This is the second of 10 challenges for you to consider embracing to create a new year that is more productive for yourself as well as for those around you.  I have borrowed ideas from a book I read last year, The First 90 Days: Critical Success Stories for New Leaders by Michael Watkins.Read previous challenge articles:First Challenge – Promote yourself. Second Challenge – Accelerate Your Learning If you have committed to being a professional, whether you did it consciously or not, you committed to a lifetime of learning.   And I don’t just mean the learning that comes with experience. …

It’s a new year, which always means a fresh start, new opportunities, and, hopefully for you, a new role.  And while most of you aren’t formally taking on new leadership roles, I would like to suggest that you increase the scope and impact of whatever role you currently fill in your organization to the point of it effectively being a “new role” for you.  Over the next several weeks, I will touch on 10 challenges you should consider as you embrace a 2012 that will allow you to have a greater impact on your own responsibilities and results, as well…

We’ve done a lot of reading this year, and while we’ve gotten something out of everything we’ve read, we have a few favorites we’d especially like to share with you. If you’re interested in seeing our full lists with some additional commentary, check out our reading lists on each of our LinkedIn profiles (Kevin on LinkedIn, Wendy on LinkedIn).Also there are a few books that we’ve talked about in previous posts (here, here, and here), so we didn’t feel there was a need to include those again. The Challenger Sale: Taking Control of the Customer Conversation – by Matthew Dixon,…

Have you ever thought about how exhausting it is to be mediocre?  That may seem like a crazy question at first.  After all, almost by definition, doesn't mediocre mean that you are putting forth very little effort?  And shouldn’t less of an effort require less energy to be exerted? Well, I guess if you are talking about pure physical effort, then maybe mediocrity is easier.  But, as I look at it, total effort is only about 20% physical and 80% mental.  It’s the mental exhaustion that comes with mediocrity that is truly exhausting. In sales, mediocre prospecting makes every prospect…

“One thing. Just one thing. You stick to that and everything else don’t mean &*$#.” That is the secret of life according to Curly in City Slickers. Now, I don’t know if that is truly the secret of life, but I do think it is a great start to finding the secret to your success. Okay, maybe there isn’t just one, one thing. Maybe your sales success is a series of “one things.” In my article Willpower vs. Self-Discipline I discussed the difference between willpower and self-discipline. The main difference between the two being that willpower mostly focuses on a single act while self-discipline…

Regular readers have heard me talk about the changes coming to our industry. You know them as well as I do. You also know that they are going to force a fair amount of change on us if we are to overcome the challenges and survive. I’ve also talked about the great opportunities out there for producers/agencies who successfully make the transition. My hope is that you desire those same opportunities and have made the commitment to make them happen. Desire is a great start, but you also have to have commitment When doing something that is new to you,…

These are some follow up thoughts on Kevin’s post about having a job or a career. It’s something I think about quite a bit because I really do love my career immensely, and we work with people every day who love their careers, too. We also work with some who are struggling to find that “right fit”.  It’s a common point of discussion around here.If you don’t have a level of passion about what you’re doing, then you need to take some time and really think about where you do find passion. I’m not talking about blindly following some desire…

I guess there are many ways you could describe the difference between the two, but I’m sure you have an immediate difference that comes to mind for you.  At a recent Producer Training Camp, we overheard one of the attendees describe the difference as the following: “A job is something you learn once and just do it.  A career is something you intentionally choose and commit yourself to constant learning in order to stay current.” I like that explanation as much as any I’ve ever heard.  I know I wouldn’t want to go to a doctor who quit studying and…

New  talent – every industry needs to have a steady flow of new people and ideas joining their ranks in order to stay current with client needs, industry and cultural trends, and technology. Which are all rapidly changing business practices.As Kevin talked about recently in his “Wander On In” post, finding that young talent is essential to the survival of the industry. And something critical that these new folks are bringing with them is their fresh perspective on business and their comfort with technology. These young business professionals are not saddled with “the way we’ve always done it”. They have…

As most of you know, we recently held BGNLive! (our networking conference) in Chicago.  The feedback we have received has been overwhelmingly positive.  Our members seemed to enjoy the hotel, the location, the agenda, and (most of all) the opportunity to learn from one another.A big part of the formal agenda focused on sharing success stories as well as sharing tools and strategies that are working well with clients.  However, I think the best peer learning opportunities are what happen off agenda, during breaks, and over meals.I have attended lots of conferences over my career, and I feel I have…