“Get Motivated” is the name of a recent business seminar I attended, along with 15,000 other people in Minneapolis. I would like to share some high points from that day.

Speakers included Zig Ziglar, Tom Hopkins, Joe Montana and Rick Belluzzo, the former president of Microsoft, among others. Rudy Giuliani concluded the day’s speakers.

Zig Ziglar, my all-time favorite, gave us food for thought and later asked some thought-provoking questions. He touched on the following topics:

  • To be successful, you first have to build trust, then deliver. Then be consistent in your dealings with people.

  • Expect is a powerful word. What are your expectations, and what are your expectations of yourself?

  • You don’t build business; people build businesses — so you must work on building people.

  • Is your “self talk” positive or negative?

  • Habits, good and bad, all have buddies. One habit will hitchhike onto others, so work on forming good habits and invite other good habits to come along.

  • Have a game plan for each day and for your life — and write it down.

Zig talked about a formal education and self-education and discussed one of his favorite topics: anytime you’re in the car, turn off the radio and turn on your tape or CD player and listen to the educators, trainers and motivators.

To contact Zig, call 800-527-0306.

Tom Hopkins talked about the art and importance of asking questions — thought-out and properly timed questions. He told us to master the art of questioning rather than making statements of fact.

Tom Hopkins gave five reasons to ask questions:

  1. to gain control,
  2. to isolate areas of interest,
  3. to resolve minor disagreements,
  4. to control emotions and
  5. to uncover hidden fears.

He also talked about another favorite subject of mine — words. There are “flinch” words and “clinch” words. Tom talked about some “fear” words. 1.) Price: This might encourage your listeners to look for a lower price. Instead of price, try “investment” or “total investment.” 2.) Down Payment: Try “initial investment.” 3.) Sell or sold: Try “acquire” or “help you acquire.” 4.) Sign here: Try “endorse,” “OK,” or “authorize.” 5.) Buy: Try “own.” 6.) Contract: Try “paperwork” or “agreement.” To contact Tom Hopkins, call 800-528-0446.

Joe Montana made two major points on the requirements for being successful in sports, business and life. They were:

    Preparation: Where have you heard that before in your sales career? Remember, “Failing to prepare is preparing to fail.”
    Trust: In the sales business, remember “no trust, no sale.” It does require time and effort to build that trust.

Rudy Giuliani was last. He got a standing ovation. In fact, I’m sure that if Rudy ran for president — at least in Minneapolis — he would be elected in a landslide. Rudy talked about his experience after September 11, 2001, and his battle with cancer. He suggested that whatever the challenge may be, knowledge is power. Get all of the knowledge you can get in order to help meet and beat problems. Rudy’s recent book covers these points, among others:

  1. Have strong beliefs and know what you believe in.
  2. You have to be an optimist to look for solutions. Don’t be part of the problem.
  3. Courage. By courage, Rudy suggests that you must control your emotions and stay focused on the solutions to the problem.

I highly recommend Rudy’s book, titled Leadership.

If a “Get Motivated” seminar comes to your town or if any one of these speakers is in your area, I highly recommend that you invest the time and attend.

To share your selling ideas, fax: (414) 228-1134, contact Mr. Dixon at (877) 379-3566 or e-mail.




POSTED ON: 2/1/2004