Here’s a little story, entitled ‘Only 28% above forecast…
Back in 2004, I was promoted into my first (corporate) senior sales role after being around the sales function and supporting them in various strategic projects. There were four of us in the senior roles with each of my peers having greater experience, being more established and being paid more than me.
My boss at the time said that he would “Align my package once I had delivered results to justify my appointment.” – gee, thanks for the motivation, stand aside Martin Luther King!!
At that point, I had two choices:
1. Let the pay and me being a novice become an excuse and allow me to justify me not delivering
2. Use it to motivate me and get results that were possible
Within three months, two of my three team members left. One wasn’t cutting the mustard and one left for a career change. Oh!
Me and the remaining team member, Paul, decided to give it our best shot. We sat down and developed a plan. We got crystal clear and what problems we were solving, what solutions we were selling, to whom, and what our priorities and financial goals were.
It was going to be tough but we were both determined, ambitious and prepared to graft.
Every week without fail, we reviewed and updated the plan. Every week we ensured our priorities were correct. Every week we reviewed the sales, margin, pipeline value and conversion stats and held each other accountable.
By the end of the year, all three of my peers had failed to hit their financial targets. All three hadn’t really modified their approach and accepted what their customers and their sectors were indicating.
By the end of the year, Paul and I had not only hit target, we exceeded it by a whopping 28%. It took a plan, focus, regularly reviewing the numbers and a huge dose of energy, hard work and determination.
It’s the same approach I bring when I am working 1-2-1 with ambitious small business owners and I advocate that it’s the methodology they should be adopting.
When you take this approach to building your business, anything is possible. Anything.
If you take option one, you will fail to get the results you want and find excuses. You’ll blame others so it sits more comfortably with you.
If you take option two, the sky is the limit.
Do you have a lengthy business plan and never look at it or maybe you have no plan at all? Many business owners don’t manage their company strategically, know what to focus on or measure daily, to have complete clarity and control. If you would like to manage your business on a single page, access our tool here to get started: tendo-uk.com/plan
