I know this was supposed to be a follow up to last week’s post about when and how to stop pursuing a prospect, and I promise we’ll post that next week. But I had an inspiration today and needed to share it.
Last weekend, I was reflecting on the summer. I started my thoughts on Memorial Day, worked through our summer vacation and ended on the present moment - Labor Day. I concluded that this was the best summer of my life. I know you might be thinking that I’m caught up in the moment, but there is no doubt that 2022 was #1 of my 53 summers. Numbers 2, 3, and 4 are not even close (they’re 1981, 1986, and 2013 if you’re curious – I actually put real thought to this claim before writing).
I’m not going to bore you with the details of my summer. For one, you’ll stop reading, but also because those things are not the reasons why this summer was so great. I’ve been to cooler places and more amazing things have occurred to me in past summers. The reason this summer was so terrific isn’t because of things that happened to me, but because of the way I treated the days. Here’s what happened…
As the summer approached, there were two big outcomes facing me that were both out of my control. No health-related issues or anything dire like that, but two very important things that were either going to happen or not. I was so wrapped around both axles that I felt myself consumed at times, unable to think about anything else. Fortunately, I reached out to a few friends about these two situations.
All four friends that I spoke with had the same advice for both situations: focus on yourself and let those things fall where they will. So, I did. I decided that this summer I was going to focus on three things of which I was in complete control: be the best dad on the planet, get in the best physical shape that I’ve been in since I was 30, and work on Vector Firm rather than always working in the business. Those three things were my targets every day, every hour, and every thought. Whenever my mind would wander, I’d bring it back to “dad, health, business”.
Guess what? I had the best summer of my life because I focused only on the things I could control. I’ve heard this advice and I’ve given this advice a million times, but this summer I lived it. I was forced to live it. If not, I would’ve been miserable worrying about and trying to control outcomes that were not in my control. I had to do it. My happiness depended on it. And if I’m being totally honest, I knew that I’d lose those two outcomes if I held on too tightly. Letting go was all the difference, but focusing on myself with tangible things was the only way I was able to let go … I had something else to grab.
How about you? Are you wrapped up in all these things that are out of the control of most salespeople? Are you trying to solve the world’s supply chain issues and inflation? Or are you focusing on communicating properly with your customers, networking for new accounts, and enjoying the day-to-day process? If you answered the former, then write down two to four things in your control to focus on. Make those things the targets of your thoughts … and watch success unfold.
By the way, one of the two outcomes worked out perfectly for me, and the other one is still in process. But you know what? I don’t really think much about it anymore.
