There are many amazing mentors that have come before us, to blaze a path and give us a road map. This is one of the advantages of direct sales or network marketing. You have your own business and a clear roadmap on how to sell your product and move up in position and income.
Have a Clear Roadmap to Make Your Business Your Own
From building a direct sales business and a coaching business, I will tell you there is a lot to say for having a clear roadmap as to how you build your business. The downfall is if you try to build your business, like the person who brought you into the company or the person who is your leader. Each one of us is unique; we have our own strengths and weaknesses. You have your own style, you know whether you are an introvert or extrovert, and you know what you like and what you don’t like.
These are things you really want to consider as you build your business. Whether you are new to your business or have been moving up, promoting yourself, and increasing your income, you want to make your business your own.
This took me awhile to figure out. The person who recruited me into Mary Kay was amazing. She was social, funny, and never knew a stranger – an EXTREME extrovert. She was thin, had a ton of energy and bright red hair. I loved her because she was everything I was not. The woman above her I have always considered the definition of love on legs. She was so nurturing, loving, patient. An amazing example of leadership. They were amazing mentors, and I will be forever grateful to each one of them.
As I started getting the hang of things, learning to talk to people and beginning moving up, I found myself getting stuck. I had moved up enough to lead my own team, but we weren’t really growing. What happened? I had to learn to make my business my own. I realized that trying to build a business like the woman who recruited me was just not sustainable over time for me.
I wasn’t an extrovert. I didn’t like just walking up to people and starting a conversation everywhere I went. I didn’t like being the center of attention and didn’t love doing big events. Trying to build this way and taking on her persona was wearing me out, attracting the wrong people for me, and there was an appearance of insincerity. I wasn’t an extrovert.
Your Road Map Your Own Way
Once I realized I could follow the road map so beautifully laid out for me, but doing it my own way, things started taking off again. I still talked to people I didn’t know, but found I was much more successful booking appointments from appointments, and getting referrals. I like doing product and team building appointments with smaller groups. My favorite number was 4 people.
I also decided that being direct just came natural to me, and I stopped using scripts. I just had conversations with prospects and told them what I was up to and how I would love them to be part of it.
I really harnessed two of my strengths, curiosity and listening. I got to know my prospects and found out what was really important to them. Then I got really good at communicating the benefit of my product and opportunity to my prospects.
I started training my team to follow the road map but making it their own. Bringing their personality into to it. If they hate doing something, don’t do it. Figure out another way to do it, that works better for them.
Your greatest success will come when you can build your business from your own strengths and make it your own.
Here are a few things to consider:
- Learn from several different people. I started watching several other people and listening to trainings from many different people at different levels within the company. I also searched outside the company I belonged to. I may have heard something from 5 other people, but the 6th person who said it, said it in such a way that I finally got it. I found this true for my team members, too. I was just glad they finally heard it in a way they got it.
- Trust your style. Stay true to your own style. Whether that is outgoing and fun, loving big social group events or smaller groups where it’s easier to build relationships, and really get to know people. Be true to yourself. This will feel good, sincere, and authentic. It will also help you attract the right people to you that will be able to relate to you.
- Enhance your strengths. Run with your strengths. Don’t try to improve your weaknesses. Get better at what you already are good at, then find people to work with that have strengths where you have weaknesses. The more you can keep people in their strengths, the better everyone does. Building a business from your strengths is also much easier.
- Do what you really enjoy doing. There are always going to be things you will want to do, even though you don’t enjoy them. But, for the most part, do the things that bring you joy. For example, I hated “warm chattering”, going out and talking to strangers to offer them my product. I was working with a coach that said just stop doing it if you hate it. That was such a relief. It didn’t mean that I stopped if the opportunity arose, I just didn’t go out hunting it down. It happened more naturally. In its place, I started building from referrals, which worked much better for me.
- Be real with people. I know you have probably heard me say this on several occasions, but ditch the scripts. Just go meet a new friend, have a genuine conversation with someone and find out if what you do will be of value to them. Then share with them what’s in it for them. How will they benefit from your product or opportunity? Directly communicate to them what you’re up to and how you would love them to be part of it, if it resonates with them. You’ll be amazed at the results.
Follow the path that the amazing people before you have blazed. Don’t try to reinvent the wheel, but put your own stamp on it. Make it your own and go play!
A warm welcome to this week’s new subscribers! I’m so glad you’re here.