"Act As If"
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Act As If Learn From the Masters I want to share a story that I received from a friend and regular reader of my monthly Action Power Memo. Ed Watson, known as "The Ad Doctor," works at KAIT-TV in Jonesboro, Arkansas. We can learn from the masters who have been in sales a long time, and Ed is one of those masters. You Are Never Broke Many years ago, Ed worked with a brilliant man, John Wheeler, his boss. John realized that Ed lacked confidence, so he suggested that Ed remember the last time he was broke and could not buy a soda because he had no money. Remember that feeling? To increase Ed's confidence, John suggested to Ed to keep a one hundred dollar bill in his wallet, and when he is broke and wants a coke, just remember that he has that bill in his wallet, but he surely does not want to break that hundred. Ed still carries the hundred dollar bill in his wallet, and he comments to this day, "If there is one single thing that I can hang my career on, it is that." Walk the Walk - Talk the Talk I call it the "Act As If" mentality. When I decided to aspire to be the owner of an advertising agency, I imagined myself already the president of an advertising agency. I began to walk the walk, and talk the talk. And as with Ed, it worked. I ended up owning the second largest advertising agency in my city. The Eight Year Overnight Success It did not happen overnight; once you begin the journey, it may take some time to get there. Never give up and persevere even when the going gets tough. I was 21 years old when I dreamed of owning an advertising agency, and I was just shy of 30 when I actually opened the doors to my agency. That was the goal, and I achieved it because I was already the owner of an ad agency the minute I made up my mind to act as if. The Fosbury Flop In 1968, Dick Fosbury set a new Olympic record for the high jump at 7 feet, 4.25 inches. He took home the gold medal and coined a new word for the event. His technique was called the "Fosbury Flop." In an interview, he said that before every jump, he would close his eyes and visualize himself clearing the bar. In other words, he would act as if he had already cleared the bar. Play In the Zone Joe Montana, one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever play in the National Football League, said that when he was playing in "the zone," he visualized the play happening in slow motion. By seeing the outcome before the receiver caught the ball, Joe was acting in advance as if the play was a success. Joe Montana won four Super Bowls in his NFL career. A Perfect 10 In the 1984 Olympics, Mary Lou Retton captured the hearts of the world when she was the first American woman to win a gold medal in the women's gymnastics competition. What many people do not know is that six weeks prior to the Olympics, Mary Lou had to have orthoscopic surgery on her knee. The day after the surgery, she was back in the gym preparing for the games which were a mere 42 days away. Now that is dedication! Winning the gold came down to scoring a perfect 10 on the vault. I remember watching her prepare to make her run into Olympic history. She briefly closed her eyes, saw herself sticking the landing, and scoring a perfect 10. She acted as if, and the if became reality. Just Imagine What is your "act as if"? Before your next sales call, close your eyes and imagine the successful outcome that you would like to have. See yourself making the perfect presentation . See yourself walking out with a signed contract. Act as if, and, like Ed Watson, you will always have enough money in your wallet to accomplish your goals and aspirations. © 2014 Joe Bonura & Associates, Inc. |
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To see Joe and hear one of his favorite selling tips, follow this link to a video he created to share with folks who are interested in making more sales, or finding a job:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9AyPsDMu0I
REPRINT info: Joe Bonura (502) 553-1746 phone E-mail: joe@bonura.com About Joe Bonura His background is unique. Joe owned and operated a highly successful advertising agency for 18 years. During that time, he found his advertising campaigns were more effective when he educated his clients in the areas of sales and service. He conducted training seminars for his clients as added value. Word spread that Joe was a quality speaker and more and more people asked him to speak. The demand became so high that he sold the agency to three of his associates to start his own speaking and consulting company, Joe Bonura & Associates, Inc. Joe is past President of the Kentucky Speakers Association and a Certified Speaking Professional (CSP), a prestigious designation earned by only 8% of the 3,600 member National Speakers Association. Joe presently serves on the board of directors of NSA. He is author of the audio learning systems "Three-Dimensional Selling®" and "Turning Customer Satisfaction Into Customer Excitement®." He is author of the book Throw the Rabbit—The Ultimate Approach to Three-Dimensional Selling. Click here TO ENGAGE JOE BONURA FOR A TRAINING SEMINAR AT YOUR COMPANY
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