Like many salespeople and small business owners, I find staying focused during prime selling hours to be difficult. As a sales trainer, coach, and consultant, my days are filled with activities that try to pull me away from selling. Yet, like every other company, selling is the life blood of my business—its what keeps the doors open and the company healthy and growing.
Interruptions, minor emergencies, emails, phone calls, and a myriad of other issues and concerns are constantly trying to draw my attention away from my primary business activity—selling.
Listen, I have only certain hours during the day that are my prime selling hours. If I lose those hours, I lose revenue; I lose precious time that no matter how hard I work, I can never regain. Consequently, it is important I keep my focus on true sales activities between 8am and 5pm.
Nevertheless, there are things that must be done and some of those things simply won’t wait until non-selling hours.
So what did I do?
My solution has been to set aside four ½-hour times during the day when I will address non-selling issues. Twice in the morning and twice in the afternoon I set aside my selling and marketing activities in order to return calls, handle ‘emergencies,’ and the other ‘busy’ work of my business.
Of course, if a real emergency arises, it takes precedence over all else. But real emergencies are rare.
This process has allowed me to concentrate on selling and prospecting without worrying that other aspects of my business will suffer. Anything that comes up will be addressed shortly—but without interrupting my selling time.
It takes discipline to get into the habit of leaving things lie for a little while. But those things that used to find ways to cut my selling time in half—or more–are now much controllable.
Follow Paul on Twitter @paul_mccord
Paul, great insight! Most of us pencil in time for selling activities (e.g. block out 2 hours for making calls) and leave the rest of the time for “running outlr business.” But we’ve got it backwards. No matter what we do, selling (acquisition and retention of clients) IS our business. Checking email, fiddling with spreadsheets, and organizing our desks do not generate revenue. THOSE are the things we should be penciling in around selling. Thanks for the reminder!
Comment by Doug Rice — December 29, 2011 @ 7:57 am |
I agree with Doug, that you’re helping set priorities straight. Excellent reminder! I disagree slightly however, with shoving everything else to before 8am or afer 5pm. In small businesses where you’re the CEO, Chief Everything Officer, pushing all that “other stuff” to off hours can come at the expense of work/life balance. There is ALWAYS more work to do and this can come at the expense of working out, family time and other healthy and important pursuits. I think planning is among my most overlooked disciplines and have lined up a personal/business coach to support me improving in this area.
Comment by Barry Trailer — December 29, 2011 @ 7:23 pm |
Paul, good advice. No matter what your mission is you need to focus on the mission and not the distractions. And, you need to remind yourself of the mission constantly. My manta is “As you go through life, be in control. Keep your eye on the donut and not on the hole.”
Comment by R. Jay Carter — December 30, 2011 @ 10:33 am |
Paul, real important information! If you do stay focused, your whole day will go to “non-sales activities.
Thanks & happy New Year!
Comment by Carlos Miyares III — December 30, 2011 @ 11:19 am |
Focus is the real necessity to be managed and productive. This article is really very important.
Best Regards
Comment by Sales Training — January 4, 2012 @ 12:23 am |
Again good advice, my solution has been to get up early and take care of all those required activities that don’t necessarily generate immediate income such as answering emails, responding to free PR request, commenting on other blogs, writing content, etc. This is also the time to get some extra reading in as well.
Leanne Hoagland-Smith
Author of Be the Red Jacket – http://bit.ly/1Q9mnV
Comment by thecoachlee — January 6, 2012 @ 8:48 am |
[...] on the primary activity of your business requires discipline, it is easy to loose ground. In Focus Your Time on Selling, Not on Busy Work the author provides some effective tips to make the best use of prime work time and to avoid the [...]
Pingback by Focus On the Game: Not the Interruptions « WorkshopLouisville's Blog — January 11, 2012 @ 9:19 am |
[...] Paul (2011), Focus Your Time on Selling, Not on Busy Work, disponibil la: http://salesandmanagementblog.com/2011/12/28/focus-your-time-on-selling-not-on-busy-work/ (accesat 28 Decembrie [...]
Pingback by Prioritizare si disciplina in realizarea activitatilor de vanzari — January 12, 2012 @ 5:40 am |