Mentalsidewalk

What is the difference in creating a brand like Coca-Cola and one for your everyday entrepreneur?

My parents moved into a new community just prior to me visiting them during this holiday season.  Every time we walked by a new neighbor, my mom would introduce me.

“This is my son, he is an inspirational speaker and an entrepreneur coach, he likes the outdoors and is very active…”

After a while I realized that every new neighbor we met, my mom introduced me the exact same way.

It turned out that I was branded by my very own mom.  We are branding ourself whether we like it or not.  The real question is, are we doing it subconsciously or with intent?

There is no difference in how Coca-cola brands them self and how an entrepreneur should effectively brand them self.  The process is all principle based.

Branding yourself has faced a paradigm shift.  How entrepreneurs branded in the past will never be how entrepreneurs need to brand in these times in order to be effective.

Before you spend any time or money creating a strategy for your marketing and branding, you need to be aware of the 3 pillars that all your strategy needs to be built upon.

Most peoples brands are nothing more than fancy words and slogans they put on a piece of paper and than try to market the hell out of it.

You need to turn your brand in a movement.  In order for anything to have movement it needs to have a life of its own.  In essence give your brand life.  The obvious next question is, “how do you give it life?”

For any brand to have life, it needs to do one thing – it needs to make people feel.  A brand with life within it makes people want to be part of it.

When you give your brand life, it will become a movement.

Just like any relationship has a foundation, you need to be aware of the foundation of your relationship with you brand.

3 PILARS

Tip Of The Tongue:

If I were to go around the room and ask your clients to tell me about you, your brand.  What would you like them to consistently have at the tip of their tongue that they are ready to say?

Chasing Rabbits:

When you try to chase 3 rabbits at the same time you will catch none.  Even if you can sell your product or services to the mass – you need to have a niche market that you brand yourself to.

The more you focus on a niche the more powerful your brand will become.

Street Lessons:

If there is anything you are going to focus on when marketing yourself.  Any information that you share.  Always always always keep one thing in mind. Educate your niche market.

Now educate does not mean you bombard them with information they can already get on the internet.  Educate them based on their state of mind, their fears, concerns etc.  Things that they as laypeople can relate to and more so are craving for.

Going forward, everything you do with your branding and marketing ask yourself this question.

What emotions am I making people feel?  The answer to that question will be your existing brand.

Would love to hear about how people have made their brand different and unique.

Fred Sarkari

There are so many networking events in Kelowna that one can easily get lost within them all.  It almost becomes a habit of showing up, meeting people, changing cards having some appetizers and then forgetting it all until the next one.

Last week I experienced what networking is all about.  I attended the OBRG event in Kelowna and I was pleasantly surprised for their focused intent of being there.  To network, but more importantly to help each other grow their business.

It was all about “how can I help you?”

With such committed individuals, to others success, I had to say yes to partnering up with them for our next event.

Here is a brief introduction to the event

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We will take the most critical elements that all successful people have in common and in 2 hours show you first hand how it will impact every relationship in your professional and personal life.

Since we are in the Okanagan, we will end the event with some wine and appetizers while we network with like minded people.

We all love our free stuff.  So there will be some great door prizes as well.

In partnership with the OBRG, connect with their members to receive their special offer for this event.

As we get closer to the date, more exciting news will be revealed for this event.  Make sure you keep November 5th, 2 to 5 open in your calendar.

I would also like to thank our other partners for this event:

OBRG – Okanagan Business Referral Group

PinStripe – Creative Design Marketing

Beachwalk Villas

Cabana Grille

Print Three

Belleview Communities

Benson Salloum Watts

This man has more courage in his heart in these 3 minutes than most of us do in a lifetime.

There are times when we hit the ground so hard that we wonder if we will ever have the courage to get back up again.  After watching this 3 minute video, I cannot wait to fall once again just so I can get back up and live.

Look around you, truly look with all your heart and soul, and know that no matter what our situation or circumstance in life is – we are truly blessed.

Hold on to your precious moments, tell your spouse how much you truly appreciate them, hold your children tight and whisper in their ears your love for them, touch the hearts and souls of all those that cross your path and most importantly look in the mirror and know you are special and you have within you greatness that is just waiting to be reveled into this world.

We are capable of so much more.

“Present with the passion of a child and your audience will transform them selves

from their seats to the playground.”

Fred Sarkari

(Coming Soon)

Just like with any successful communication, when you deliver a presentation you should keep two variables in mind:

• First, what is the message that you as a speaker are trying to relay?

• Second, does your message relate to the audience?

The goal of presenting should always be to communicate information in a way that connects with your audience. Your presentation should not just engage an audience verbally and visually, but more importantly emotionally as well.

Two critical aspects every presenter should never lose sight of:

1. Best way for an audience to learn is to link the message to an emotion.

2. People will never forget how you make them feel.

Any one can become a powerful presenter if they understand the key components of successful presentations and how to implement them based on their individual style.

Fred Sarkari

How often do we hear knowledge is power.  We are in the information age, knowledge is nothing but clutter in our minds.  Its what we do with the knowledge that makes us effective.

That is the same with networking events, they honestly are nothing but clutter in our lives due to the quantity of them around us.  If we can understand the principles of networking than and only than can we tap into the potential of that knowledge.

Networking is one of the corner stones of building a business.  Networking can be our best friend and our worst enemy at the same time.  If we do not understand the principles of networking it can cost us a lot of our time.

In times like these, uncertainty in the economy, it is more important to be face to face with our clients and potential clients.

The only consistency in this market right now is the unknown, the greatest economist and advisers have said we have no idea what to expect anymore – all logic has been proven wrong.

I was doing a presentation for Investors Group recently and I heard a client say “Only the gods know what the markets will do tomorrow.”

In times of unknown people need to feel secure and connected with those they choose to do business with.

Networking can be extremely powerful and effective to the growth of our business.  Unfortunately most networking events I have attended through out the years I realized that most people are not aware of what true networking entails.

Networking for most gives them a false sense of accomplishment, how many cards can I give out and how many can I collect.  Just because you are busy does not mean you are effective.

We all know those people that enter the room with presence, they carry themselves with confidence and have a look of genuine caring for others.  Those are the same emotions I felt when I went to the Kelowna Signature Business Network event.

Now I know it is one thing to have a feeling but the true question is, are those feelings justified?  This was by far one of the most effective networking events I have ever attended.

No one ran around giving and exchanging business cards.  People were having genuine conversations and building the foundation of a future relationship.  It was not about how many people can I get to in the next 10 min.

I had the opportunity to meet people that without this event I would never have access to.  The people that attended this event do not seem to attend typical networking events.

The owner Darlene R. Brûlé and her staff, physically went around the room connecting beneficial like minded people with each other.  Not only were there influential people but more importantly as a guest we were introduced to each other effectively.

Even though I was at a member event that had guests, through invitation only, they also hold events for members only with top influential people in the community. The connections I made, not just swapping business cards, were priceless to my business.

A big seller was their exclusive portfolio of members, very classy and beneficial.  These portfolios that showcase the members with a full color page go out to businesses in the community.

The event it self, all I can say is wow! It felt like I was at a Gala event.

Darlene, thank you for a great event and I look forward to attending your next event in June.  Rumor has it that it will be at a breath taking location.

Fred Sarkari

It is ironic how people in the service industry at times haven’t a clue about what service really means.  so many seem to be clueless about how the little things that they do and say have the greatest impact in their business.

We all know that in our personal relationships it is all about the little things that we do for each other that has the greatest impact.  Well lets be honest, most know yet very few do it.  

What we have to keep in mind when we deal with our clients is that there is no difference in that principle.  They are relationships as well and all relationships are build on a foundation that consist of the little things that we do.  

I just check into a beautiful Fairmont.  Before I continue on this specific experience I do have to say that the fairmont over all has great service.  I was at another Fairmont 2 days ago and I recall making a comment how polite all the employees were.

Obviously I am leading to an experience that did not sit to favorably this morning.  There was a minor issue during my checkin.  Those that travel a lot know it becomes natural instinct to always ask for something extra in such situations.  

I asked if there is something he can do for the trouble, maybe an upgrade.  He went on to say that we already bumped you up to the best room we have, corner view of the bay and the mountains.  

RULE #1: If you are going to give something to your clients, always put value on it.  He already gave me the upgrade without letting me know he was doing that for initial trouble.

So, I asked if there is anything else they can do?

There came his blinded response.  Which seems like the fundamental thought process of most people dealing with their clients. 

“We cannot do anything more because we are fully booked.”  

Wow! If the hotel was not fully booked, you would do something extra?  This is how we treat our clients in most cases, go above and beyond, that extra little step when our state of mind is reactive in building our business.  But when we have what we need, when the sale is done, when we have hit our quota etc…Then our clients have a little less value to us. 

One of the main things we need to remember as sales people, leaders, customer service is that every thing that we do, everything that we say has an emotional impact on others.  Every decision that we make is based on emotion which is catapulted based on our past experiences and then justified by logic.

Never value people based on your immediate state.  

p.s – It is a great upgrade he gave me.

Fred Sarkari

How easy do we have to make it for some sales people to do their job? We hand them the sale on a silver platter and somehow we (the clients) still have to spoon-feed it to them. Sometimes the sales staff can be the biggest detriment to an organization.

It just so happened the other day that I was looking for a photographer—not that I had accidentally lost one behind the sofa, mind you—but more that I needed a new photographer for a project.

I did my homework, figured out exactly what services I needed, and even got referred by people who knew the photographers. Then I called them. I was ready to buy and I made that obvious, at least it would have been obvious to someone with the right sales training or intuition.

What they all did next was quite astounding—absolutely nothing!

Not one of them followed up on such an easy sales lead. Two of the three said they would get back to me the next day and I have yet to ever hear from them. One of them never responded at all. Oh! Did I mention that two of them were referred to me and I was sure to tell them that? I’m not sure how I could have made it any easier for them to have my business.

Survey: Here are some fascinating numbers according to the National Sales Executive Association:
2% of sales are made on the 1st contact
3% of sales are made on the 2nd contact
5% of sales are made on the 3rd contact
10% of sales are made on the 4th contact
80% of sales are made on the 5th-12th contact

Did you catch that? 80% of sales are made somewhere between the fifth and 12th contact with the client!

The follow-up is a critical step in making a sale. Quite often we think we’ve done our follow-up when we haven’t. And of the times we do it, most of the time we don’t do it well at all. It boggles my mind to think of how much business we lose from a lack of effective follow-up.

Making the follow-up an important part of your process is one of the easiest ways to boost your company’s sales and make the most of your team’s efforts. Now, have you ever wondered why we call it “follow up” and not “follow down”? Makes you think…

So, how do we make the sale over all the other contenders? Whether we initially approach the client or the client comes to us with checkbook in hand, it’s important to finish strong by following up. It may not happen the same day,but that sale will happen if we are willing to persevere into that 80% zone. Let the others quit after only 10%.

3 Things to keep in mind:

1. What will you do to improve your sales process?

2. Create a system to make sure that your contacts and leads don’t fall through the cracks?

3. Invest the time to keep in touch with clients and potential clients after you’ve spoken to them the first time?

Now, where did I put that photographer???

Fred Sarkari

Sell sell sell, make contacts, drum up business; if that is not the focus then why bother being in business?

A lot of people ask me why I do what I do?

That sensation when you look into someones eyes as the glitter with a magical sense of relief as they know that the way they see their life from that moment on will never be the same again. That connects us to the core of our human DNA and in turn our existence. A sense of worthiness, a sense of touching others that will ripple beyond your time.

Most importantly, I love it, it is fun, I feel alive. As far as I am concerned, if not, why bother being in business. The money will just be a natural by product.

The CAAMP show reminds me of just that. A lot of good hearted people taking care of each other.

I had the pleasure of being invited to dinner by one of the Brokerages, TMG – The Mortgage Group. This was a very special dinner to me. It reminded me of the importance of business and more so how we need to connect to our employees and clients.

As I sat there during dinner, I was amazed by the interaction and the conversation within the group. Most dinners that you attend, especially during a trade show event consists of drumming up business.

To my amazement the conversation here consisted of them as individuals. They had the comfort of openly talking about who they were as people, their struggles and their successes, and more so how they genuinely wanted to help each other succeed.

I remember talking to Jackie, the Director of Sales, and her saying you have a deep soul. There was a smile on my face because I was thinking the same thing about them.

You see, a company is nothing more than an accumulation of its people. When I say that TMG is a warm, caring, focused company. What I am really saying is that the people at TMG are warm, caring and focused.

The questions you need to ask yourself is; what is your company known for? If you are not aware of it, then really how strong of an impact are you making?

5 Things to keep in mind when re-evaluating the culture and brand of your company.

1. AWARENESS: Become aware of what you are known for at this moment. Awareness precedes effective change. If you were to ask others ‘what you are known for?’ What would be the consistent answer.

2. DESTINATION: Create a clear vision of what you want to be known for. What you want people to say about you as company.

3. WHY?: People will always follow others that have a clear vision of why they do what they do. Once you know what you want to be known for then be distinctly aware of why it is important to you?

4. ACTION PLAN: What is it specifically that you need to do in order to create this brand in the eyes of others?

5. REFINEMENT: Always readdress what is working and what is not.

When dealing with others always remember; People will most likely forget what you said, they might remember what you did for them, but they will never forget how you made them feel.

Fred Sarkari

Doc. my wife and I seem to be banging heads lately. We cannot seem to see anything eye to eye.

The doctor replied; I am a medical doctor so I cannot advice you on that. But I know what I do when I need to clear my head.

I go for a run everyday. Why don’t you go for a 10 km run for the next 5 days and then call me in the end of the week and tell me how you feel.

A week later the man called the doctor back and said; “Doc. I took your advice to heart, I ran 10 km a day for the last 5 days and now I am 50 km away from my wife and I feel great.”

Being aware means being true to our self. Change will occur no matter what we do but in order to create effective change in our life we need to become aware of our present situation. In doing so we need to be true to our hearts, as hard as the truth might be at times.

In any Martial arts it only takes a minute to teach what you need to do. But you have to practice it 10,000 times for your mind to be able to use it in the real world.

Efficiency in martial arts is only 10 moves practiced over and over again.
Most businesses and salespeople will do 4000 things at the same time without taking anthing to the point of efficiency.

It is amazing to watch Thai Kick boxers train in Thailand. Here are people that have had over 200 professional fights and still everyday they spend time practicing the most basic punches and kicks that a person would learn the first week of starting the sport.

We need to become aware of the basics and the foundation of what makes our business successful. Without this awareness you will always have turn over, technology issues, budget issues, relationship issues, always a reason why something is not going your way. Mean while you will not be able to put a finger on it but spend a portion of every day complaining about it.

Happy Selling

Fred Sarkari

I have recently transfered my computer system from PC to a Mac. Yes, just like any technology transfer there has been it’s up and downs.

Today I was to take in my computer for a hardware upgrade. Exciting, until I got there and I was notified that someone accidentally returned my part back to the manufacturer.

Options:

1. Yell at them – That just bothers my throat.

2. Get annoyed – What is the use of getting annoyed at something that has already taken place. That does me as good as kicking a pole with a broken leg.

3. Never deal with them again – That would be under the assumption that the next place would never make a human error.

4. Be realistic – Understand that we are all human and therefore, human error is bound to take place, occasionally.

As sales people, we can try to implement an iron clad system to avoid inconveniences to our clients. Which is very important to do, but at the same time we have to realize that human errors will at times get the better of our systems and procedures.

During those times, it is extremely crucial how we communicate with our clients. If our clients feel like the error was made but the sales person does not seem to understand our inconvenience, it is more likely we will take any of the above options over option number 4.

Here is also where your past interaction is critical with the client. I have received nothing but great service from this store and in turn when an inconvenience occurs, it is a lot easier to relate it to human error, which we all are capable of. An example of this service is the amount of times they have put things a side to help me with situations clearly knowing I was not there to buy anything new.  More importantly they have come to accept the fact that I am technologically ignorant.

One last thing, it is not the error that is the main issue most clients have, it is how the error has been handled and what mind frame we take our clients into at that critical moment in time.

Thank you to the Westworld Apple store in Calgary for always taking care of me and those that I have referred them to.

Great service creates what I call a circular momentum. Thank you to the www.westworld.ca team. Next time you need something ask for Travis.

Happy selling

If you are having trouble getting sponsorship money from companies, take a good look at your philosophy and mind set prior to adjusting your sales strategy.

I had a conversation today with an individual that runs a magazine. Every magazine is funded by sponsors and advertisers. What they could not figure out is why other publications in the same industry were getting advertisers and they were not when their magazine was far more superior?

The secret behind getting any sponsorship money is the value the companies receive for their hard earned cash. We need to think from the perspective of our clients.
If I were to give money to advertise or sponsor an event:

1. What will I get in return?

2. What will be the volume of exposure?

3. How long will my name be in circulation?

4. Will my company name be exposed just for that event or will it ripple onwards?

5. Who are the demographics that will view my advertising?

Yes, I agree the above list are the basics of what every publication should consider before asking for money. Even though most do not even follow the basic principles.

Unfortunately by following the norm, we have prisoned ourselves in the frozen thoughts of others. in short, let your creativity lose. Go out on a limb and ask the potential advertisers what would benefit them the most? Become an expert and start educating your clients on what would work for them as well.

In short, if you want anyone to change their daily practice, on how they spent their advertising money, you have to replace their thoughts with something of greater value then what they have now. If not, there is absolutely no reason for them to change anything.

Do not just try to think outside of the box, remove the box entirely and you will be surprised what we can offer our potential clients.

Fred Sarkari

In any martial arts it only takes a few minutes to teach what you need to do. But the catch is that you need to practice it 10,000 times for it to work in the real world.

That is the same in sales, the concepts that are required for success are very simple to teach, yet one has to practice it 10,000 times for it to work in the real world.

Efficiency in martial arts is only 10 moves practiced over and over again.
Most companies will do 4000 things at the same time without taking it to the point of efficiency.

I remember watching Mike Miles, a three time world champion, training in the gym. Mike everyday for 30 min. hit the bag over and over again with the most basic 3 punches, the foundation of his success. Even after he had won the World Title, he practices the basic punches.

It is amazing how as sales people, once we taste a little success, we start to complicate things instead of taking the basics to a point of efficiency.

We need to become aware of the basics and the foundation of what makes our business successful. Without this awareness you will always have turn over, technology issues, budget issues, relationship issues, always a reason why something is not going your way. Mean while you will not be able to put a finger on it but spend a portion of every day complaining about it.

Ask yourself, what was it that initially got you started in your business? Was there an event? Was there something that ignited that passion? In the beginning you did something to get clients and then you will realize you stopped doing it, you got complacent.

Always readdress your beginning.

Fred Sarkari

If you have ever been to Kelowna, British Columbia, you know how breath taking the place is. The mystical mountains that you are surrounded by. Calming and inviting lakes. The sunrises and the sunsets.

I have been here for a few days and this morning I was woken by the most vibrant colors from a sun rise coming over the mountains.

I have been here for a few days for a couple of reasons, one being looking at some property in this booming valley. I had to share the great experience with you that I have had with a realtor and a lawyer, yes I did say a great experience with a lawyer.

The Realtor, www.stonesisters.com , could have sold me a place that on paper was extremely inviting, but they actually suggested I do not buy the property and in time we will find a better one. There is a reason why these two sisters are the best in Kelowna, not only do they think long term, but their focus is not just customer service but more so success for their clients. I must forewarn you, if you are ever going to work with them, you better have your morning coffee as they are not only efficient with your time but they have more energy then most people combined.

Great minds flock together: There were some complications with the Strata papers so I needed a lawyer to look them over. Not having a BC lawyer the Stone sisters referred me to on. There is nothing more fearful then working with a lawyer you have never met and especially under time constraint.

Pat, www.macisaacgroup.com, called me back right away, and spend effective time with me over the phone explaining to me what everything meant in layman’s terms. Then he went on to say “if you have any further questions you are welcome to call me anytime.” Pat as well was out for my best interest, never rushed me to get off the phone and as most of you are thinking, no I did not get a big bill for it either.

The moral of the story: Everything that we do in business is a result of a ‘means to an end”. Now the question one must ask is what is your ‘end’ that you are shooting for in your business. If you do not have a clear vision of it then you will follow the path of least resistance, “how can I close the deal?” As Leaders in our industry we need to genuinely care for the over all success of our clients first.

Keep in mind, that we live in an age where our clients have access to two of the most valuable resources. Technology combined with the information age; one can source any product or service and become an expert over night in the implementation of their desired outcome. In turn our clients are so much more educated then they ever were that they will know at an instance if we are out for their best interest or more concerned with lining our pockets.

If you ever wonder why your business is not running on referrals and repeat business? If you are actually having to chase clients. Then take a good look at the philosophy and values your business is built on.

Your values will always drive the direction of your business.

If anyone out there in this world is looking for a property in Kelowna I strongly recommend you contact the Stone Sister, www.stonesisters.com and Pat if you are looking for any legal advice, www.macisaacgroup.com

This is my way of reinforcing great service and genuine business practices.

Happy Selling

Fred Sarkari

One thing salespeople are great at is wasting time due to a lack of planning, causing a scattered approach in their daily tasks, simply resulting in a lot of wasted time.

Most salespeople say they know the difference between Strategy and Tactics, yet their daily activities proves other wise.

Strategy is the WHAT — WHAT you intend to achieve assuming that everything goes right. Strategy defines the ENDS, the desired results you want to achieve. Because it is defined at a high level, strategy doesn’t change all that often.

Tactics is the HOW — HOW to achieve those results. Tactics are the MEANS to reach the ENDS defined by your strategy, and include any and all activities, methods, or systems available to get the job done. Great tacticians will change their tactics, as conditions require.

To use a navigating analogy, strategy describes where you want to go, while tactics are the route you take to get there. Does this matter to you as an account manager? You bet. You simply do not have the time or the money to waste on tactics that don’t deliver results, and neither does your employer. The need to make the right decision at the right time is greater than ever. When you focus on the results you want, you are more likely to choose activities that get you there. When you focus on the activities themselves, any old activity will do.

Selling strategically simplifies your selling plan. It establishes a clear statement of WHAT you wish to achieve, then provides systematic ways to choose tactics that work, so you can reach your goals.

I have been overwhelmed by people contacting me to thank me for taking a stand towards honesty. For this I thank everyone. After I had openly admitted to my error in double booking an appointment with a client, I was contacted by Andrea Morris for an interview.

The following is the interview:

In a Gallup Poll released in December 2006, the sales and marketing industries represented 3 out of the 4 least trusted professionals. Why do you think sales people are perceived as untrustworthy and how can we change that perception?

Sales people at times get so caught up with the end in mind that they start making promises just in order to reach their goals. So, unfortunately we are least trusted with some level of validity.

The only way we can change that perception is to start putting our energies into the success of our clients. Our ‘end in mind’ should not be what will we receive, it should be how can I help my client succeed. Help enough people get what they need and you will receive more then you ever dreamed possible.

In your program descriptions, you mention, “gone are the days of sales people using closing lines.” Why do you think so many companies train their sales staff to sell in this style? What can salespeople do as an alternative to using traditional tactics?

Yes, closing lines are not only ineffective to our clients; they are out right frustrating and disrespectful to them. At the same time these questions are necessary in the questioning process. What makes them ineffective is not the questions alone but how and when they are used.

It is like building a house, for a house, the foundation is needed along with a roof and doors for the completion. To try and frame and roof a house without pouring the foundation is as ineffective as using questioning in the wrong process.

Maybe if enough people request, I will put together an article on effective questioning.

Some people feel that “integrity selling” is somewhat of an oxymoron. What are your thoughts? Do you feel it is possible to sell in an honest, ethical and integrity-based manner?

It is the only way, as long as you are in this game for the long term.

First we need to define what integrity really means. Integrity is being true to your values no matter what circumstances you face. “People with integrity expect to be believed and when they are not, they let time prove them right.”

In essence, if sales people were to take the time to become aware of their values, be true to themselves and their values this game of ‘buying and selling’ would be a lot more enjoyable for all involved.

How can business owners help their salespeople sell with integrity? Is it more about hiring the right people or creating the right culture?

You can lead a horse to water but you cannot force it to drink. One of the major errors business owners make is chasing people with the right skill set causing more of a frustration to them in the long term. It is crucial that the people we hire want to be there and more importantly share your values and vision.

There are 3 things business owners have to keep in mind when hiring people for any position.

1. Hire the right person for the job. The right person is the one that shares your values and vision.

2. Then put them in the right position. The right position is the position that will bring out their greatness, this does not necessarily has to be their expertise. Connect with your employees in order to truly understand where their heart lies.

3. Give them the tools and resources they require.

Remember, the right people will never complain about the lack of resources. The right people will make it work with what they have.

Your question about the culture. As the business owner, you are the culture. Your culture needs to be defined first. Then you hire people that believe in your culture in order to sustain your culture.

Your foundation, Dare2Drm, is focused on instilling desire, direction, passion and purpose in our youth. How can we help a child in our lives achieve their highest potential and act with integrity?

Very simple, stop telling our children they cannot do something. Even when we know there is a good chance they will fail.

Parents think they are protecting their children by making sure they do not fail. We do nothing but set them up for their greatest failures in the future without the experience of how to overcome and move on.

Always let them be young enough to know nothing is impossible.

Let them fail, let them fall, let them hurt and in turn teach them it is okay to do so as long as they never stay down.

Your organization works with companies across the globe – do you feel that the values of honesty, integrity and ethics are universal or do they change from culture to culture?

From what I have seen they are absolutely universal. A culture in a company is nothing more then an accumulation of values within the people in that company.

Values are linked to principles, and principles are principles because they are universal and prove the test of time.

You also provide one-on-one coaching – is there one person that you would like to work with? Why?

Someone just asked me if I have a mentor. Yes, I do but I have many. I have ones that I like to learn from depending on what part of my life I am looking to grow in.

For a little over a year I have been learning from, or I should say trying to suck every ounce of experience from Callum Desouza’s mind as I can.

Why you ask? I find it very intriguing how he can run a multi million dollar business with such calmness and balance in his life. His employees would do anything for him without question as they have the utmost trust and respect for him.

www.belleviewcommunities.com

You’ve recently written a book, “How the Top 5% Think.” Who or what inspired you to choose this topic?

That is a tough question for me to answer. Not because I am unsure of the answer but because the book has a background journey that goes back approximately 15 years. It is a journey where I finally embraced and in turn it made me who I am today.

We all have our own stories and in turn our journey. Some choose to fall a victim of them and others choose to embrace them. I fell victim of my medical journey for close to a decade until I embraced it with the realization of it being a gift. Your purpose will reveal itself when you embrace your journey.

This was my way of reaching out to a larger population. Help others embrace their journey and in turn pursue that life of ‘happiness’ that we so long for.

What is your secret to success?

Wow! Where do you start with that question? I really cannot say there is one thing. Part of success to me is always staying true to your core values while fulfilling your purpose.

Most have a hard time with that, as most have not gone through the process of true awareness; a process where they have clarity to their values. If you do not know what you value then how can you live your values?

One of the main reasons would be not only understanding the process required but more so to implement the process in order to achieve your desired success. A clarity in awareness is the foundation to any success in your life.

Fred Sarkari

I was at the Dallas airport today and due to one of those unavoidable situations I was stranded there for 3 hours.  The excitement actually started when I tried to enter the lounge and was so humbly refused entry.

As I picked up the phone to call  American Express in order to inquire  the reason for my refusal,  I was notified with a smile over the phone that I was entering the wrong lounge.

The amazing thing was that the lady over the phone spent almost an hour with me answering all the questions I had about my membership.  She patiently went the extra mile answering my questions and sourcing the onces she could not answer.

Today more than ever the members of the sales industry need to realize that a sale is no longer about the bottom line. No matter how well you communicate, no matter how good your product, what will set the most successful salespeople apart will be the quality of their relationships, and the amount of pride they take in making sure their clients receives the right product at the right time at the right price.

When your focus moves from a product based model to a solution based model your clients will gravitate towards you, making you their primary contact when it comes to your industry, and thus making you more profitable.

The benefits that your clients receive will be the determining factor when it comes to their loyalty to you. No longer will you simply be able the sell a good product to a customer and have them remember you, what will make a difference between a clients coming back and not coming back to you will be whether or not you went the extra mile. Those that do not do that extra little bit for each client will be left behind, only to wonder why they failed, and where there clients went.

The fact is that loyalty still exists, but it must be earned. You must provide added value to each and every customer.

Fred Sarkari

After all these years, I finally faced one of my fears in this business.

I just had a conversation with a colleague about a situation with one of my clients. I woke up at 2:48 am with a twist in my gut that I had made one of the biggest errors with a client.

Booking a wrong date in my industry is quite frowned upon. I have done everything possible, implemented every system I could muster up to ensure I avoid this embarrassing situation. At the same time, knowing it will only be a matter of time until a human mistake is made. Today was just that day.

I booked a session in one province for the same date I was supposed to be in a different part of the world. Talking to my colleague for advice in how to handle this situation, I was surprised by the solutions he suggested; consisting of every possible situation except admitting the error. So I consulted others, and again, to my surprise, I heard every scenario except telling the truth.

As nerve wracking as it was, I decided to go the route which seemed less travelled – tell the truth.

I called up Barry, my client, and told him exactly what happened, and as I hoped, he was very understanding of the situation and we rearranged our schedules.  After everything was confirmed, I offered some free books and CD’s for his staff.

Keep in mind that our clients do know we are human and human mistakes are to be expected at times. The main concern that our clients have, is how will we handle situations that do not run the path of expectations?

By being up front and honest with Barry, I have also increased my level of trust with him. 

If anyone has any other suggestions on how I should have handled this situation, please do share.

Sell with honesty.

Fred Sarkari

I posted this on Nolan’s Blog and then realized it would be useful to my readers as well.

Instead of posting it here again, Nolan has other great posts for you to read.

www.nolanmatthias.com/blog/

I think Albert Einstein summed this one up best when he said “I don’t need to have all the answers myself, I just need to know where I can find the answers when I have to.”

As leaders, do we need to be experts in all aspects of every part of life that affects every part of our industry in order to lead our organization? As parents, do we need to become an expert on everything from skateboarding to music videos in order to connect with our kids? The simple answer is no.

So knowing what it takes to get something done doesn’t really mean always having all the answers yourself. It means having the confidence to trust your team. It means having the confidence to trust your Sales Manager when he or she tells you there’s a better way. It means having the confidence to trust your partner when they tell you there’s a problem at home.

One of the critical things all leaders have in common is the ability to get things done. Since “no man is an island”, that certainly means being able to trust and communicate with others. In the end, trusting your own judgment so you can accurately assess the information as it relates to the attainment of your purpose and those of your staff.

Effective sales people do not spend all their time learning the answers to every question, they spent their time creating a system where they know how and where to get all the answers.

Sell with integrity.

Fred Sarkari

In 1992 the average consumer received 3,000 commercial messages a day, today they receive 30,000. Most decision makers in companies receive even more.

The cost to get a sales person in front of a client has tripled. It used to take 4 attempts to get a meeting with a buyer now it takes 8.4 attempts.

Ask yourself this one critical question: What could I do that for the very first time my clients would go, “What? What is that?” and totally capture their attention and curiosity.

Let me make one thing very clear: if you think your saying something about your product or service will have that impact, you have missed the entire point of consultative selling.

We need to focus on something that is important to them, not to you. Even though it is your product / service that will help them succeed, that will not be their perception in the front lines. We need to engage them into an emotional conversation, a conversation where they can feel and visualize the pain in their business and the path to improvement.

People are nothing more then a ball of emotional energy. That being the case, stop negotiating your sales presentations based on logic.

Fred Sarkari