How should you be “spending” the New Year?

Guest Post by Jen Fitzgerald

Most of us would say we’re celebrating the New Year with family and friends, and I would agree completely!  However, there is something else we all need to be thinking about: our business for the new year.

‘Tis the Season of All or Nothing Something!

Guest Post: Teresa Romain

Throughout the years I have worked with direct sellers and network marketers, I have noticed that this particular time of year leads to an intensification of one of the most debilitating scarcity patterns.

The pattern I’m referring to is the “All or Nothing” pattern.  It shows up this time of year in one of two predominant ways.

For some direct sellers, the time leading up to the holidays is one of the busiest times of their year – with holiday parties, gift-shopping, open houses, etc.   In fact, right up until the last day products can be shipped and still arrive before Christmas, many direct sellers find themselves pushing, pushing, pushing… with their business getting all (or nearly all) of their time, attention and energy.   The rest of their lives are, to a greater or lesser degree, put “on hold”.

Of course, as soon as this “holiday surge” in their business is over, they immediately jump into the holiday plans and preparation they had been putting off – setting up more of that pushing, pushing, pushing energy.  And then, after ALL that – when their business surge is over and the holidays are past… well, then comes the collapse.  The recovery.  The NOTHING.  And that NOTHING often continues well into the month of January – until they find themselves, mid-January, without the production or bookings or sales they need.   And then the pattern begins again – as they push to get a month’s worth of production or sales in two weeks’ time.

Just checking – have I, by chance, described you and/or one of your direct selling friends or associates?

If not, perhaps the “All or Nothing” pattern shows up in your life a little differently right now.

You see, for others – the exact opposite occurs. Either December isn’t a particularly great time for their business (based on the products they sell) and/or they SO enjoy the holiday season that they immerse themselves in ALL of the holiday festivities and do little to NOTHING in their business.   They’re waiting for the New Year – and their “fresh start” – and the time when people will be more interested in their products or business opportunity courtesy of New Year resolutions or the simple fact that the holidays are over.  And they usually have ALL these ideas of ALL that they will do and ALL the shows or sales they will have come January.   But until January comes, again, they do little or NOTHING.

Did I describe you this time?

I’m not saying that every direct seller or network marketer falls into this pattern at this time of year – but it does happen more than you may realize.  And some people don’t even realize the scarcity it sets up – the rollercoaster of highs and lows, ups and downs, feast and famine, start and stop action (and results) it creates in your business.

Not to mention the impact it has on your life in general – and on your sense of balance, wholeness and well-being.

The All or Nothing pattern does not support consistency nor is it sustainable.  It does not support lasting success and growth over time.  And it wreaks havoc on your life – as you catapult from doing ALL or ALOT in your business and NOTHING in other areas (family, home, friends, hobbies, relaxation) to ALL that you suddenly need to do to “catch up” or “make up” in those areas and NOTHING in your business.

So – what’s the way out – during this season and throughout the year?

Do SOMETHING.  Set limits.  Have boundaries. Define what “enough” is for you.

In you’re one of the ones who does ALL business this month and NOTHING (or darn little) in the non-biz areas of your life, then plan your “SOMETHINGS” with friends, family, relaxation, exercise, hobbies, or just plain ‘ol relaxing TODAY.  Reserve the time for them on your calendar and work your biz around those few “somethings” that will keep you more sane and whole and balanced.

But it’s not about doing these “somethings” on TOP of ALL that you are doing in your business – it’s not about packing even more in.  It’s about using your need for these “somethings” (your well-being and sanity depend on them) to help you set limits in your business – to define what is “enough” (for NOW) and maintain important boundaries.

If, on the other hand, you have the tendency to do NOTHING in your business in December because you get caught up in ALL holiday activities or figure your customers are (which is why you don’t want to call them or “bother them”) – then your way out of this pattern is to do SOME THINGS in your business.  Make some phone calls. Hold some shows or classes.  This month, book shows or classes for that first week of January.

Rather than put business “on hold” until January – keep YOURSELF in momentum (and your biz) by doing SOMETHING. Trust me, that will make it much easier for you to have the great start to the New Year that you want – because you’ll already be in motion.

I have often told my direct selling clients that your business is only PART of your life and is designed to support you to live the life you want.  It is not intended to become your life or take over your life or keep your from living your life.   That’s especially true during the months of December and January.

So – rather than a season of All or Nothing – let’s make this a season of SOMETHING.  Because the ease, balance, wholeness, fulfillment, freedom, consistency and momentum that will result is – truly – something worth CELEBRATING!

Teresa Romain is the President & Founder of www.AccessAbundance.com and has trained and coached thousands of individuals around the world access and experience greater freedom, fulfillment, well-being and abundance in their businesses and their lives. Unique in her approach and dynamic and passionate in her style, Teresa is known for making the transformational process of accessing abundance challenging, fun and powerful in its results.

Love Yourself

This is 2-minute reminder to look after and love yourself this holiday season. I am grateful for you. Please love yourself, too!

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone here in the States. And may the rest of you enjoy the week ahead!

Reconfiguring Life

Today, I’m making a BIG shift in my life.

My baby starts kindergarten.

When I started this business, he wasn’t even a year old, and my Mom had just died. I decided I wanted to build something that could really serve the world, and give me the ability to be home, love on my kids, and be a better person.

And it’s the same concept I teach to all of you. In direct sales, your business is an extension of who you are, and it’s hard to separate you from your business.

That’s as it should be.

Direct Sales Leadership: Dovetailing Tips For Success

In the direct sales industry, the act of “dovetailing” a show is commonplace and problematic. Leaders, with an abundance of shows, often “dovetail” a show to one of their team members to help them launch (or re-launch) their business.

The trouble comes when expectations aren’t set (or met), and what should be a seamless transfer of clients becomes an attitude war. Here are just a few problems I’ve come across in my coaching career (and in my own direct sales experience):

• Leaders pass off clients they don’t want to an inexperienced consultant that can’t “handle” them.
• Consultants develop an entitlement mentality, expecting their leaders to just “give” them shows when they need it.
• Clear expectations aren’t set when the show is dovetailed, and the consultant resents sharing the income from the show with their leader.
• Clients get confused about which consultant is “their” consultant.
• Consultants don’t follow-up, and lose the new clients, forcing the Leader to step in, which creates friction in the organization.

Let’s have a look at where the word “dovetail” comes from:

My grandpa was a carpenter, and explained to me long ago that dovetail joints are the strongest way to join two pieces of wood together. They’re also a bit complicated and time consuming to create, but worth the effort if done well.

If you examine the picture, you’ll see two boards coming together. Where the notch (called a mortise) receives the tab (called a tenon), you create a dovetail joint. When properly constructed, it is incredibly strong, resists coming apart, and is often used in high-quality construction of cabinet drawers.

Simply put, a dovetail is designed to last for ages. I have cabinets that have lost their bottoms, their knobs, and even other parts, but those dovetail joints are solid. Even without glue, a well-crafted dovetail will have a tight-fitting hold.

So it should also be in your direct sales business.

The leader is the tenon, extending their clients to a consultant, acting as the mortise (the notch that receives the dovetail).

There needs to be a tight fit. Leaders can’t just “pass off” their shows to a consultant and expect them to be successful. This is a gift that you extend as a courtesy for their demonstrated efforts at building their own business. Dovetailing is NOT a handout. Leaders need to set clear expectations with their consultants before, during and after the dovetailing of a show. These are my top suggestions for helping your consultants make the most of the “gift” you’ve given them:

1. Pre-screen your consultants. Let them know that they have demonstrated a level of responsibility in building their business, and you’d like to reward them from your abundance by sharing a show or two with them. Make it clear that this is your investment in them, and you want it to be a “good fit” for your clients as well as the consultant. You’re not just “giving them a show”, you’re making an investment, and you expect a positive return on thst investment.
2. Set clear expectations. Make it plain to your consultant how you will be compensated for dovetailing the show. In exchange for giving them your clients, at the minimum, you need to set an expectation that there will be some form of compensation. It doesn’t need to be money, but half of the profits from the show is typical. I often encourage my consultants to have better shows by telling them they’ll earn 90% (instead of 50%) if they hold a $1000+ show.
3. Work with your consultant. Unless this is an established consultant, and you are sharing a show because of a scheduling conflict, it is incumbent upon you, as the leader, to make sure your consultant knows how to appreciate and fully utilize the gift they’ve been given. If they are weak at getting bookings in the first place, “giving them shows” will create a dependency, and possibly an entitlement mentality. Offer the dovetail in exchange for some one-on-one practice with their booking talk, or whatever area of their business needs improvement. I have heard a number of horror stories from leaders that dovetailed a party with 20 guests and the consultant doing the show got zero bookings.
4. Prep your hosts. Let your hosts know about the dovetail. Make it clear that they always have a choice in who they want to work with. Also inform them that the consultant will be “theirs” unless and until the customer decides otherwise. Explain the nature of dovetailing, and give your clients the option to choose. There’s nothing worse for a new consultant than to do a show and watch all the bookings go back to her leader.

What about you? What other tips have you shared when dovetailing shows? Leave a comment below and share your ideas with the community.