year, The Overwhelmed Performer suddenly finds themselves staring at more business than they can process or deliver. Perhaps they had to cut back on previous support staff in the lean times (understandably) or in general cut expenses to the point where they may be hamstrung to now perform in a timely manner. My advice in general would be to:

Stick with your disciplines. Time blocking/managing and prioritizing your day and activities are more crucial now than ever.
Keep prospecting time aside on your calendar. Even though you may have to put a temporary hold or scale back- commit to putting time in to secure business in the future. This will build your pending file and allow you to more confidently bring back your support layers so you can position yourself for more growth.
Under promise/Over deliver. At this point you are better to stop prospecting (short term- very temporarily) to make sure you can follow through as you say you can. You need to build sustainable growth and keeping customers happy for future repeat/referral business is absolutely necessary.
Build in margins. We all have to make the bed we sleep in. We say “yes” to everything – over book ourselves to a calendar we can’t keep and wonder why we are so stressed and our clients are angry at us. Take personal responsibility – book and commit yourself to that which you can keep. Look at what you have on your plate and determine the order of priority –see what could be delayed- revisit what you can delegate. Plan your work and work your plan.
Commit to your Big 4. Determine your 4 highest payoff activities. Schedule time to do them daily and do not compromise those activities or that time no matter what. Start working to delegate the remaining low pay off activities as soon as you can responsibly do so.

The Peak Performer

The Peak Performer Camp is the one to be in. The energy and optimism is high. Business is moving forward at an impressive rate. There is no let up on the key disciplines and fundamentals. In fact it is just the opposite. The Peak Performers are putting a greater emphasis now more than ever because they know this is the key to success. Staying committed to the specific goals and plans set and reviewing-adjusting the goals are still happening. Controlling time, clients and others expectations are never compromised. They are scheduling Prospecting and Business Development time daily and don’t deviate from working on 3-6-12 months from now-everyday. Here are examples from some of my Peak Performing Clients:

Prospecting even in the strongest market. In May I will be traveling to the strongest economic market in North America doing a combination of onsite activities with some Peak Performing Clients including a Mastermind meeting and face to face one on one sessions. My client’s broker (Real Estate) is a classic example of a Peak Performer (very successful proactive etc). He has had me speak on various topics for a group presentation in the past and when I asked him this time what he wanted me to speak on, he said “Prospecting.” He knows the Achilles heel of too many of his agents is complacency, being too comfortable and taking the market for granted.
Tightening the sales process even when sales are way up. I have a client who owns a very successful high end window covering business. He dominates the market- is always working on himself and improving his business- implementing Good to Great practices etc. He is aggressively advertising – opening new markets and it is paying off. This year he is up 90% from last year. In 2011 he was up over 10% from the year before. He had me come in to his office for onsite training with his team to refine their Prequalifying skills. “We’re presenting too much-putting out too many bids and not closing as many sales as we should” my client emphatically stated to his team. After I made some of the team players a bit uncomfortable with the prequalifying steps that were missing in their approach, my client reaffirmed and said “We need to be comfortable with being uncomfortable.” He was challenging his players to up their game even when business was going through the roof.
Commitment to continual self improvement. I am working with a prospect who I hope to be doing business with very soon. His company is #1 in our state (Oregon) in his industry in both transactions and volume. He is killing it in the market. His strategic plan is to triple his business by next year. From what he told me – I believe he has a very good chance to make it. What is most telling about his key to success is his commitment to continual self improvement and training. He knows the value and wants his team to have the best available training and coaching as well. Unfortunately, too many on his team do not have the same interest, discipline or drive to do better. I guess that’s why they work for him- why his name is on the sign and why he makes money off of the business they generate.

Make sure you end up in the Peak Performer camp and never leave. Don’t let complacency set in (ever). Don’t get too comfortable. Commit to yourself- family and company. Don’t settle for “good enough”- become Insanely Great!

Learn more about the components of someone who runs at Peak Performance

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