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 Discover the role that Love, Compatibility and Humor play in your quest to become a Super Productive person. Enjoy the video! Let me know as well how I can help you &/or your group today. Peace, love, and gumbo! Marvin LeBlanc, LUTCF, CNP Author Come Hell or High Water – Life Lessons from Hurricane Katrina, Facing Life’s Greatest Challenges No Matter What From Free Speech to Paid Speaker – An Exclusive Interview with Marvin LeBlanc, LUTCF, CNP 13 Rules for Solid Business Growth -- Work Less, Sell Smarter – The Cajun Way Our books, e-books, audiobooks, speaker services & training services are all waiting for you at... https://www.MarvinLeBlanc.com Call us today at... 225-938-4177 Toll Free 1-855-787-9669 504-731-6767 Email us at... marvinleblancspeaker@gmail.com marvin.leblanc.cdia@statefarm.com Please follow us on... https://www.linkedin/in/marvinleblanc https://www.facebook.com/ComeHellorHighWater https://www.Instagram.com/marvinleblancspeaker https://twitter.com/insurelouisiana https://twitter.com/MarvinLeBlanc Visit our websites at... https://www.MarvinLeBlanc.com https://www.MarvinLeBlancInsurance.com PS : we’d be so grateful if you shared this article with someone that might benefit
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 Hello Marvelous Performers: As you may recall, last weeks blog covered, “The First 3 Key Benefits to Tandem Sales Appointments”. Remember as well that you can catch all our videos on YouTube. When you watch this video, be sure to hit both the “subscribe” and “notifications” button so you won’t ever miss out on our new content! Today, we're covering, “The LAST 3 Key Benefits to Tandem Sales Appointments”. Small business owners and their team members are frequently telling me they are frustrated with: •Team members that struggle greatly with self-confidence, proper knowledge and proper selling skillls. •Doing all the paperwork or electronic transactions that are required to keep things moving. •Customers that always want to Rush! Rush! Rush! In today’s video you will GAIN ALL of these BENEFITS by just using The Marvelous Performance Tandem Appointment Strategy. Enjoy the article. Let me know how I can help you &/or your group today. Peace, love & better performance! Marvin LeBlanc, LUTCF, CNP 1-855-787-6996 (toll free) Author Come Hell or High Water – Life Lessons from Hurricane Katrina, Facing Life’s Greatest Challenges No Matter What From Free Speech to Paid Speaker – An Exclusive Interview with Marvin LeBlanc, LUTCF, CNP 13 Rules for Solid Business Growth -- Work Less, Sell Smarter – The Cajun Way Our books, e-books, audiobooks, speaker services & training services are all waiting for you at... https://www.MarvinLeBlanc.com Call us today at... 225-938-4177 Toll Free 1-855-787-9669 504-731-6767 Email us at... marvinleblancspeaker@gmail.com marvin.leblanc.cdia@statefarm.com Please follow us on... https://www.linkedin/in/marvinleblanc https://www.facebook.com/ComeHellorHighWater https://www.Instagram.com/marvinleblancspeaker https://twitter.com/insurelouisiana https://twitter.com/MarvinLeBlanc Visit our websites at... https://www.MarvinLeBlanc.com https://www.MarvinLeBlancInsurance.com PS : we’d be so grateful if you shared this article with someone that might benefit  Small business owners and their team members are frequently telling me they are frustrated with: •Having quality communications with their customers. •Struggling to increase their revenue and sales in a world of hyper competition. •Training new, inexperienced and old, tired team members. In today’s video you will get ALL of these BENEFITS by just using my Tandem Appointment Strategy. Enjoy the article! Let me know how I can help you &/or your group today. Peace, love, and gumbo! Marvin LeBlanc, LUTCF, CNP Author Come Hell or High Water – Life Lessons from Hurricane Katrina, Facing Life’s Greatest Challenges No Matter What From Free Speech to Paid Speaker – An Exclusive Interview with Marvin LeBlanc, LUTCF, CNP 13 Rules for Solid Business Growth -- Work Less, Sell Smarter – The Cajun Way Our books, e-books, audiobooks, speaker services & training services are all waiting for you at... https://www.MarvinLeBlanc.com Call us today at... 225-938-4177 Toll Free 1-855-787-9669 504-731-6767 Email us at... marvinleblancspeaker@gmail.com marvin.leblanc.cdia@statefarm.com Please follow us on... https://www.linkedin/in/marvinleblanc https://www.facebook.com/ComeHellorHighWater https://www.Instagram.com/marvinleblancspeaker https://twitter.com/insurelouisiana https://twitter.com/MarvinLeBlanc Visit our websites at... https://www.MarvinLeBlanc.com https://www.MarvinLeBlancInsurance.com PS : we’d be so grateful if you shared this article with someone that might benefit  Hello Marvelous People! Today we’re going to talk about 3 tips that will aid you as you become an even more Super Productive Person. This article is part 6 of a series of 7 articles called The Do’s and Don’ts to become a Super Productive Person. We hope you like these ideas as much as we do but more importantly, we hope you IMPLEMENT the ideas today. Let us know how it works out for you - we want your feedback. Peace, love, and gumbo! Marvin LeBlanc, LUTCF, CNP Author Come Hell or High Water – Life Lessons from Hurricane Katrina, Facing Life’s Greatest Challenges No Matter What From Free Speech to Paid Speaker – An Exclusive Interview with Marvin LeBlanc, LUTCF, CNP 13 Rules for Solid Business Growth -- Work Less, Sell Smarter – The Cajun Way Our books, e-books, audiobooks, speaker services & training services are all waiting for you at... https://www.MarvinLeBlanc.com Call us today at... 225-938-4177 Toll Free 1-855-787-9669 504-731-6767 Email us at... marvinleblancspeaker@gmail.com marvin.leblanc.cdia@statefarm.com Please follow us on... https://www.linkedin/in/marvinleblanc https://www.facebook.com/ComeHellorHighWater https://www.Instagram.com/marvinleblancspeaker https://twitter.com/insurelouisiana https://twitter.com/MarvinLeBlanc Visit our websites at... https://www.MarvinLeBlanc.com https://www.MarvinLeBlancInsurance.com PS : we’d be so grateful if you shared this article with someone that might benefit  We're almost at the finish line! Welcome to the step we've all been waiting for – The Closing Step. By now, you're well-versed in successfully engaging your clients and talking about the benefits of a good life insurance policy. We know most people are uncomfortable with this topic, but you've done the work, and your client gets it. I taught you at the outset that to move fast, you need to slow down. Remember my famous gumbo analogy? Let me remind you: To make a good gumbo, you bring it to the boil and then turn it down and simmer. Then you simmer, simmer and simmer some more. This is what you did in the first two modules of the course. By Module 3 – The Conviction Step - you were well entrenched in my process. You convinced them and became FAB using the tools I provided. You know, and they understand why T-I-R-E-D is so essential. Once you mastered this step, you were already halfway there! You also dove into module 4 – The Desire Step – and honed your storytelling skills. This was another critical step in securing the client. I'm not talking about mindless storytelling; I'm talking about telling desire stories. It's when you calm their fears by connecting with them one last time before you go in for the close. You know, and I know that you had to master the first four modules of the course to complete the sale. If you haven’t signed up for “Come Hell or High Selling” yet, now is the time! Now that you have, this final stage can be the most fun. It can also be a bit tricky. The client is interested, engaged, trusting - but how do you get them to make a decision and sign on the dotted line? Remember: No decision = No contract. And this translates to no sale, no commission and no bonus for you. And that's no good! The key to the close is to be aggressive without being pushy. You're probably thinking, "Marvin, you're contradicting yourself! That's impossible!" Not so. There's a delicate balance, indeed, but you can become a superstar at this step by following my approach. How do you become aggressive without offending the client? How do you stay ethical and still get that signature? I'll tell you! I just can't wait any longer! You need to reveal your secret identity - the Ethical Pitbull – and I can show you how! While you're at it, don't lose sight of the second reason to master the close... the opportunity to create new sales. Selling doesn't, and shouldn't, end with one deal. It's one more step to get you closer to building your client base, which we know is a critical part of being a great salesperson. We'll cover this too in "Come Hell or High Selling." We cover it all! And you have me as your mentor to help you along the way. It's time, marvelous people! Sign up today, and you'll be a superstar in no time. Peace, love and gumbo! Marvin LeBlanc, LUTCF, CNP Author Come Hell or High Water – Life Lessons from Hurricane Katrina, Facing Life’s Greatest Challenges No Matter What From Free Speech to Paid Speaker – An Exclusive Interview with Marvin LeBlanc, LUTCF, CNP 13 Rules for Solid Business Growth -- Work Less, Sell Smarter – The Cajun Way Our books, e-books, audiobooks, speaker services & training services are all waiting for you at https://www.MarvinLeBlanc.com Call us today at... 225-938-4177 Toll Free 1-855-787-9669 504-731-6767 Email us at... marvinleblancspeaker@gmail.com marvin.leblanc.cdia@statefarm.com Please follow us on... https://www.linkedin/in/marvinleblanc https://www.facebook.com/ComeHellorHighWater https://www.Instagram.com/marvinleblancspeaker https://twitter.com/insurelouisiana https://twitter.com/MarvinLeBlanc Visit our websites at... https://www.MarvinLeBlanc.com https://www.MarvinLeBlancInsurance.com PS : we’d be so grateful if you shared this article with someone that might benefit  Hello folks and welcome back to the Marvelous Minute. We are still on this week’s theme centered around gaining back some of our time. America's greatest business philosopher once told me in the late 70’s – Marvin, “DON’T WISH THINGS WERE BETTER. WISH YOU WERE BETTER! We don't wanna wish to be better we want to start working on being better. Well how do we do that? What does that really look like? Meditation 1: Don’t WISH things were better. Wish YOU were better! If you're in a commute or if you're at home drinking a cup of coffee first thing in the morning give yourself 15 minutes of mental food. We eat breakfast and we eat healthy food to nourish our bodies. So too that our minds need to be nourished. If you've never tried to work on your personal development start with just 15 minutes of positive mental brain food. There’s many, many books out there ready to serve you immensely. I strongly recommend Dale Carnegie’s book “How to Win Friends and Influence People”. Napoleon Hill's book, “Think And Grow Rich” will build on your foundation after Carnegie’s book. I strongly recommend my mentor Jim Rohn’s book, “The Four Seasons of Life”. And obviously I sincerely recommend my own book, “Come Hell or High Water – Life Lessons from Hurricane Katrina (Facing Life’s Greatest Challenges No Matter What). The book has received high praise as a useful tool in day-to-day team meetings to reinforce the importance of attitude, team performance and leadership skills in the workplace. Meditation 2: DO keep your promises and your appointments. If you are using this article as a personal meditation:In your personal life with your friends, with your relatives are you keeping the promises that you've made to them? Very important; be a person of your word. When you meet them in a restaurant, would you please be there presently with them? Would you please take your cell phone and put it in your wallet or purse or pocket? Would you please look at them in their eyes and make a human connection? PLEASE. This is so important. If you're a leader you're going to be challenged with this next particular point. Over the course of four decades just in my business alone I've been involved in 19,600+ (1 on 1 personal insurance reviews) and that's not even counting all of the additional meetings with companies. That’s not counting speeches that I've done. Broadcasts that I've been on. Radio for a year. Television for a year. It’s not even counting all that. What I want to say to you is there's going to be a temptation whereby you put something on your calendar and then some other organization or person wants or has an event going on at that same time that you didn't know about and you cancel your first appointment or commitment because you feel something better has become available. It is a blatant mistake to break your initial commitment. In time, you will be found out and your integrity will suffer. Less and less people are going to want to make an appointment with you because you're going to eventually be seen as wishy washy and unreliable. As you may know, our team is always excited to hear from you and to offer you valuable resources so that you can live a Marvelous life and grow Marvelous companies. You can always reach out to me in the links below. Contact me. Tell me what you're going through. Tell me what's going on with your family. Tell me how your business is going. How can I help your team grow? Peace, love and Gumbo! Marvin LeBlanc, LUTCF, CNP Author Come Hell or High Water – Life Lessons from Hurricane Katrina, Facing Life’s Greatest Challenges No Matter What From Free Speech to Paid Speaker – An Exclusive Interview with Marvin LeBlanc, LUTCF, CNP 13 Rules for Solid Business Growth -- Work Less, Sell Smarter – The Cajun Way Our books, e-books, audiobooks, speaker services & training services are all waiting for you at https://www.MarvinLeBlanc.com Call us today at... 225-938-4177 Toll Free 1-855-787-9669 504-731-6767 Email us at... marvinleblancspeaker@gmail.com marvin.leblanc.cdia@statefarm.com Please follow us on... https://www.linkedin/in/marvinleblanc https://www.facebook.com/ComeHellorHighWater https://www.Instagram.com/marvinleblancspeaker https://twitter.com/insurelouisiana https://twitter.com/MarvinLeBlanc Visit our websites at... https://www.MarvinLeBlanc.com https://www.MarvinLeBlancInsurance.com PS : we’d be so grateful if you shared this article with someone that might benefit Winning, Happiness & Holding Grudges - The Do’s & Don’ts to Becoming Super Productive Vol #45/28/2021  Alright alright we're back for another business meditation or it could possibly be a personal meditation for you on how to be a super productive person. How can I possibly get back more of my time? You know this is something that I often hear when I’m working with my own teams & when I’m coaching other teams. Whether you are the owner, manager or front line help, we all struggle to get everything done in the time that we have. Do you ever feel that you just want to give up? Do you ever say, “I just don't have enough time to execute.” Nothing can be further from the truth. It is not that we have an issue with time. Rather, what we have an issue with is prioritizing what's important now. In my youtube video entitled, “WIN” (www.Youtube.com/MarvinLeBlanc) you'll pick up some good ideas on the importance to focus “today”. “Now”. With a laser-like purpose. On Happiness Marvelous people, please understand happiness doesn't happen because you're expecting someone else to make you happy. That is a recipe for failure. Happiness is an inside job. Inside your mind. Inside your heart. On a daily basis. Well Marvin what are some simple ideas that will help me be happier on a daily basis? Never say “OK” or “I agree” when it's not Ok and you don't agree. Know where you stand on topics. Because if you say “OK” and you say you “agree” and then later your actions are not in line with what your mouth has uttered to another, there's going to be challenges & conflict that could have been totally avoided. When we are in disagreement we are out of alignment with ourselves. And when we are out of alignment we are NOT HAPPY. On Holding Grudges I recently conducted a strategy session with a business owner & this topic came up. She tells me, “now Marvin, let’s not talk about holding grudges because you don’t know the kind of people I have to work around.” I smiled. We all, from time to time will have to work with the “kind of people” she described. Don't hold grudges. If you have a dispute & the dispute gets settled, then MOVE ON. Don’t keep festering resentment & ill will. It doesn’t serve you. Lots of times people have a dispute & it was “supposed” to have been settled. But yet one or both parties refuse to move on. I'm thinking of a particular team member as I type. This particular team member is unfiltered & says what’s on her mind. If there is a disagreement in my office you are allowed to agree to disagree. She does. We're always asking “why” are we doing this system or strategy? Why are we doing this process, etc? With this particular person if you have a rough conversation I promise you the following morning she's back in the saddle. She's rocking and rolling and she's moving on. She's a great example of moving on. How about you? If I asked your co-workers or family members, do you move on or do you harbor resentment & keep holding a grudge, what would they tell me? (Be honest!) The great thing is this is immediately fixable. On Bad Moments Our last thought in today’s meditation. Don't panic when you're having bad moments in your day. Maintain your character and get into the next most important project. Don't panic. I would strongly encourage you to embrace the concept of stoicism. I would strongly encourage you to embrace the concept of staying “even keeled”. Keep your poise. There are great examples throughout all level of sports that illustrate an athlete maintaining their composure after a failed play & redeeming themselves shortly thereafter. They maintained their composure & kept their focus amidst adversity. Can we focus on doing that today at our work & in our relationships? Keep trying. Stay composed. Keep moving forward. The truth is every day you're going to have some bad moments if you are trying to succeed and make a difference in whatever purpose of life that you choose. You're going to have some bad moments. However, you can have many bad moments in a day but that doesn't necessarily mean that by the end of the day it didn't turn out to be a good day. So remember, we all have bad moments. Lots of times we feel like we're so alone. That nobody understands what it is we're going through. And that's how we feel when we're just smothered down in all of those challenges. But when we back away and we think about it for a second we you know good and well we all have stuff. It doesn't matter if you're poor, wealthy, male, female we all have stuff. Lots of times we get stuck like that and when those bad moments happen we feel like nobody else understands. I do. The great Dale Carnegie (How to Win Friends & Influence People) the original father of personal development had a two word human relations rule that is relevant here. Keep Busy!!! Truthfully I have lots of failures and I have lots of successes. But most days my successes don't equal my failures. But what I do have is the ability to continue to stay busy. To MOVE ON TO THE NEXT TASK OR PROJECT. Don’t stay stuck on stupid, Marvelous People! Move on to the next item on your checklist. And remember that you’re not alone. I love to hear from you. I love hearing your thoughts & feedback. Drop me a line & tell me what topics of interest would you like me to delve into in our future meditations. I can’t wait. Peace, love and Gumbo! Marvin LeBlanc, LUTCF, CNP Author Come Hell or High Water – Life Lessons from Hurricane Katrina, Facing Life’s Greatest Challenges No Matter What From Free Speech to Paid Speaker – An Exclusive Interview with Marvin LeBlanc, LUTCF, CNP 13 Rules for Solid Business Growth -- Work Less, Sell Smarter – The Cajun Way Our books, ebooks, audiobooks, speaker services & training services are all waiting for you at https://www.MarvinLeBlanc.com Call us today at... 225-938-4177 Toll Free 1-855-787-9669 504-731-6767 Email us at... marvinleblancspeaker@gmail.com marvin.leblanc.cdia@statefarm.com Please follow us on... https://www.linkedin/in/marvinleblanc https://www.facebook.com/ComeHellorHighWater https://www.Instagram.com/marvinleblancspeaker https://twitter.com/insurelouisiana https://twitter.com/MarvinLeBlanc Visit our websites at... https://www.MarvinLeBlanc.com https://www.MarvinLeBlancInsurance.com PS : we’d be so grateful if you shared this article with someone that might benefit  Slowly say these words with me:
SIMPLY IRRESISTIBLE. COMPELLING. ADDICTIVE. Have you ever wondered why certain websites, restaurants and organizations are VALUED so much more than others? How did they become simply irresistible, compelling and invaluable to their clients and prospects? They must have just been lucky, right? Maybe they were just in the right place at the right time? Yep, that happens...in about one out of every 100 businesses! The rest of good business happens with good business planning. And good business planning can be made simple by reflecting on the businesses that you find value in as a consumer. Get out a fresh sheet of paper, and follow these steps: Step 1: Write down your three favorite websites. Step 2: Now, write down your three favorite restaurants. Step 3: Next, list the top three organizations that generated the highest revenue for you this year (e.g. Chamber of Commerce, service clubs, business associations, school groups). Step 4: Study your three favorite websites, and think about why they are valuable to you. Write your results down. Step 5: Do the same with your three favorite restaurants. What is it that REALLY makes them your favorite? And don’t put down “because the food tastes good." BORING!!! So what? That’s not the REAL VALUE. Go deeper. Step 6: Think about the top three revenue generating groups you were involved in. Write down why you feel they generated so much revenue. Step 7: Here's the final step. Look at the answers you’ve created for yourself and sit down with an accountability partner (someone who is not your partner or family member). Work with them to answer the most important question this year: How can I apply these answers to offer knock your socks off, world class added value to my clients and prospects? I’m talking to you Mr./Ms./Mrs. small business owner. Do you need an accountability partner to assist you with answering your questions? Let us know here. Think about how serious this is. If there was a way you could get relief from the ridiculous “feast or famine” sucky sales cycle, wouldn’t that be worth it all? It will be. The answer was in front of you all along. Now invest yourself into some think time and get your plan in ACTION. About Marvin Marvin LeBlanc LUTCF, CNP, is a performance strategist and author of the number one Amazon Kindle best-selling book, Come Hell or High Water: Life Lessons from Hurricane Katrina. Marvin not only brings wisdom and insight gained from his three decades in the insurance and finance industries, but he also empowers others through his unique sharing of lessons and techniques from years of corporate and leadership training and motivational programs. A vibrant entrepreneur who makes the stage his own–and yours, Marvin’s humor-filled stories bring inspiration, heart-warming truths and tangible, strategic takeaways you can bring back to your organization. Peace, love & Gumbo! Marvin LeBlanc, LUTCF ®, CNP ® Call us today at... 225-938-4177 Toll Free 1-855-787-9669 504-731-6767 Email us at... marvinleblancspeaker@gmail.com marvin.leblanc.cdia@statefarm.com Please follow us on... https://www.linkedin/in/marvinleblanc https://www.facebook.com/ComeHellorHighWater https://www.Instagram.com/marvinleblancspeaker https://twitter.com/insurelouisiana https://twitter.com/MarvinLeBlanc Visit our websites at... https://www.MarvinLeBlanc.com https://www.MarvinLeBlancInsurance.com PS : we’d be so grateful if you shared this article with someone that might benefit  Welcome Marvelous People! Today’s Marvelous Minute Meditation will cover specific ways you can gain back more time & become the Super Productive person you always wanted. Recently I had a birthday and boy did it make me aware that “Father Time” just keeps on ticking. Never do I want to waste time if I can avoid it. Our first bullet point we want to cover today might not be an idea anyone has shared with you. Don't have any chair other than your own chair in your immediate office. It encourages people to have a quick meeting and to get to the point without sitting down & getting too comfortable. You could be a business owner, unit manager or some other type of manager. In these positions in American corporations, you are usually responsible for 1 -7 people that are your direct reports. I would strongly encourage you to embrace not having a chair for someone to sit down in your immediate office. Yes, it might be uncomfortable initially. Yes, I know it sounds goofy. But it’s time you change things up a bit. That’s why you are reading this. You know that I consistently bring you valuable resources. This will get your team: *Solving more problems on their own *To more succinctly organize their thoughts *To handle more stuff with a short email & NO FACE-TO-FACE INTERRUPTIONS. *Get to the point because they don’t want to stand up too long in the first place. (Can you imagine what 1 less interruption per hour of each day can do to help you be MORE PRODUCTIVE? 8 less interruptions. Heck, you might be able to go home early & not feel frustrated from handling everyone’s interruptions. What if you can CONSISTENTLY COMPLETE the items on YOUR CHECKLIST for a change? How would that make you feel? I know you. I see you. I feel you.) “The best way to reduce your interruptions is to NOT SET YOURSELF up to be interrupted.” That - & train them thoroughly. No one should be asking the same question 3 times, unless you are enabling this behavior or they have not been properly trained. Quite frankly, there are thousands of unnecessary meetings that are conducted across America and the world where people are meeting to plan a meeting to plan yet another meeting. They are stuck in meeting hell. Some managers are calling meetings without a real, legitimate agenda. Many feel compelled to do it to justify their position. Meetings are not leadership. Leadership is Leadership.
All of these phrases, when uttered sincerely, save time because if communication is increased directly, it will cut out confusion & hard feelings. Both parties will be in a much better place. Oftentimes we’ve received phone calls at our business & the caller was calling our number by accident. But because we were coming to them from a place of joy and joviality, (key core values in our business) they were drawn to us & what we could provide them. Did you catch that? “People are drawn to joyful, jovial, happy people.” How about you? Your team? Are they joyful, jovial & happy? That can be worked on. Yes, I will help you. I call it a “vibe”, OK. Is your “vibe” worth catching. Are you “attracting” or “repelling” people? Good manners are not dead. Remember to use those manners & model the proper manners. Not just in a personal situation but also in business. Don't use all of these great ideas in business like saying “please” and “thank you” and “yes ma'am” and “opening the door for ladies” then when you get home you treat your own family members with less respect. Don’t do that! Be authentic wherever you are - personal or business environments stay consistent. Peace, love & Gumbo! Marvin LeBlanc, LUTCF ®, CNP ® Call us today at... 225-938-4177 Toll Free 1-855-787-9669 504-731-6767 Email us at... marvinleblancspeaker@gmail.com marvin.leblanc.cdia@statefarm.com Please follow us on... https://www.linkedin/in/marvinleblanc https://www.facebook.com/ComeHellorHighWater https://www.Instagram.com/marvinleblancspeaker https://twitter.com/insurelouisiana https://twitter.com/MarvinLeBlanc Visit our websites at... https://www.MarvinLeBlanc.com https://www.MarvinLeBlancInsurance.com PS : we’d be so grateful if you shared this article with someone that might benefit  Hello again Marvelous People! Imagine that you are hearing, “Up, Up & Away” by the 5th Dimension right now. The year was 1968. And “Up, Up & Away” was the song of the year. Jimmy Webb wrote the song, but did you know that one of the producers was none other than Johnny Rivers? “Up, Up & Away” in my beautiful, my beautiful balloon! That's a great segue to today's message which has to do with focusing on the “Desire” step utilized in your selling presentations and your sales talks. It was 1968. I was six years old. Never had I ever flown in an airplane, much less a hot air balloon. (Google Albuquerque International Balloon Festival for a once in a lifetime bucket list experience) This hit song would just take me on a journey of imagination. It evoked feelings and emotions inside me, similar to just now whenever I heard it again. It’s making my hair stand up on my arms. Well Marvin, ‘how does this relate to your teachings today on the Desire Step’ you might ask? “What in the world does this have to do with my sales process?” You see there's five steps in the sale and after exchanging initial pleasantries, the steps are: *Gaining a person's attention *Asking sincere authentic interest bearing questions *Approaching the conviction step with confidence and caution( because you don't wanna be all “Commission breath” on an individual with your features, advantages and benefits) if they're not ready to hear them. Doing all of these steps correctly - in the correct sequence – will guarantee you a higher sales conversion rate. That's what is taught in our sales course, “Come Hell or High Selling for Insurance Selling Positions”. The proper chronology. The proper steps in sales and the importance of “story”. If you haven't spent enough time working on your story telling and story selling skills, seek out Joseph Campbell’s diagram of “The Hero’ Journey”. There are no Hollywood movies that stray from the elements in this diagram. When I think of the song “Up, Up and Away”, it not only brings me back to 1968. But more specifically it brings me back to my grandmothers breezeway, which is nothing more than a big large concrete slab that connected the garage to the main home. We called it a breezeway because a breeze would occasionally pass through there and in those hot, humid, sticky, South Louisiana summer months you surely do appreciate a nice breeze. I vividly can remember sitting there, or laying there. I can feel the cool concrete now. No shoes, probably no shirt. My grandmother, “Doosie”- with little education spoke fluent Cajun French as her primary language . She was a full blooded Cajun woman & never saw herself as an expert storyteller. But she was. With 50+ plus grandchildren & great grandkid, of course I was her favorite. Or so I THOUGHT. But you see I've talked to my other cousins and they stated, “no no Marvin you weren't her favorite because you see she would tell her stories to all of us. She would give all of us that personal attention.” She would just captivate our imagination. And the vivid details were many. She was painting us word pictures not ever knowing what word pictures were. Probably 'cause she needed a break since we were so active. Then when we were good, she would take out that big old wooden handmade bucket, a box of Morton’s Salt & we poured that Morton salt around the internal container housing the milk, cream, sugar & vanilla extract and make homemade vanilla ice cream. The only thing that I've even remotely tasted that comes close to our “Breezeway Ice Cream” is Bluebell homemade vanilla. If you have something else that comes close to that taste, please reach out and tell me. Would love to give your suggestion a try. Doosie would give us these stories. Just like her parents did with her. In those days, writing was not really a huge priority for the family. Farming, putting food on the table and making your way through the Depression was really the priority. Now I want to stop and step back out of the story and have you think about what was just said to you in this writing. I attempted to appeal to your five senses. The “taste” of the homemade ice cream. The “feeling” of the cool, refreshing concrete. Could you perhaps “see”, a grandmother seated, telling stories with grandchildren all at her feet? Also, might you “see” a little boy with no shoes & no shirt. Hot and sweaty. It wouldn’t take too much of your imagination to “smell” that little boy & that he needed that bath come sundown. Could you “see” those grandchildren all wanting their turn to churn the ice cream handle? Ok, you get the point. What I'm trying to convey to you is that if you truly desire to CONNECT with your listener, we must tell stories. Stories that have specific incidences. Stories that include references to the 5 senses. Facts & statistics are important, but facts & stats do not convey & connect like a well-crafted story. I encourage you to feel great about telling your “story”. Don’t forget that you can tell the same story 100 different ways. And you can modify the details of your main story as well. But when you tell that story it has to provoke an emotion. When creating this piece, I did not read any notes. I just relived the experience! The song took me back there to my grandmother's breezeway. Imagine if you close your eyes and you thought of granny on the Beverly Hillbillies. Essentially that same diminutive statue of a person was my grandmother. Imagine a kind-hearted, loving, devout woman. Never heard her use a really bad curse word. :>) A person that would take the time to make all of us grandchildren feel like we were the special one. In your presentations, are you making your customers feel like they are the special one? Or, are you hurrying through because you’re preoccupied with the end result? Don’t hurry. Practice and construct precise, time-sensitive, relevant stories for the listener. If you wish to ask me additional questions about our: *upcoming Come Hell or High Sales course *having me work with you or your people in a group coaching or workshop setting *having me as your Keynote Speaker for your next Regional Meeting or Convention simply reach out to the contact information provided. You’ll be glad you did. I highly value your feedback. I read all my emails. Peace, love & Gumbo! Marvin LeBlanc, LUTCF ®, CNP ® Call us today at... 225-938-4177 Toll Free 1-855-787-9669 504-731-6767 Email us at... marvinleblancspeaker@gmail.com marvin.leblanc.cdia@statefarm.com Please follow us on... https://www.linkedin/in/marvinleblanc https://www.facebook.com/ComeHellorHighWater https://www.Instagram.com/marvinleblancspeaker https://twitter.com/insurelouisiana https://twitter.com/MarvinLeBlanc Visit our websites at... https://www.MarvinLeBlanc.com https://www.MarvinLeBlancInsurance.com |
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