Archive for May, 2011
Midsummer Madness
This is your invitation to my Midsummer Madness seminar in Ipswich on Sunday July 10th. All welcome. See www.midsummermadness.eventbrite.com
No for Now
The note says: “Text. Consultant engineer and home inspector. Can see the potential. Did he ring me on Thursday?”
It is dated 13/05/2009 – more than two years ago.
What this means is that somewhere I saw this engineer’s mobile phone number advertised. I sent a text – probably something about “Would you be interested in a second income?”
He must have texted back and said “yes” and clearly, back in 2009, we talked.
And here’s a key phrase: “Did he ring me on Thursday?” Maybe not but, since the reminder popped up on my computer the last week, it is likely we did talk but on reflection, he said “No”. Instead, we must have agreed that I would call him “in a couple of years”.
A couple of years is so far ahead as to be not worth considering. People always agree to a call “in a couple of years”.
But the microchips never forget – and I did call him. And so, welcome to a new distributor in the team.
On the training we talk a lot about this: The “No for now” list. This is a list of all those people who say “No” the first time you ask them.
When I started, I dismissed the ones who said “No”. In fact I went so far as to throw away their details!
What an error of judgement that was…
I distinctly remember on my training being told about the huge numbers of people who have to be asked again and again before they join. But I didn’t believe it. I joined the first time – why wouldn’t everyone.
So now I’m older and wiser and I work the “No for Now” list. In fact I consider the process of telling someone about this business in the first place purely as a means of getting them onto the “No for Now” list.
It’s amazingly powerful. Think about the logic that must be going through our friend the engineer’s mind: Two years ago, he was interested enough to reply to the text so he must have wanted a second income. But he didn’t join – either because he thought it wouldn’t work … or he thought his business would one day provide enough of an income so that he wouldn’t need any more.
And then, two years on, I call again. He can vaguely remember the first conversation – and yet he’s still in the same place with his business. Maybe, given the recession, he’s not even doing as well as he had been.
And yet here am, clearly still working my business – sounding even more enthusiastic. If I’m still doing it, obviously it must be working…
So this time – what with one thing and another – he joined.
We’re due to meet for the first time tomorrow.
I must remember to tell him to keep a “No for Now” list.