Like every other business decision one has to make, a plan must be put in place, laid out and adjusted from time to time. Before you create a plan, you have to establish where you are and make sure that you know where you want to be in a specific period of time. These are just a couple of things that I got after being lucky enough to have Lance Loken as a guest in my podcast. After listening to the interview, I am certain that newbies will be asking questions that they have already probably asked themselves once or twice over time but did not quite take seriously. Some may even want to go back to the old drawing board and revisit their plans. Whatever the case, whatever you will be doing after listening to the interview or after reading this article, one thing is for sure, the way you look at your goals and the way you set your plans will never be the same again.
In my interview with Lance Loken, I was reminded that “We’re driving the business, the business isn’t driving us.” The business exists because of our customers and their need for our products and the services we provide. So we have to keep in mind that the direction we want our business to go is totally up to us. That is the very first thing you have to remember. Second, you have to know where you and your business stand. Know your numbers. This will be your foundation and your baseline data. Any change and variation to it after you have implemented your plan will be attributed to either the success or failure in your plan’s execution. You may need to revisit your drawing board from time to time to tweak your plan. Third, identify your goal and set a timeline. This is the most important. It is not enough to have a goal. You must give yourself a deadline, otherwise, you will always have an excuse not to meet your goals on a yearly basis. Lance Loken makes it a point to have one goal each year. During our interview, he emphasized “Stay focused on what you want to accomplish and focus on 1 item each year.” Once you have established where you are and identified where you want to be in a specific span of time, you are ready to draw your own map – how to get from Point A to Point B.
In creating a plan, you have to make sure that it is specific and yet flexible enough to accommodate minor improvements and changes. This is because throughout the course of your plan’s execution, things that are beyond our control will somehow seep their way into your most carefully laid out strategy. If you have a plan that is flexible and accommodates minor changes, you’re good to go. Next, get organized. In implementing any plan, you have to have a checklist of what needs to be done on a daily basis so that at the end of each day, you can cross reference the things that you’ve accomplished to your business strategy and see how closer you get to your goals every single day. 86% of the population is visual, 12% is kinesthetic and 2% is auditory. If you’re in a team, put up a chart that shows your movement and instead of telling them how far you are from your goals, accentuate the fact that each day, you get closer and closer to your objectives. Identify things that work to your advantage. If you’re able to see something that will hinder productivity, refer to your plans and see if it’s alright to scratch those things out. Do a countdown. If you have a target of 500 units by the end of the year, make sure that the remaining numbers that you need are visible for the team to see so that they are aware. Lastly, set individual targets for the team and explain why their targets are different. Let them in on your plan and welcome other ideas. This is one of the reasons why your strategy needs to be a bit flexible – to accommodate minor changes.
Then, despite the busy schedule of running a business, running a team and implementing a strategy, make sure that you spend time with your people and you coach them. Some may say that they don’t need coaching and others may even tell you that they’re all good, remember that while others are vocal about their areas for improvement, there are people who don’t even know what their areas for improvement are. As a leader, it is your job and your responsibility to identify those areas for improvement so that you will have a team that will work with you and for you goals even when you’re not in the office. There are 4 items that you need to focus on to make sure that everyone will be productive. The first one is for them to initially memorize scripts. Once their used to and feel comfortable and confident that they can do away with the scripts, listen to them and make sure that the way they’re talking will bring in more interested people. Second, they have to learn to overcome objections. Overcoming objections may be difficult to some. The secret is to do your research on the unit, the market and even the buyer and then LISTEN. Always let the buyer talk. You will be able to get a lot of information that you can use. Remember, the only thing that customers cannot do is contradict themselves. Whatever the case may be, listen to them. Based on what you’ve learned from them, tweak your script and adjust. Pitch. If you get interrupted, acknowledge the interruption, address their questions and then go back to the point of interruption. If you have done your research, you should be able to execute this flawlessly. Third, you have to help your team form a habit. They say it takes 21 days to form a habit. As a leader, do what is needed, inspect what you expect. People will know that you are on top of things when you know their numbers prior to inspecting their output and their productivity. They will respect you for that and they will become more productive. Fourth and last is learning the time blocks. This is self-explanatory. What you can and cannot do in a specific period of time? How productive you can be in a given period? Are you able to meet deadlines? These are things you want your team to be asking themselves.
If you do this, you’re on your way to becoming the next Lance Loken. Plans are just plans and strategies will remain strategies. The only time they make a difference is if they get implemented. The Loken Group closed more than $137.4 Million in volume and 662 units in 2014. And they were on track to close over $250 Million in 2015. In 2016? Who knows? They keep challenging themselves to achieve higher goals. How about you? When will you start?
If you want to listen to the entire interview, Please Click Here.
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