6 Quick Ideas for Building Your Contact List

Here are some great ideas on how to build your network:

6 Quick Ideas for Building Your Contact List:

1. Trade Show Marketing, Fishbowls, and Plexiglas Drawing Box
2. Register for free and inexpensive seminars from your local business journal.
3. Read the local business paper and scan articles written about successful small business owners.
4. Join two of the hundreds of networking organizations in the US (e.g. BNI, local chamber of commerce, etc.).
5. Go through the want ads and look for others promoting their businesses. Call them and say, “I am a local business owner in the … business, and I am looking to network with other business owners so that we might refer business to each other . . . would you be interested in getting together? I would like to learn a little about what you do and also talk to you about what I do to see if we might help each other get more business?” You may have to talk to 10 to get 2, but many will want to meet with you.
6. Ask 10 people that you know for 3 names and addresses of business owners that are in the process of building a business.

I hope this information helps you grow your list.

All the best,

The Lumberjack Story

The below story is a slightly revised version of an article that was written by Tom “Big Al” Schreiter. He is one of my absolutely favorite success coaches.

Anyway, without any further ado, check this out…

“The Lumberjack Story”

An experienced lumberjack walked past one of the new recruits. The new recruit viciously chopped away at the large tree but only managed to bruise the bark. Seeing the hard work and wasted effort, the experienced lumberjack said, “Hey, why don’t you sharpen your ax? It will make you much more efficient.”

The new recruit answered, “No. I can’t take the time to sharpen my ax. I’m busy trying to cut down this tree.”

Many new business owners suffer from the “dull ax” syndrome. They set goals, work hard, but never reach the success they desire. Why? Because they never took the time to sharpen their “ax” by learning new, effective skills. These entrepreneurs waste effort, waste resources, and waste their careers. If only they would take a little time away from their frenzied futility to learn the skills that would serve them for a lifetime.

As home-based business expert Tom Paredes says, “You need training even if you get a job at McDonald’s flipping hamburgers. So why not expect to invest some time and effort in learning new skills for your business?”

What happens when new entrepreneurs venture into business uninformed? Let’s go back to our new lumberjack.

It seems the new lumberjack finally got tired of beating his dull ax against the tree. In desperation, he went into town to the local hardware store. The manager of the hardware store said, “Yep. Your ax sure is dull. But, if I were you, I wouldn’t get the ax sharpened. There is a new way of cutting trees that is even better than a sharp ax. It’s called a chain saw.”

“Just give me that chain saw and I’m outta here,” said the new lumberjack. He took the chain saw and disappeared into the woods.

Two days later the new lumberjack returned to the hardware store. He was sweaty, had blisters on his hands, and looked very depressed. He found the store manager and said, “Hey you. You sold me this chain saw and promised me better results. I’ve been slaving away in the woods for two days and still haven’t finished cutting down my first tree!”

The store manager replied, “Well son, just hand the chain saw over here and let me see what the problem is.” The store manager examined the chain saw and saw nothing wrong. Then he grabbed the starter cord and gave it a big pull.

“B-b-b-r-r-r-r-r-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-m-m-m-m-m!” The chain saw belched some smoke and began to run.

“Hey! What’s that noise?” the new lumberjack exclaimed.

It seems that the new lumberjack never took the time to learn the features or even how to use his new tool.

The same is true about life in general. To become successful, one must not only acquire new tools, but also the knowledge on how to use them. The founder of the McDonald’s franchise, Ray Kroc, said it best: “If you’re not getting better, you’re getting worse.”

I this “hurry-up I’m in a rush society”, it will take some discipline and time investment to perfect one’s new business-building skills.

The payoff?

Almost anything you want. All you have to do is be willing to change. After all, Michelangelo changed from painting floors to painting ceilings when he got the Sistine Chapel job. The same new opportunities await the new-and-improved YOU.

Enough said…

Are you too old to become successful in business?

Check out my man, Father Time to the left. That old fella’s time is just ticking away.

Even though time is ticking away for all of each each day, do you think you are too old to become successful in business? Please allow me to answer for you…

HECK NO!

Ever heard of KFC – also know as Kentucky Fried Chicken? Of course you have. Did you know that the founder, Harland Sanders (also known as Colonel Sanders) was more than 60 years old when he started his franchise?

This is kind of long, but you definitely want to read it and you may want to print this one out.

### BEGIN ###

Harland Sanders was born on 9 September, 1890 in Henryville, Indianapolis. When he was six years old, his father died. This meant that his mother had to go out and work leaving him to do all the housework, and look after his three year old brother, and baby sister. These household duties included cooking and by the age of seven, Harland had become a master of several regional dishes.

At the age of ten, Harland had little interest in school, so he dropped out after completing sixth grade, and went looking for work. His first job came at the age of ten when he started working at a nearby farm for just $2 per month. At the age of twelve, his mother remarried and Harland moved to Greenwood, Indianapolis and held a number of jobs over the next few years. His first job there was in New Albany as a Street Car Conductor.

Other early jobs he had included six months as an Army Private serving in Cuba, operator of an Ohio River Steamboat Ferry, sold tires, and finished off by working at a number of service stations. During this time Harland also studied Law by correspondence, then practiced in Justice of the Peace Courts, and was selling insurance policies.

Other than cooking, the main job that he liked was during his time as a fireman for the railways which lasted five years and Harland would often talk about this. One of his talks about the time at the railways included this quote, “I started firing for Southern out of Jasper, in 1906. I was filling sand boxes in Jasper when a fireman failed to show up one morning. I showed the engineer that I could fire so he took me on the trip. I fired for Southern for the next five years.”

“About the most exciting thing that happened to me was a runaway – train ride down Darlington Mountain near Russellville. It was a pretty steep grade and I was sitting with my head out the window enjoying the breeze when the engineer said, ‘Harland, get ready to hang on because we don’t have any brakes.”

When Harland was 40, he had his own service station in Corbin, Kentucky. At that time, there was no restaurant at the service station, so any meals prepared for travelers were done in his own kitchen, and they were served in his living room. And there were regular occasions that he had 15, or more guests for dinner.

It was around this time he knew he was onto something as very soon, people started to come to his service station just for food, and not for petrol. As a result, Harland purchased the motel that was across the road. This motel included a restaurant which could seat 142 people.

His popularity with cooking spread and soon got the attention of State Governor, Ruby Laffoon, who in 1935 made him a Kentucky Colonel in recognition for his contributions to the state’s cuisine. And in 1939, the restaurant started appearing in Duncan Hines “Adventures in Good Eating”, a famous guide covering American restaurants at the time.

One thing that Harland always did was to experiment with food to try and improve his dishes, and make them more popular. These experiments included finding suitable ingredients to add to the flour which coated his chickens. One of the more successful experiments happened in 1939 with the mixture of the eleven herbs and spices which now form the coatings to his chickens.

In those early days, Harland’s biggest problem is that customers had to wait about 30 minutes for the chicken to be cooked in an iron skillet. Most restaurants at the time would cook chicken in deep fat, which would only take a few minutes. However, he refused to cook chicken in deep fat as he thought it ruined the flavor.

Then in the late 1930′s he was invited to a demonstration of a product he called a new fangled gizmo, which turned out to be the newly invented pressure cooker. Harland liked what it could do to green vegetable, and how quick they were cooked. So he wondered what it could do with chicken and bought one. After a number of experiments, and modifications to the cooker, he could cook chicken quickly, and the taste was even better than before. This original Pressure Cooker is one of the exhibits at the KFC museum in Corbin. Pressure cookers are still used today by KFC in the cooking of chicken.

Harland also liked to keep his kitchen clean, and to be able to show his customers that he had high standards. To achieve this, the kitchen was painted white so any signs of dirt could be spotted, and to make cleaning easier. Also, there were holes in the wall to allow customers to see into the kitchen, a feature which came standard in all KFC restaurants in 1982, something that is seen in a number of other restaurants world wide, but it is not certain if Harland started the idea, or if he copied someone else.

In 1948, as a result of marriage problems, probably because he spent more time cooking than with his wife, he divorced his wife, Josephine. Later that year, he married Claudia Price, who was a waiter at his restaurant.

However, in the early 1950s, an interstate bypass with built, which completely bypassed the town of Corbin. Business was effected, and predicting that he would eventually be bankrupt, Harland auctioned off his operations, and paid all money he owed. All he had left to live on was Social Security Checks of $105 per month. And at his age, he was not expecting to work again.

In 1952, Harland had a chance meeting with a Peter Harman, who owned Harman’s Cafe in Salt Lake City, Utah, another popular, and famous eating place. And Peter was a skilled business man. As a result of this meeting, a business relationship was established, and Peter convinced Harland to cash in his social security checks to start a franchise for chickens coated in Harland’s recipe.

Soon after this meeting, Harland, with his wife, Claudia started traveling around visiting restaurants. And if a particular restaurant agreed, he would cook his chicken dish coated with his herb and spices. Many liked how the chicken was cooked and included it on their menus. His fee for using the mixture to the restaurants was five cents per chicken that was covered.

The first years of the franchise was a struggle, and Harland comments on this by saying . “One of our biggest problems getting started was money. After we sold the restaurant at auction, I was getting $105 a month from social security. That paid for my gas and the travel needed to get the franchises started. Lots of nights I would sleep in the back of my car so I would have enough money to buy cookers the next day if someone took a franchise.”

His wife also commented on the business at the time by saying “He helped a lot of people go into the restaurant business. “Sometimes their pies or meats or vegetables wouldn’t be just right so he began to show them how to do all of it. He wanted the restaurants that served his chicken to have good food.”

In the late 1950s business was improving and the company, Kentucky Fried Chicken Inc was formally established. On regular occasions, Harland would be asked to appear on television or radio interviews. It was on such an occasion that the only clean thing he had to wear was a white palm suit. This was that popular, it was all he would wear on all future public appearances, going through about eight suits a year.

By 1964, there were approximately 600 restaurants in the United States using his chicken recipe when he sold the franchise to a group of investors for $2 million. Part of the conditions of sale is that Harland would remain on the board of directors, and receive an annual lifetime salary of $40, 000 per year. One of these investors, John Brown, later became Governor of Kentucky from 1980 – 1984. To raise funds for the franchise, the investors sold shares in the company on 17 March 1966, and was first listed on the New York Stock Exchange on 16 January 1968. The last time the franchise was sold, it was purchased by Pepsi in 1986 for US $840 million. Pepsi also run four other food franchise’s. Other than KFC, only one other of these, Pizza Hut, is in New Zealand.

Although Harland had sold the franchise, he remained involved with the investors, and in 1976, he was the second most well known celebrity in the world according to an independent survey. His involvement in the company included visiting the restaurants on a regular basis, traveling approximately 160, 000 kilometers per year.

Although his now famous recipe was first discovered in 1939, he had never written it down until the 1960s. And the mixture was transported to the restaurant in his car. As for preparing the recipe, Harland is quoted as saying “I hand-mixed the spices in those days liking mixing cement on a specially cleaned concrete floor on my back porch in Corbin. I used a scoop to make a tunnel in the flour and then carefully mixed in the herbs and spices.”

Nowadays, only a handful of people actually know the recipe, and each has signed a very stick confidentiality agreement. The original recipe is secured in a safe Louisville, Kentucky in facilities, which they say is better than Fort Knox. As for actually preparing the mixture, several companies are involved, none of which have the completed receipt and the operations are computer controlled to ensure that everything is mixed together correctly, and at the right time. The mixture is then exported to all the countries where the franchises are. The chickens themselves originate from within the country a franchise is located in.

In regards to today’s operations about the recipe, Harland is quoted as saying “It boggles the mind just to think of all the procedures and precautions the company takes to protect my recipe,” the Colonel said. “Especially when I think how Claudia and I used to operate. She was my packing girl, my warehouse supervisor, my delivery person – you name it. Our garage was the warehouse.”

“After I hit the road selling franchises for my chicken, that left Claudia behind to fill the orders for the seasoned flour mix. She’d fill the day’s orders in little paper sacks with cellophane linings and package them for shipment. Then she had to put them on a midnight train.”

Harland was still involved with the franchise when he was diagnosed with leukemia in 1980, and died later that year as a result at the age of 90, on 16 December.

Due to his popularity, he is the only person connected to the food industry who has a statue in the state capital of Kentucky.

### END ###

Hey, Colonel Sanders started his franchise when he was more than 60 years old, and was still actively promoting his business until the day he died. I guess that takes away a lot of our excuses, doesn’t it?

Peace & blessings,

Be on a mission, but don’t be a missionary

Mother Theresa was a wonderful person, and the world was certainly a better place because she was here.

However, remember that she was all about charity, and you should be about growing your business.

Don’t hear me wrong. Community service and “giving back” are highly recommended, but when growing your business, remember to be on a mission, and not to become a missionary.

What do I mean by that?

Well, when you are growing your business, you should be focusing on doing productive, meaningful things that will help you increase revenue.

If you are expending valuable resources (i.e. time, energy, and money) on people and things that do not want to, or cannot help you generate revenue, you need to stop it.

For instance, some people that are network marketers spend a lot of time and energy pursuing people that have said ‘no’ to their products or income opportunity.

The person that says “I’m not interested” is not the one that network marketers tend to spin their wheels on. It is the people who say things like “I cannot do that,” or “I don’t know anybody,” or “I can’t afford it” are the ones that network marketers tend to waste resources on.

Let me tell you a quick story about two Greek oyster fisherman. Their names are Artemis, and Spiros.

Artemis was a very well-to-do oyster fisherman, while his long-time buddy, Spiros, struggled to feed his family.

One day Spiros asked Artemis if he could accompany him on an oyster catch so that he can learn his ‘secrets’.

Artemis was more than happy to oblige.

So when they went to catch oysters, they got on their boat, went out to Artemis’ favorite spot next to some rocks where the water is not too deep, and they both dived and got started scooping up oysters and placing them in their net bags.

They both caught a whole lot of oysters.

They got back to the beach, and Artemis started cracking open oysters like crazy looking for pearls. Those that didn’t have pearls were cast into a large bins.

Spiros was amazed by how fast Artemis was going through his oysters. So, Spiros got started.

When he cracked open his first oyster, there was no pearl.

Spiros started singing begging and pleading with the oyster to give him a pearl.

While he begging and pleading, Artemis was busy going through his oysters. Artemis actually found a couple of pearls. Artemis was really excited about cashing in his pearls for some cash so that he can continue to buy nice things for his family.

When the day was done, Spiros was still pleading with the same oyster…

The moral of the story is that you have to keep going through prospects (oysters) to get customers and distributors (pearls).

Remember, some will…some won’t…so what? Somebody else is always waiting.

Be on a mission to grow your business. Do not be a missionary to try to ‘save’ people who don’t want to be saved with your product or your business opportunity.

Time Management For Social Networkers

DISCLAIMER: I do not claim to be an expert. I am nothing more than a student of this new phenomenon called online social networking. The following are just my thoughts based on my personal experience and results. The intention of this blog entry is to provoke thought on this topic so that people make better time management decisions and have realistic expectations from their online social networking experiences. This is NOT gospel. I leave the gospel to Matthew, Mark, Luke, John Peter, and Paul (smile).

How many times a day do you get invitations via e-mail to connect with someone, or to become friends with someone on one social networking site or another, or that someone is following you? I get these kind of e-mail messages every day and I have to constantly remind myself to heed to the advice that I give others…

Make sure to limit the number of online social networks that you belong to otherwise you’ll be glued to the computer and real life will pass you by. On top of that, you’ll blow up your e-mail account because it will get full of messages pretty quickly.

I like what Timothy Ferris does with his e-mail as stated in his best selling book, The 4 Hour Work Week. He checks his e-mail twice per day, and only Monday through Friday. When you adopt that practice, you’ll find that you’re a lot more productive.

Anyway, I digress. Let me get back to my take on online social networking sites.

They are cool tools to add to your social and business tool box. However, they DO NOT replace what you’re already doing (e.g. picking up the phone and visiting with people face-to-face)

Know what your goals are. If you’re getting involved with social networking sites to grow your business, make sure that you’re joining the right online social networks. Not all are conducive to online social networking.

I also advise that you join and work no more than 5 online social networks at the same time.

Use online social networking sites to as a bridge to get online conversations offline (e.g. face-to-face)
In a previous blog entry, I talked about 13 different types of networking groups, and how the guru of networking and founder of Business Network International, Ivan Misner, Ph.D., mentions that you should belong to 3 different types of these networking groups. Because online social network cuts out the travel component, I’d say that you can do 5 online social networking groups.

Here is my Fab 5 (in no particular order) as these are the ones that best fit MY objectives and personality:

Meetup – I am a huge fan of this site because they get it. I love their slogan: “Maybe it’s time for a little less face-to-screen and a little more face-to-face.” I have been able to meet some wonderful people in Atlanta and Charlotte. I was able to get on a plane and meet these wonderful folks who were incredibly hospitable and welcoming to me. To date, my event planning and promotions business, Grassroots Business Network is growing mostly because of Meetup.com.

Linked In – I have found this site to be a great resource because there is a huge knowledge base here. People ask and answer great questions. Also, if you’re good at what you do, people recommend you on this site for the whole world to see.

Facebook – Man, you can find anyone here! I’ve bumped into people that I haven’t seen or spoken to in years. It is definitely worth getting on this site because you can reconnect with people from the past.

Twitter – This is kind of like a ‘mini blog’ where you can give your contacts that answer to that ever-present question…What are you doing right now?

BlitzTime – This one is a sleeper hit. You can actually grow your network over the phone from the comfort and privacy of your home or office.

Well, there you have it, folks. I hope that this sheds some light on online social networking sites.

All the best to you and remember to get out there and meet people from time to time.

Hey, you! Get out up from that computer desk! And you! Put down that Blackberry!

Alphabet Soup for Solopreneur’s Soul

DISCLAIMER: Okay, okay. I know that the title sounds very similar to the Chicken Soup for the Soul series of books. I’m not trying to steal the idea, but it did in fact inspire me to write this blog post.

James Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen have a wonderful series called Chicken Soup for the Soul. I highly recommend the books that are relevant to you. For instance, the first one I read was Chicken Soup for the Teacher’s Soul. I read that book when I was a high school social studies teacher in Brooklyn back in 2003. The stories were inspiring and also gave me some really good ideas. on how to be a more effective teacher.

The Chicken Soup series of books have also inspired me to cook up my own soup – Alphabet Soup for the Solopreneur’s Soul.

I got really good feedback about my acronymn, Goyasu (Get off your ass and speak up!), so here are a few more acronyms that will help you remember a few key principle that can help you have more success with you business, your job, and life in general:

FOCUSED — Follow one course until successful and eliminate distractions

ARCHIE — Appreciate, Reward, Celebrate, Help, Inspire, Encourage

STEAM — Small gifts or Samples, Telephone, Email, Appointment, Mail piece

KICK — Keep it cool, Kiddo.

Here is an audio to explain…

Let me know what you think, okay?

Taking the online conversations offline

Lisa Torres (aka the Social Butterfly) and Tyrone Turner (aka Ty the Card Guy) share a few tips on things to do to get the online conversations offline.

Some things touched on:

• Social networking sites
• Face-to-face networking events
• Virtual networking events
• Follow-up tools
• Video email and chat
• Building your list

.

I hope that you like what you hear in the above video.

All the best,

Use the Lotus Code to Get What You Want

The Lotus Code is a 2,500 philosophy that lays out a blueprint to achieve success. It has six parts that build upon and support each other.

Here is an overview:

1. Thoughts: Thoughts are things – well at least they can become things. Everything begins with a thought. Books that have really helped me get my head right and attract the people and situations that I want are The Secret, The Power of Positive Thinking, and Think and Grow Rich.
2. Words: Words are powerful. They can make or break people. This is the power of prayer and affirmations. T. Harv Eker’s, The Secrets of the Millionaire Mind talks about making declarations and Anthony Robbins’ books like Awaken the Giant Within are heavily influenced by neurolinguistic programming.
3. Actions: Nike’s timeless slogan is “Just do it,” and that is what is necessary. You have to do something. Books like The Science of Getting Rich tell us step by step what to do to achieve desired results. Dale Carnegie’s How to Win Friends and Influence People is also an excellent read on things to do to achieve success.
4. Habits: Stephen Covey reminds us in his book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, the right actions to make habitual so that we can achieve success in uncommon hours.
5. Persistence: Persistence, particularly in the face of adversity, is what helps of earn our desired outcome. The universe must be paid in full, and this debt must be paid in advance. Feeling pain and fear and doing it anyway is what turns us mere mortals into the champions that we aspire to become.
6. Result: Everything that we do or don’t do will lead us to this outcome.

Remember, the universe is neutral so this roadmap can lead us to our goal or to a very sad and desperate state of affairs. As it has been said, “We become what we think about.” Truer words have not been spoken. I hope that you found this information helpful.

Kind regards,

Can you say “Goyasu”?

Sometimes, weird things pop into my head and I think that they are worth blogging about. I hope you agree that this was worth posting on this blog.

All sales reps and business owners have one common challenge. That challenge is marketing. We’re always looking for more effective ways to get the word out about our business. In my opinion, word-of-mouth via networking is probably the most powerful and under-rated of all options. How can you create powerful word-of-mouth advertising for yourself?

By volunteering to speak at group meetings.

First of all, when you are a featured speaker, it is assumed that you are an expert on that particular topic. This is when assuming is a good thing. Speaking to groups of people can help you close volume (i.e. pitch numerous people at once) and is a great way to save time, energy, and money. You can really get your name and brand out there by volunteering to speak at events.

Oh – back to the word goyasu. Here is what it means:

G et

O ff

Y our

A ss[ets]

S peak

U p

Maybe I’ll make a move to have the word goyasu added to the dictionary. Hey, if bling can make in there, why not? (smile).

So the moral of the story is to go out there, and let your light shine by sharing your expertise with others. I do understand that public speaking is not for everyone, but certainly fortune favors the bold, so be bold and collect your fortune.

If you are looking to improve your public speaking skills, networking organizations like Business Network International, NYC Social Media Networkers, and Toastmasters International may help.

Talk to you soon.

Heroes, Helpers, and Haters

First things first…

Disclaimer: I do not claim to be an expert. This is not gospel. I leave the gospel to Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, and Paul. However, I do feel that you will get some value out of what I have to share here.

When marketing a product or service, you need to clearly identify your niche – target population. Some people say that everybody is a potential customer or business builder, and that thinking is flawed. Successful business people focus on one or at most, very few specific target groups – niches. According to the recent best-selling book The Long Tail, the secret to success is to sell more of less to a very specific group of buyers — a niche.

More on this at a later date. I just wanted you to have a taste of it to prepare you to understand some of the language and reasoning in this article.

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In your sales career, you’re going to come across 3 types of people: Helpers; Heroes/Heroines; and Haters.

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Let’s examine these three types…

Helpers are people that look up to you and feel that it is an honor and a privilege that you asked them to assist you in some way. These people generally look up to you for one reason or another. Perhaps you have a job position, a particular social status, or a bank account balance that they desire and respect. Whatever the case may be, they are always willing to help.

Here is a good way to ask a Helper to assist you by referring customers to help you grow your network marketing business:

[HELPER], I really need your help with something. I market a product/service to [YOUR NICHE] that helps them to [BENEFITS TO THE NICHE]. Who do you know who would be interested in learning more about a product like that? I would really appreciate any and all help.

Here is a good way to ask a Helper to assist you by becoming a business builder – join your team:

[HELPER], I got something to show you. I’m putting a team together and I’d like for you to be part of it. What we’re doing is working with a company that markets a product/service to [YOUR NICHE] that helps them to [BENEFITS TO THE NICHE]. I need you to review this [TOOL — DVD, CD, recording phone overview, magazine, brochure, website, etc.) and let me know by tomorrow if you'd like to join our team, okay?

There are also Heroes/Heroines. Heroes/Heroines are people that you look up to for the same reason that a Helper looks up to you. These are people like a good teacher, your doctor, lawyer, accountant, a respected business person that you know, etc.

Here is a good way to ask a Hero/Heroine to assist you by referring customers to help you grow your network marketing business:

[HERO/HEROINE], I know that you keep a busy schedule, but can you please do me a favor? I market a product/service to [YOUR NICHE] that helps them to [BENEFIT TO THE NICHE]. Who do you know who would be interested in learning more about a product/service like that? I would really appreciate any and all help, and any referrals you send my way will be given the utmost customer care. I will not embarrass you or let you down.

Here is a good way to ask a Hero/Heroine to assist you by becoming a business builder – join your team:

[HERO/HEROINE], I really respect you and your opinion. I know that you keep a busy schedule, but if you would be so kind as to squeeze in 15 minutes to review a [TOOL — DVD, CD, recorded phone overview, magazine, brochure, website, etc.). I'm looking for people that are interested in earning extra money from home in their spare time, by telling other people about the product/service explained in in/on the [TOOL]. Please let me know when you can get back to me on this, okay? I really appreciate your help.

Now, they may be interested themselves, but don’t approach them that way as there may be an ego situation going on. They are your hero/heroine, remember? What could you offer them. Also, do not let their less than favorable opinion about your company, and/or its products/services get you down. If you have thoroughly researched your company, and there is a lot of positive press, and/or it is positioned in a growing industry, don’t worry about it. Hey, they don’t know what they don’t know.

Finally, let’s talk about Haters. Haters are your peers — family, friends, neighbors, and coworkers. These are your warm market contacts. When dealing with your warm market, remember Napoleon Hill’s words from pages 140-141 in his book Think and Grow Rich: “Close friends and relatives…often handicap one through ‘opinions’ and…ridicule…meant to be humorous. Thousands of men and women carry inferiority complexes with them all through life, because some well-meaning but ignorant person destroyed their confidence through ‘opinions’ or ridicule.” Hmmm… Why do our companies and sponsorship lines tell us to go after our warm market? They talk about Napoleon Hill’s book all the time. Didn’t they read this passage from his book? Hmmm…

Anyway…

Your job with Haters is to inform them. This group is called Haters because they are the ones most likely to knock the average person out of the box. The key here is to not ask them directly for anything – it is not about them.

Here is a good way to ask a Hater to assist you by referring customers to help you grow your network marketing business:

[HATER], I started a business where I market a product/service to [YOUR NICHE] that helps them to [BENEFITS TO NICHE]. Who do you know who would be interested in learning more about a product/service like that?

If they say something slick, which it is very possible that they will, your response should be, “Well, I wasn’t asking YOU. I was asking who do you know who would be interested in learning more about a product/service like that.”

Here is a good way to ask a Hater to assist you by referring business builders to help you grow your network marketing business:

[HATER], I’m looking to make a change in my financial status and the quality of my life. I recently started my own business where I market a product/service to [YOUR NICHE] that helps them to [BENEFITS TO NICHE]. I’m looking to assemble a team to help me spread the word about this product/service. You may not be interested in this, but who do you know who would like to earn extra money in the spare time by helping to spread the word about this company? I have a [TOOL — DVD, CD, recorded phone overview, brochure, website, etc.) that I’ll give to them. So who do you know that would like to learn more about this?

So as Kim Klaver teaches, go pick a niche, and go for it. I’ll give you two examples how to identify a niche for your products/services.

Mr. GC is an insurance agent with New York Life. Here is his “quick pitch”: I help families with young children get their financial house in order and create inheritances for their loved ones.

Mrs. FR, Independent Associate with Pre-Paid Legal Services told me that one of her target niches/ideal customers are single moms in the Bronx. So, her “quick pitch” sounded like this: I market a service to single moms in the Bronx who would like to protect their family for less than the cost of a bottle of water a day. Who do you know who would be interested in learning more about a service like that?

I’m an Independent Distributor with Send Out Cards. One of my target niches customers are insurance agents. So my “quick pitch” sounds like this: I market a service to sales managers at real estate offices that helps their agents to triple the amount of referrals they currently receive. Who do you know who would be interested in learning more about a service like that?

Folks, I sincerely hope that this helps you get more customers and business builders. I look forward to learning from you all, and I am committed to sharing with you. Afterall, I am the Keeper of the ARC of the Covenant, you know.

A = Appreciate
R = Reward
C = Celebrate

Good trails and happy sales.