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Thriving in a Tough Economy
Reverse the Starbuck Syndrome
By Tim Broadwell
There is a phenomenon
that happens to many business owners and sales professionals. When
business starts to lag, during a bad economy, there is an
exponential probability that it will happen.
This is how it typically goes. After a month that was slightly below
average, you become a bit discouraged – not overly discouraged, but
somewhat. You determine to regroup by spending a little quiet time
away from the office. You go to the mall and stop at a cigar shop,
or the perfect place, Starbucks. Once there, you begin to
contemplate the world, your business, your life, and the coffee.
You pick up a paper and check the stocks. You move your perusal to
the sports section. Who was traded? How many games are we out? What
about my favorite teams? All the while, you remain somewhat
encouraged in the fact that, with your cell, you are only a phone
call away if anyone needs to connect. You’re the boss. No one needs
to know where you are. You rationalize your desire to take this day
off – your mental health and well being deserve this break. This is
exactly what you need to get back on your feet!
As you sit, you find that you are beginning to enjoy your time at
the coffee shop. You people watch and decide you are among good
company. Here sit the movers and shakers of today’s economy. This
hub of activity, this Starbucks, is where the elite sales force
comes to regenerate and renew their commitment to themselves and
their careers. You believe you are in the right place and, for the
most part, you are over your guilt about being there. Well not
really, but you refuse to focus on that now. This must be good,
right? You aren’t making any stressful sales calls (those are really
hard to handle). No longer are you forced to accept rejection and
pretend it doesn’t bother you, when in fact it does – a lot.
Your first morning at Starbucks, you stay for about 30 minutes. When
you leave, you find you enjoyed the momentary reprieve from the
day-to-day stress of sales. Still, there is a gnawing guilt because
you did disappear from your work. The disappearance you can most
likely get over, but the real issue is harder to shake – while
hiding out, you didn’t do anything to move a sale forward.
Even so, you decide yesterday went moderately well, so you’ll try it
again. Your favorite teams played games last night that you must
read about. The standings changed and so did the stock market. The
coffee of the day is Verona. A little bold for your taste, but with
the extra cream you added, it was perfect. As you sit, you notice a
few folks from yesterday – they nod and say hello. You feel as if
you’ve made progress – they know you. You have arrived. Today, you
stay for over an hour – why not? When you leave your coffee haven to
return to the real world, you have a bit more guilt, but determine
that is a small price to pay for news, sports, nods and Verona. You
are confident luck must be headed your way.
OK, its day three and you find yourself at the Starbucks counter yet
again. This time, the attendant recognizes you! It doesn’t get much
better than this! She is much nicer than those secretaries that
won’t give you the time of day when you call trying to secure a much
needed appointment. You score the nice, fluffy, corner chair and
decide it was meant for you to stay a bit longer today. You even
find a small table to pull up beside you in the event you must do a
bit of work. You put your cell on the table and realize this feels a
bit like an office – cool.
By now it’s clear the pattern you’ve set. As anticipated, your sales
continue to drop. You figure the economy is bad and your territory
has been especially impacted – makes sense. Sales is one of the
easiest jobs to fail in. You can’t afford to be discouraged. You
can’t afford to have a bad attitude. These tendencies can and will
cost you valuable sales. Rather than focusing on the negatives, or
hiding out in coffee shops, try doing things that will move you and
your business forward. Increase your activity as much as possible.
Surround yourselves with people who are diligent and hardworking.
They will rub off on you! Read positive literature and books. You’ve
heard it said that we are all a function of who we meet and the
books we read. Be careful about the thoughts you allow to govern
your mind. Most importantly, focus on determining the next right
thing to do to take your business to the next level. If you don’t
know what that is, then find out quickly.
Get your coffee to go!
Tim Broadwell
is the owner of Broadwell Consulting, an industry leader in
leadership training since 1985. His company has worked with
over half of the Fortune 500 companies. He is the author of
“How To Sell In a Tough Economy – A Guide To Increasing
Revenue”. He is a tremendous asset and friend of The Edge
Connection. Please visit his website at:
http://www.broadwellconsulting.com.
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