Today!
August 20, 2022
Yes! I’m still reading “Smart Calling by Art Sobczak” Eliminate the Fear, Failure, and Rejection From Cold Calling. (Not that I do any cold-calling any more, it’s interesting to know what I and other may-have-done-better… much better!)
Pre-Call Planning – More Smart Ideas for Prior to Your Call
Is There a Best Time to Call? While researching a number of topics for this book, I ran across an article (on www.SellingPower.com) citing a study by Dr. James Oldroyd at the Kellogg School of Management. By looking at the records of more than a million cold calls – made by thousands of salespeople from about 50 companies – he applied some statistical measurements to determine success and failure patterns.
Okay, that got my attention. Oldroyd found that:
- Thursday is the best day to contact a lead.
- Thursday was 20% better than the worst day, Friday. Other days were in the middle somewhere.
- Between 8 AM and 9 AM is the best time to call, with between 4 PM and 5 PM the next best choice. (The 8 AM to 9 AM time frame was 164% better than a 1 PM to 2 PM call.)
Interesting. What the article did not mention: What were these salespeople saying on their calls? If we took a group of reps trained in Smart Calling who are saying and doing the right things consistently – would they have more success on Friday than the other test group on Thursday? Would they have the same results by calling at different times of the day?
What bothers me is that there probably are sales reps who would read this study – like so many before it – and consequently call only during the stated best times, assuming that the other times are worthless or less productive – and using it as a reason to not call.
Here is my finding, based on over 30 years of unscientific experience attending the School of Real World Observation and Calling:
- If you are not calling; you are not uncovering opportunities. Brilliant, huh?
August 20, 2021
Good morning.
There’s some argument over the real rate of inflation. A number of websites exist that calculate inflation based on how those measures were calculated differently over the years. Most of those measures show the current rate of inflation running far higher.
But one eye-popping jump suggests inflation could be in the double-digit range. The Biden Administration recently announced that SNAP benefits, the successor to food stamps, would increase to their highest level ever, with a jump of about 27 percent. Yes, food prices are up, but when the official price inflation numbers are 5 percent, this looks like either a massive inflation-adjusted rise, or a sign that higher rates of inflation are here to stay for some time to come.
Now here’s the rest of the news:
The Senate Just Approved a Spending Plan FIVE TIME Bigger Than FDR’s New Deal –Brad Polumbo, FEE.org
This unprecedented spending spree would completely bankrupt America, in pursuit of increases in government power and control that are almost uniformly terrible ideas… [Read Here]
August 20, 2020
Good morning.
When you’re used to getting what you want, it can be hard to hear news that is disappointing. Well that’s what happened on Wednesday with the Fed minutes. The lack of an indication that the Fed is eyeing yield-curve control and all its inflationary machinations caused bulls to be disappointed. With the lack of a stimulus bill all eyes are on what measures will be taken to keep the spigot of liquidity going.
Now here’s the rest of the news:
Two years ago, a mysterious book — written by the Founder of a Maryland research firm — made a shocking prediction: “The politician I believe will become the 2020 Democratic nominee, and likely the next President of the United States — is Senator Kamala Harris, from California.”
You’ve probably never heard her name before…
But nobody knew who Barack Obama was two years before he was elected President in 2008.
Admittedly, Sen. Harris (whom some have called the “female Obama”) is only the Vice Presidential candidate. But this foresight is incredible.
Whatever the case may be… the newest version of this book — you can claim a digital copy of it right here — contains even MORE shocking predictions about the 2020 Election.
If you’ve ever suspected that this coronavirus hysteria might be related to who wins the White House … or you’re worried about what’s at stake in November … You absolutely want to check out this new video where I lay it all out for you. —Dr. Ron Paul [Contributor, Stansberry Research]
August 20, 2019
“Often the difference between a successful person and a failure is not, someone has better abilities or ideas, but the courage that one has to bet on one’s ideas, to take a calculated risk – and to act.”
Spot & Develop Big Moneymaking Ideas
I want to talk about a major impediment to growing a profitable business. It’s actually a major obstacle to almost every avenue to wealth. It’s not the only obstacle. And it
may not be the biggest. (A bigger obstacle might be laziness. Or lack of ambition. Or arrogance… the list goes on.)
Having too many ideas can be a serious problem. At the beginning of my career, I had that problem. It kept me poor for many years. It would have kept me poor for the rest of my life had I not discovered the principles for prioritizing my many ideas.
Picking Favorites. 
Right now on my computer, there are, quite literally, more than one hundred project ideas whispering to me day and night: “Pick me!” Because the ideas are my brainchildren, I love them all equally. In my heart, I believe they are all equally deserving of my attention and time. I know, of course, that this is impossible. I know I can only do so much at one time. It makes sense for me to pick a few and focus on them.
This was the argument that raged in my brain throughout the early years of my entrepreneurship. I always had at least 50 ideas in my head. Many of them were probably downright bad. But many were potential blockbusters.
Which were which? I didn’t know.
My habit was to chip away at all of them randomly and at the same time. This was a very bad habit. It ended the day I decided my No. 1 priority would be to become rich.
A Change of Perspective.
I’ve explained this before, but the decision to become rich was a life changer for me. It instantly changed the way I approached every action I considered taking.
Before my “conversion,” I had no clear-cut way to evaluate and prioritize business ideas. The only tool I had was emotional: Does this feel like something I want to do?
After I put on my money-colored glasses, it was easy to see which ideas had the potential to make money and which merely distracted from my ultimate goal.
Many people have plenty of ideas, good ideas too; even an exceptional one! The trick however, is to:
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- Know how to evaluate them, and
- Know how to prioritize them.
It’s Research. It’s Development. And It’s Testing.
I’ve started writing about … how to start and develop privately owned, personal run, entrepreneurial cash machines. I generally share the following: If you have a great idea and you want to make a fortune from it, you need to develop it into something that resembles an ongoing business.
Spend an hour or two every day moving your idea forward. Begin with a written summary of the idea, a model, or a business plan. Get feedback and make improvements. At the same time, find a way to test the marketability of your idea. The closer you can come to a live marketing test, the better.
Let me give you two examples.
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- If your idea is for a product – say, a new line of jewelry – you could handcraft a few dozen samples and try to sell them. Maybe take them to a local flea market or auction them off on eBay. The feedback will allow you to incrementally improve the product based on demand.
- If your idea is for a new book, you can test the basic concept by writing a 500-word outline and an introductory chapter. Then, based on that, you can come up with a dozen appropriate titles and test them as ads on Google.
Action steps.
Value your idea, but not too much. Increase its value by making it into a product. Then test that product, in various articulations, until the market tells you it’s great! 😉
