Sales Professionals - Segment Your Week©
Sales Professionals - Segment Your Week©
As a matter of fact, we have stopped conducting time management programs simply because I have stopped believing in them. Not that time management is not important, it is. My feeling is that one of the unique characteristics of the sales professional is that we all work somewhat differently. And the uniqueness of field sales allows us to all set up our own schedules. Therefore, we generally work best - differently.
Traditional time management training with which I am familiar focuses on a very logical structured use of time. Most of the sales professionals that I know would seem very inefficient to a time management specialist. Yet they can all be very successful following their own system.
I, for some reason, seem to work on some projects most effectively if I am in a time crunch. For other projects I like to start them as early as possible and spend a little time over several days or weeks to get them completed.
You may be the same way and not realize it.
We did some analysis of the way we work when we decided against time management training and found that we have certain times in the week where we "formally waste time." This would drive a time management person crazy. But I have found this true with a lot of sales people.
What we do is divide up the activities of our day and week into segments. It seems we all like to work in "clumps." For example I make a lot of phone calls every day. So I am on the phone for a certain amount of time and then I go and do something else. How many I make is dependent only on how I feel. (This is even contrary to some of the things we teach). But I get all of the calls made that I need to make.
When I am not making calls, I may be writing notes, articles, or proposals. I will do that until I don't feel like it anymore, and then go back to the phone or read a book or article. Sometimes I have stopped in the middle of a letter or proposal.
It seems that once I have started a project, whether I am actually working on it or not, I am thinking about it. So while I am doing something else, I find that other projects are really moving toward completion, at least in my head. When I get back to them, they get completed quickly. I keep lots of note pads around and jot down ideas as they come to me while doing other things.
This is especially true when preparing a speech or workshop. I prepare the outline first, then go on to something else. When I get back to it, I get a lot more done in a shorter time because the process has been working in my mind even though I was actually doing something else. That is why the note pads are all over the place!
If you look at your daily and weekly activities, you may find that you are the same way. You start several projects and get them done as needed.
The obvious pitfall in all of this is starting a lot of projects and not completing them. So we have to work on the premise that I may not be the most formally organized person in the world, but I will get all of my work completed in a timely manner.
The easiest way that I have found to do that is by simply segmenting the work into chunks that I feel like doing. When I know that I have to get certain things done, I will.
Therefore, in order to have the time to do one of the most important activities in your job - Prospecting - you need to segment your week.
Sell Well and Often
Bill Truax
Bill@BlitzCall.com
© Copyright 2006 WJ Truax
Sales Professionals Segment Your Week - To learn more about this author, visit Bill Truax's Website.
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We are often asked about time management and how to construct our work week so as to get the most benefit from the time we spend working. The number one excuse for not prospecting is "I don't have the time." I usually start to ask a lot of questions because I feel that time management is one of the most misunderstood subjects for sales people.
As a matter of fact, we have stopped conducting time management programs simply because I have stopped believing in them. Not that time management is not important, it is. My feeling is that one of the unique characteristics of the sales professional is that we all work somewhat differently. And the uniqueness of field sales allows us to all set up our own schedules. Therefore, we generally work best - differently.
Traditional time management training with which I am familiar focuses on a very logical structured use of time. Most of the sales professionals that I know would seem very inefficient to a time management specialist. Yet they can all be very successful following their own system.
I, for some reason, seem to work on some projects most effectively if I am in a time crunch. For other projects I like to start them as early as possible and spend a little time over several days or weeks to get them completed.
You may be the same way and not realize it.
We did some analysis of the way we work when we decided against time management training and found that we have certain times in the week where we "formally waste time." This would drive a time management person crazy. But I have found this true with a lot of sales people.
What we do is divide up the activities of our day and week into segments. It seems we all like to work in "clumps." For example I make a lot of phone calls every day. So I am on the phone for a certain amount of time and then I go and do something else. How many I make is dependent only on how I feel. (This is even contrary to some of the things we teach). But I get all of the calls made that I need to make.
When I am not making calls, I may be writing notes, articles, or proposals. I will do that until I don't feel like it anymore, and then go back to the phone or read a book or article. Sometimes I have stopped in the middle of a letter or proposal.
It seems that once I have started a project, whether I am actually working on it or not, I am thinking about it. So while I am doing something else, I find that other projects are really moving toward completion, at least in my head. When I get back to them, they get completed quickly. I keep lots of note pads around and jot down ideas as they come to me while doing other things.
This is especially true when preparing a speech or workshop. I prepare the outline first, then go on to something else. When I get back to it, I get a lot more done in a shorter time because the process has been working in my mind even though I was actually doing something else. That is why the note pads are all over the place!
If you look at your daily and weekly activities, you may find that you are the same way. You start several projects and get them done as needed.
The obvious pitfall in all of this is starting a lot of projects and not completing them. So we have to work on the premise that I may not be the most formally organized person in the world, but I will get all of my work completed in a timely manner.
The easiest way that I have found to do that is by simply segmenting the work into chunks that I feel like doing. When I know that I have to get certain things done, I will.
Therefore, in order to have the time to do one of the most important activities in your job - Prospecting - you need to segment your week.
Sell Well and Often
Bill Truax
Bill@BlitzCall.com
© Copyright 2006 WJ Truax
Sales Professionals Segment Your Week - To learn more about this author, visit Bill Truax's Website.
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Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
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David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
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Dave KurlanDave Kurlan is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. - Visit Dave Kurlan's Website |
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Leanne Hoagland-SmithAre your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales or business success or one of the many who have failed to change? Are you tired of being told you are like everyone else? Then you may find my first book on sales of interest. Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, The Keys to Unlocking Sales available at Amazon or at http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm. This book is a reflection of my no-nonsense approach to improving sales to overall business results. If you are truly committed to making sustainable changes, then I can help you secure a positive return on your investment because I focus on executable solutions not telling you the problems you already know you have. From training to corporate (group) coaching to executive one on one coaching, my approach is to assess, create awareness, build a goal driven action plan and then execute. The bottom line question is "Not do you or your employees know it, but do you or they want to do it?" Please call for a free strategy session at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website |
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John BrennanJohn Brennan Ed.D. Dr. Brennan is President of Interpersonal Development, LLC, a training and development firm. Interpersonal Development has provided sales training and coaching to more than 3,000 sales reps from over 100 companies. A native of Australia, Dr. Brennan received his doctorate from the University of Rochester. His dissertation researched the effectiveness of Behavioral Modeling Technology in training people in interpersonal skills. While he has spent most of his career designing or delivering training, he was also a Vice-President of Sales of a training and development franchise with operations in 25 markets. Dr. Brennan has designed and delivered sales training in North America, Asia, Europe, Australia and the Middle East. He has been a guest speaker at numerous national and regional professional conferences. When Microsoft wanted Best Practices articles on sales for their web site, they called Dr. Brennan. The results are at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/FX011387391033.aspx His firm’s clients have included Volvo, The Prudential, Merrill Lynch, Eastman Kodak, Gannett, Equifax Europe, the Economist Group and countless small businesses. - Visit John Brennan's Website |
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George LudwigGeorge Ludwig is a recognized authority on sales strategy and peak performance psychology. An international speaker, trainer, and corporate consultant, he helps clients like Johnson & Johnson, Abbott Laboratories, Northwestern Mutual, CIGNA, and numerous others improve sales force effectiveness and performance. Though it's George's strategies and processes that help corporations increase productivity and performance, it's his tremendous energy and dynamism that spark the transformation. Again and again, clients remark on his amazing ability to unleash human capacity and inspire men and women to break out of their comfort zones. The result is a whole new type of salesperson. His customized presentations teach achievers to make stunning advances in their lives. From helping salespeople realize cherished dreams to helping corporations exponentially accelerate revenue streams, George Ludwig leaves audiences and individuals empowered, emboldened, and clamoring for more. George is the best-selling author of Power Selling: Seven Strategies for Cracking the Sales Code and Wise Moves: 60 Quick Tips to Improve Your Position in Life & Business. - Visit George Ludwig's Website |
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Anne BarrAnne Barr has over 26 years experience in sales and marketing, six years as a franchisee. She has assisted over 367 business owners and purchasers to achieve their goals in career change, transition and exit strategy. She holds the designation of Certified Franchise Executive from the International Franchise Association, Certified Business Intermediary from the International Business Brokers Association and Board Certified Broker from the Texas Association of Business Brokers. Anne is active in professional organizations, networking groups and volunteers for non-profit entities. As owner/operator of four successful businesses, Anne has proven people skills and enjoys helping clients find the right "fit" in business ownership. Visit www.FranchiseOpportunitySpecialist.com for more information about me and my company. - Visit Anne Barr's Website |
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