For those who have heard me speak, you may remember a story I told about a conversation I had with a client in the mid 90’s, Bud Howard, VP of Sales for Hertz Equipment Rental Corporation (division of Hertz). As we were traveling together cross country on a plane, he asked me what I thought was more important: The Will to Prepare or The Will to Win. After a lengthy philosophical question, we both agreed that The Will to Prepare is more important than the Will to Win.

You can have a great desire to win in life, but if you are not prepared to act when your “chance” in life comes, your odds of winning are greatly reduced. The same holds true in sales,
leadership, athletics, parenting and many other aspects of life. Luck only comes to those who are out there making it happen and preparing themselves for that special moment. Branch Rickey once said that “luck is the residue of design”.

I leave you now to continue your preparation for the New Year and all the opportunities that are coming your way. Be open to all possibilities and most importantly, be prepared.

From all of us at Karr Associates, Inc., best wishes for a Successful 2005!!!

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Recently I had the opportunity of reading the findings of a report written by a world renowned specialist to the physician that referred my mother. When you visit a highly specialized doctor, the attitude you may expect to find is that of someone who knows they are good and really doesn’t have much time for you. Their calendar is full. If you weren’t there, someone else would be.

Well, this specialist I am referring to offers a different mindset. You see it in the closing line of his report to the referring physician… “Thank you for the privilege to participate in the caring of your patient”.

What a powerful statement! How many of us truly realize it is a privilege to serve our customers? How many of us take this privilege seriously and ensure the service rendered is truly the best we can offer?

Thanksgiving allows us to be thankful for a lot of things. While we are at it, let’s be thankful for the privilege our customers have given us to serve them and the value they place in our products and services.

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The Partnership for a Drug Free America has a great commercial. Honestly, I forgot the message. But the visual was awesome. It involved a fish tank with a couple of gold fish swimming around. During the commercial, the water level constantly drops until there was hardly any water left.

You may wonder, what did the fish do while the water level dropped? They kept swimming lower and lower to stay in the water, until they had no where else to go. As for drugs, I still need to see the commercial again to get the point. But as to motivation, there definitely is a point to examine.

As you go through your daily routines, are you limited by self doubts? Do you not take risks because you are afraid of failure, and in some cases, afraid of success? Do you avoid trying new things because you are not sure they will work? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you are acting like the fish did in the commercial. People often get stuck and do not rise to greater heights of success because of their limiting thoughts. Think of your success as the water level in the fish tank. The more you let limiting thoughts get in the way, the more the water level recedes, as does your success. The less you pay attention to these limiting thoughts, the water level rises.

Can you just picture what life would be like if the water level keeps rising and rising forever?

Forget the B.S. and rationalizations as to why it can’t continuously rise. Just concentrate on what it will take to have your water level constantly rising on a daily basis. For one, thing, you will never run out of room. If it keeps continuously rising, you will wind up with a whole lot of room to play around in. In other words, the world will be yours.

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When Alex Rodriguez (A-Rod), the Yankees newest acquisition, started the season in a long slump, the media kept asking him how he was dealing with all of the negativity. Not once did A-Rod lose his smile, cool or change his demeanor. He replied consistently that he was not worried at all. His stroke will come back and he will once again be hitting with power and producing runs. During these interviews, it came out that A-Rod uses a motivational coach, Jim Fannin. Isn’t it funny how all-stars use coaches every day to stay on top of their game. If you are not using a coach, you may want to reconsider this.

Anyway, the key point of this message is what Jim Fannin teaches his clients. He says “superstars don’t think like everyone else The average person has 2,000 to 3,000 thoughts a day, and 60 percent of the average person’s thoughts are in chaos. The superstar has 1,100 to 1,300 thoughts a day. They eliminate worry, envy, jealousy, embarrassment and anger. The superstar thinks a lot less and holds a thought longer.” Fannin was asked if the slump was on A-Rod’s mind. He answered no. Maybe it was on the reporter’s and fans minds, but not on A-Rod’s.

Think about that the next time you lose a sale and see if you can spend less time blaming yourself and others. While it is great to post-mortem a sales call to see what worked well and what needs to be tweaked, it is another thing to get stuck in the quagmire of doubt, anger and embarrassment. Superstars know that mistakes are part of the growing process. They also know they are going to hit slumps. But what they really care about is keeping their eye on the most important goal, and that is winning. They do not concern themselves with all of the other minor details that take up energy, brain power and time, key ingredients they can be using on closing the next deal. They focus their energy and time on thoughts that are going to pay off.

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This year’s Super Bowl, if you can put aside the Janet Jackson fiasco, should be known for being one of the best Super Bowls ever played. It all came down to a field goal in the last few seconds of the game. Adam Vinetari missed two earlier field goal attempts, but succeeded on his last try. And this kick meant the difference between being a champion and being a loser.

One out of three kicks resembles what successful people go through every day. There are many failures along the way to success. However, it is only the wins that count. Question is, when it comes to “Showtime”, are you ready to perform? How many practice kicks did Vinetari take throughout the year to get ready for this one pressure packed moment?

Or, take Tiger Woods. If he wins a round by one stroke, it literally means taking home a winning check upwards of $1M vs. the golfer in second place who takes home 50% or less of Tiger Woods earnings. One stroke is all that separated these players.

But is it really one stroke? No! It is constant practice and training that gets you ready to successfully make the crucial putt or critical kick that will propel you into a champion and separate you from the rest of the field.

By reading this e-report, you are practicing your craft. But don’t stop here. Staying mentally fit to carry out your job and superbly perform your skills requires a keen determination and commitment on your part. What do you need to do to further hone your skills, ensure your success and not leave money on the table for your competition to steal? This is a question you must be asking yourself daily. The moment you stop asking this question and acting on your answers is the moment you have effectively stopped competing.

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