Ethics, Sales and Business Relationships

Shortcuts taken to achieve sustainable business success will lead to future failure. The ONLY way to become a respected and long term successful business is through proper planning and unwavering ethics.

I was recently pursued by a small custom home builder to help them get off the ground and get the right systems in place. I met many times with the owner of this company in advance of my agreeing to work with him. Many promises were made.

What I soon learned, is that this guy had very little care for business ethics or respecting others. He had zero intention of allowing me to do any of the things we discussed, which led to a poor relationship.

Ethics are not optional in business or life. When commitments are made, they need to be kept. When parameters and expectations are relayed clearly, no wavering is allowed. This business owner believed  only about the quickest way to make a buck and sadly it will lead to the destruction of his company.

There are too many people willing to to the right thing for their employees and customers for unethical business owners to be successful long term.

Curt Fletcher aka The Likeability Guy is a Real Estate Professional, Business Development Strategist, Published Author of the Book, "How To Sell More Homes and Increase Your Income,"Sales Trainer and Sales Manager.

Attitude Equals Success

How you feel about what you are doing and how you are doing it has a direct correlation on how successful that endeavor will ultimately be.

It's a cliche to say attitude equals altitude, but it is most definitely accurate. If you are in a suppressive and less positive environment, it can be difficult to maintain the attitude you need to be successful. While I am a big believer that you create your own success by not allowing others to impact your attitude, it can be a challenge in certain situations.

The truth is, you do ultimately create your own success, but that takes place by putting yourself in the right situations. If you have a boss that doesn't understand how their negativity and dark cloud attitude affects you and everyone else, it may be time to find a better opportunity.

Never feel that the situation you are in is the situation that you must stay in. Opportunity's are everywhere and never ending for those that have a great attitude. Keep your head high, stay true to your healthy attitude habits and success will soon be yours.

Curt Fletcher aka The Likeability Guy is a Real Estate Professional, Business Development Strategist, Published Author of the Book, "How To Sell More Homes and Increase Your Income,"Sales Trainer and Sales Manager with Lillian Custom Homes.

The Sales Script Dilemma

Most home sales companies today employ some form of sales trainer. This sales trainer has a role of increasing sales for the company. This is typically accompanied by the sales trainer utilizing some form of selling script.

The idea behind the selling script makes sense. It is to give each and every sales person a tool or path to follow. During any given sales presentation, your potential buyer has their own agenda and it has nothing to do with your selling agenda. The sales script (if used properly) can help you stay on your path even when the client throws you curve balls.

The problem with the sales script and many new home sales trainers is they feel these sales scripts are the bible to more sales. They are not. When scripts are followed too closely they WILL become a very large detriment to gaining sales.

People are all different. Personalities vary. Their goals and desires are vastly changing at any given moment. When sales scripts are used for anything more than simple reminders to stay on your selling and questioning task, the sale will most often be lost.

The issue for new home sales companies is that they rarely trust ALL of their sales people to always be doing the right thing during a selling encounter. Therefore the implementation of the selling script for ALL employees. Then they video tape their sales people with secret home shoppers to make sure they are using the sales script. Not too motivating or effective to retaining gifted sales people.

I have a better idea. Hire only positive and motivated people. The talent pool is actually very rich these days, but you have to understand how to interview and hire good people. When you have a staff of only positive and motivated humans, no scripts are needed. No more managing to the weakest link will take place and selling will occur in large quantities.

Curt Fletcher aka The Likeability Guy is a Real Estate Professional, Business Development Strategist, Published Author of the Book, "How To Sell More Homes and Increase Your Income,"Sales Trainer and Sales Manager with Lillian Custom Homes.

Excuses or Solutions?

Excuses are all the things that people say to make their inevitable failure seem acceptable. It is failing before starting. Excuses are nothing more than a crutch to allow people not to take responsibility for their own actions. Excuse based people never create solutions, because their mind is always looking for the easy out.

Solutions are all the things that people come up with to open the jumbled path of confusion and make it Crystal clear. Solution based people never make excuses, because their mind only thinks in terms of accomplishment. Failure is not an option.

Don't be a mediocre person that doesn't allow yourself a true chance at success. Stop making excuses and learn to see solutions at every turn. There is a solution to virtually all situations, but it may require you to make a difficult decision or to take a long look in the mirror. The choice of success is yours.

Curt Fletcher aka The Likeability Guy, is a Real Estate Professional, Business Development Strategist, Published Author of the Book "How To Sell More Homes and Increase Your Income," Sales Trainer and Sales Manager with Lillian Custom Homes.

The Training Paradox

In sales, you often see those people that are fresh and new get off to a fast start. They are excited and don't know what they should be afraid of yet, so they set off with wild abandon and simply sell.

Then something funny happens...

They get training and information and then more training and more information. Then you look at their faces and the fresh excitement is washed away and replaced with confusion, doubt and fear of saying the wrong thing.

I wonder when or if companies and sales trainers will ever learn. Are they so arrogant they cannot see they create their own selling dilemma?

Sales is more about emotion, excitement and passion and less about knowledge and memorizing a sales presentation. YES, knowledge is important, but it is only important when it relates to what your client has a need for.

If you have excitement and passion, you WILL gain knowledge! That is simply how it works. Knowledge is best gained when discovered through passion and excitement NOT when it is force fed through a stagnant training class like it is the medicine for some disease.

Curt Fletcher aka The Likeability Guy, is a Real Estate Professional, Business Development Strategist, Published Author of the book, How To Sell More Homes and Increase Your Income," Sales Trainer and Sales Manager with Lillian Custom Homes.

Opportunity and Risk vs Status Quo and Safe

I have long been a proponent of people taking calculated risks to improve situations and achieve dreams. People often shy away from such risks because the fear of failure has too strong of a hold on their life. But I wonder what the greater sadness is, risking failure by taking a chance on yourself to achieve your dreams or always playing it safe.

Everyone has goals and everyone has dreams. Some talk about them and some keep them hidden deep within themselves. But be assured everyone has them. If you are the type that keeps your goals and dreams hidden, stop it. Share them.

Tell people what you want to do. Lose the fear of someone else thinking you are silly because of your dream. Those that wish to squelch your dreams are not worthy of an opinion. People are either pulling for you or pushing against you. Decide who you want on your team and let all the others go.

Wouldn’t you rather gamble on yourself and take your shot rather than wake up one day towards the end of your life having lived a life full of regret and missed opportunities? Take a chance on yourself, you will be surprised how many people are rooting for you.

Curt Fletcher aka The Likeability Guy, is a Real Estate Professional, Business Development Strategist, Published Author of the book, "How To Sell More Homes and Increase Your Income," Sales Trainer, and REALTOR with Atrium Realty Group in North Texas.

Leadership

Leadership is the missing ingredient in many management positions. Often the people placed in leadership roles in an organization are those who have simply been around the longest. Seniority, though, is not a substitute for effective leadership strategies.

Tough Decisions

Real leaders make hard decisions. Making the popular decision is not always the right decision. Colin Powell, one of the foremost leaders of this generation, says, "Trying to get everyone to like you is a sign of mediocrity: You'll avoid the tough decisions, you'll avoid confronting the people who need to be confronted, and you'll avoid offering differential rewards based on differential performance because some people might get upset."

Tough decisions are those that require confidence, because inevitably someone will not be happy with you. Fear of backlash should not concern you if you know the decision to be made is in the best interest of your people.

Challenge the Status Quo

Going with the flow is not what leaders do. Leaders challenge social norms, typical procedures, generic answers, and create new questions that outline new opportunities. When leaders hears the phrase, "We have always done it that way," they say "Why?" They desire a better result. Leaders don't understand or accept answers that have no substance, no valid reasoning, or opportunity for growth.

Leaders constantly look to challenge, tweak and change. They recognize opportunities and are curious to learn of new strategies that will test their current capabilities. They are pushing the envelope to facilitate a "better" way.

Personal Actions

General Douglas MacArthur, a great American leader, used to carry with him a list of questions to guide his journey. One such question, was, "Have I the calmness of voice and manner to inspire confidence, or am I inclined to irascibility and excitability?" This question gets right to the heart of leading by example. General MacArthur understood that to gain the support and trust of his subordinates, he had to carry himself accordingly. Leaders do not allow themselves to be drawn into situations that will impact their standing within their group.

Leaders carry themselves to a higher standard--a standard that inspires their people to want to excel and push themselves further then they thought they could go.

Action Plan and Training

Leadership is easy to explain, but harder to put into practice. Frankly, it is more about personal actions first and actual skill second. However, there are some useful items that can be practiced to try and improve leadership abilities.

• Place people in the best possible positions to succeed. Evaluate your employees and team members and figure out what they do best and enjoy most. Situate them as closely as possible to align them with their strengths.
• Allow your employers to make decisions. The transfer of empowerment is motivational and it's a great knowledge builder.
• Create an atmosphere of excitement and happiness. While all work is not fun, people are more productive when they feel good about their situation.
• Reward Excellence. When your people do something well or they consistently stop to help others, reward them and recognize their efforts. This provides a confidence boost and it delivers a firm message that you are valuable.
• Be Positive. Challenges arise each day. Rather then look at challenges as problems, turn them into learning and growth opportunities for the team. Allow different people to be involved in the process.
• Allow the free flow of ideas to be heard. Listen to your employees. Each day people have great new ideas, philosophy differences, and improvement suggestions. Foster an environment that allows this communication exchange to thrive. Just because someone has a lower tier job classification does not mean they have a lower tier brain. Use everyone on your team as a knowledge building opportunity.

Curt Fletcher aka The Likeability Guy, is a Real Estate Professional, Business Development Strategist, Published Author of the book, "How To Sell More Homes and Increase Your Income," Sales Trainer, and REALTOR with Atrium Realty Group in North Texas.

Goals and Simplicity

A goal is really nothing more than an appointment you make for yourself. The key is not over-complicating the message. Keep it simple. Simplicity helps with clarity which leads to a higher percentage of success. As you train your mind to handle simple goals and experience more successful outcomes you can start incorporating more complex goals. Just don’t start that way.

It’s like exercise. If you are not a runner, would your first experience be the Boston Marathon? Obviously not. You start slow, develop, learn, grow, and THEN expand. Everyone wants immediate results and immediate growth, which most often leads to no action and no growth.

Get the thought of immediate satisfaction off of your mind. It is lazy thinking. It is entitlement thinking and it’s counterproductive to actual growth. Set yourself up for the best opportunity for success. Simple doesn’t mean easy. Simple just means clear. It means you have definitized the specific steps to take to obtain a specific result.

Curt Fletcher aka The Likeability Guy, is a Real Estate Professional, Business Development Strategist, Published Author of the book, "How To Sell More Homes and Increase Your Income," Sales Trainer, and REALTOR with Atrium Realty Group in North Texas.