Selling Your Time
Even when I was an employee, I mentally pictured myself as being a business owner. I saw myself as a business of one; and my “product” that I was selling was my time and skill set. My employer, in essence, became my customer. As long as I kept my customer happy with my ability to deliver my product – I maintained that good relationship. If I could not continue to successfully supply my customer/employer with my product, in all likelihood I would lose my customer – my job.
Just like any business owner, I have always known that I needed to invest in my business. In the early years, I didn’t have to invest in an office or hire employees as I do now. But even then, I invested in the machine that generated my income – I invested in me and my personal growth.
I have been mentored by some of the very best minds in sales and management over the last three decades.
- Zig Ziglar taught me the secrets of closing the sale.
- Bob Burg taught me how to develop a network of business owners and sales people that would refer business to me on a very regular basis, and how to give much more in value than I take in compensation.
- Dr. John Maxwell taught me how to lead a team of people to perform in the national top ten numerous times.
- Dr. Robert Schuller taught me how to expect great things to happen to me.
- Jack and Garry Kinder taught me how to build a master agency.
- Dr. David J. Schwartz taught me how to think big.
- And Brian Tracy taught me how to eat a frog! (Yuck!)
Obviously it would have never been practical for those men to spend the hours with me that it took to teach me the things I needed to learn in order to become successful. But I learned from them just the same. I learned by reading their written words, listening to their recordings, and by attending their seminars. As a business owner (even when I actually worked for someone else) I invested consistently in becoming a better me.
I have bought numerous books, recordings, and attended many seminars over the last three decades. I truly have no idea how much any of the authors and speakers made for what they did. I can only tell you my about my personal return on investment (ROI) because I applied the lessons I learned from them.
Over thirty years, I would estimate that I invested somewhere between $50,000 and $75,000 of my own dollars on my personal growth. I won’t go so far as to tell you my gross commissions during that time, but I will tell you that my ROI is well over a 200 to 1 ratio. And that is good in any business.
Invest in your best asset – you! You are the machine that generates your income.
QUESTION: What is your favorite sales book?
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