Sustaining Mind [Re] Set with Creative Visualization
Resetting our mind consistent with the three essential characteristics of The Rainmaker’s Brain is the first component of Crux Rainmaking (CR). Our ability to get the most out of the other two components of CR is wholly dependent on not only so resetting our mind, but sustaining that “reset” for the long-term. While the initial reset is possible for anyone with a little focus and dedication to doing so, long-term sustainability can be a bit more tricky, though not impossible. I have already discussed the critical role of Accountability in this process. In addition to properly providing for Accountability in your business development life, there is yet another great tool for achieving long-term Mind [Re] Set, namely, Creative Visualization.
Communication from Our Minds to Our Bodies
While there is ample literature on the subject of Creative Visualization, my personal favorite is by Shakti Gawain, Creative Visualization: Use the Power of Your Imagination to Create What You Want in Your Life (New World Library, Nataraj 2002). In this very workable and succinct book on the topic, Gawain sets out a simple process to form images and thoughts in our mind and then transmit them to our body as signals or commands. When considered in the context of CR, Creative Visualization can be a very powerful tool for sustaining Mind [Re] Set for the long-term.
The 4 Steps of Creative Visualization
Using Creative Visualization in the context of CR is easy. It can be done anywhere, anytime. Here are the four general steps to creative visualization, as explained by Gawain:
1. Set your goal, at first something that is fairly easy to believe in. In the context of CR, start with Passion, Commitment, or Confidence (pick one). For example, if you choose Passion, your goal could be to let your inherent passion for what you do come out more fully when speaking with potential clients, customers, or donors, as the case may be.
2. Create a clear picture or idea of the object or situation exactly as you want it to be. In the context of CR, and assuming you chose Passion, picture yourself in a meeting with a prospect, oozing with passion for what it is you are selling, through your words and body language.
3. Focus on your goal often to make it an integrated part of your life. It is in going through this process on a regular basis that you start to make Mind [Re] Set a part of your daily business life.
4. Give your goal positive energy by thinking about it in a positive, encouraging way. You do this through a positive affirmation, a short mantra said either aloud or internally to yourself. For example, if you chose Passion, you might say something like, “My passion for ________ is strong and is coming out of me through my words and body language.” Always state your affirmations in the present (i.e., “is”), as opposed to prospectively (i.e., “will be”).
Use this simple process on a regular basis, every day or every other day, for a few minutes at a time. Use it anywhere and anytime. After you use Creative Visualization for one of the three characteristics of the The Rainmaker’s Brain, use it for the other two characteristics. Then practice Creative Visualization interchangeably among the three characteristics. Do this often and your mind will stay reset properly for the long-term, allowing you to truly maximize the other two components of CR!
J.B.
Read MoreCaring and the Unique Business Relationship
Inherent in the concept of Unique Business Relationships (UBRs) is the idea of truly caring about the other person. Sincerely caring about the needs, desires, and goals of a prospect, existing client, or referral source will establish a genuine and honest foundation upon which a UBR can be built.
My good friend, Mark Peysakhovich, Senior Director of Government Relations for the American Heart Association (AHA) in Chicago reminded me recently about the old saying:
“People don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.”
Mark truly cares about the cause of the AHA. He and the other great people who champion the search for a cure to heart disease and stroke care deep down about what they are doing. And that sincerity translates into a powerful ability to communicate to donors nationwide the profound need for financial support to combat the number one killer in the United States.
We, too, must genuinely care about our cause, our clients, and our customers. We need to care about the people with whom we are doing business, and from whom we would like business. We need to honestly care about their business, the people who are important in their lives, their vision for the future, their concerns, their need for our service or product, etc.
Assuming we do care about these things, how do we manifest that caring with others? Simple. We empathize with them, we listen to them, we acknowledge them, we ask questions to get to the heart of the matter, we work to get into rapport with them, and we follow through with what we promise.
When others trust that we care about them, they will start to care about us. They will reward us with their business and friendship.
J.B.
Read MoreA Practical Method to Affect Lasting Biz Dev Change!
Resetting our minds consistent with the 3 essential characteristics of The Rainmaker’s Brain is critical to maximizing our ability to exponentially increase our business generation. But how do we do that? How do we practically become more passionate, more committed, and more confident? It is one thing to say it, but how do we do it? I often hear that some professionals just can’t seem to change. They never adopt the right habits to make business development more of a priority, they can’t quite seem to hit their business development stride, and they are too busy with their day-to-day work tasks to devote the necessary time to developing their own book of business. These professionals need a way to affect lasting change in their professional lives that will truly empower them to achieve business development success.
Digging Deeper
I recently shared a few thoughts about shifting your mindset around sales. But let’s dig deeper. How do we actually affect lasting change in our lives (e.g., change our passion, commitment, and confidence levels from where they are now to where we want them to be)?
Why People Change
In reality, there are only two reasons why people change. They want to attain pleasure or avoid pain. Every human change has one or both of these reasons at its core. If someone is warned by a doctor that he or she will suffer a painful illness, followed potentially by death, unless dietary changes are made, it is amazing how that person changes his or her diet—overnight. We change our dating habits if we want to enjoy a monogamous romantic relationship (i.e., stop dating other people) because of the unique pleasure achieved by being with that special person. Thus, if we want to truly affect change in our business development lives, we need to tie such change to either attaining pleasure or avoiding pain. Unfortunately, avoidance of pain is much more powerful in affecting lasting change than the desire for pleasure.
An Example
In an effort to keep this post short, I will provide one example (although I would like to explore many more examples in the future). Let’s say that you want to become more committed to the process of rainmaking, which is the 2nd essential characteristic of The Rainmaker’s Brain. Again, sounds simple enough, but to truly affect lasting change and become more committed, tie it to attaining pleasure or avoiding pain. Let’s take a look at pain.
Considering Pain
Think about pain in the context of business development this way: assume you are great at what you do (e.g., a great attorney, accountant, banker, broker, etc.), but have not developed a significant book of your own business. If you remain where you are right now, then here’s the pain you may likely feel down the line:
1. Limited salary (i.e., an artificial ceiling) for the rest of your career.
2. Risk of being fired when economic conditions are less than ideal.
3. Limited (perhaps non-existent) influence in the way your organization is governed.
4. Limited mobility (from organization to organization).
5. Limited control over your day-to-day work schedule.
6. Resentment of your job as other, more “valuable” colleagues pass you up financially.
7. Increased professional fatigue (due to lack of variety and excitement).
8. Substantially reduced ability to acquire the physical possessions you desire.
9. Substantially reduced leisure time.
10. Unnecessary financial stress.
Is This The Life You Want?
Do any of the above sound like much fun? Do you ever think about these things, or the potential for these things to happen in your life? I postulate that we all should be thinking about these things. We don’t want them. They are painful. For some of us, they will be more painful than others. In these tough economic times, the reality of these things is even more acute.
Think for a second about whether you want these painful realities in your life, or not. Actually think often about them. It is all too easy to get comfortable in our jobs, and ignore these painful realities. But it is only when we do focus on them, and acknowledge them, that we can make the decision to change. We can determine, once and for all, to be and remain truly committed to the process of rainmaking, so we can achieve financial and professional success, and all the happiness and excitement that follows.
Change Today
Thinking just about the pleasure that can be achieved by bringing in more business, honestly, is not as compelling for most people that thinking through the above painful consequences from not securing a significant book of business that will greatly increase your value to your organization. We need to be reminded that if we do nothing and remain where we are, we are potentially headed for the painful realities set forth above. So, change today, and be more committed to the process of building your business.
Use This Method Often
Use the method above to affect other changes in your professional life. Identify the painful realities of doing nothing—of not changing. Then ponder those things for a while. Is that the life you want? Or do you desire a life filled with greater pleasure, happiness, and financial freedom?
J.B.
Read More3 Steps To Shift Your Mindset Around Sales
The ability to reset your mind is a key component of successful rainmakers. But how is this “resetting” done? What does one have to do to get started? A mindset is a belief system. It is what it is (due to various factors up to now), until changed. Here’s how to start changing that belief system to get aligned with the essential characteristics of The Rainmaker’s Brain:
Recognition
First, take time to recognize what your belief system is. Essentially, when faced with a situation, take note of exactly what you are thinking and feeling. Are you excited about going out to pitch a particular piece of business? Are you fearful of the outcome of your pitch, namely, do you fear failure? Are you nervous? Is your nervousness driven by past experiences trying to win business? Etc. Be in touch with where you are right now in your mind as to your ability and potential to be successful in the context of the particular business development situation.
Determination
Second, understand that you have the ability to determine your reaction to your recognized belief system. Don’t think you can compete with a certain competitor because you don’t have as much experience? Then determine to focus on those positive things that distinguish you from your competition which far outweigh experience. Not feeling too excited about making another sales call? Then dig down and remember why you got into your line of work to begin with. Remember that you once loved what you do and can determine to feel that way again. Determine your attitude. Take control back. You have that ability.
Action
Third, don’t hesitate. Take action NOW! Do something that follows through on your determined response to your original belief system. Make a list of those distinguishing factors, and meet with a prospect ASAP. Go over those factors early in the conversation. In your next meeting with a prospect, tell them a story about why you got into your business to begin with. People love to hear positive, uplifting stories. Communicate that passion to your prospect right away.
Use these 3 steps to start resetting your mind. As you start to practice doing this on a regular basis, you will, in fact, be more Passionate, Committed, and Confident! What other things can you do to reset your mind?
J.B.
Read MoreThe Intrinsic Power of Mind [Re] Set
As you know, the first idea or concept of Crux Rainmaking is Mind [Re] Set. We need to reset our minds consistent with the essential characteristics of The Rainmaker’s Brain, namely, Passion, Commitment, and Confidence. Sounds simplistic. And it is. The mind has the potential of being either our greatest ally or barrier to business development success. It frames our world when we seek business and drives our results more than we think.
Norman Vincent Peale said, “Change your thoughts and you change your world.” The Power of Positive Thinking (Prentice Hall Inc. 1955) author was not only extremely perceptive, he was practical. Our thoughts are within our control. The facts (or reality of a situation) may not be within our control, but our thoughts about them most certainly are. It is up to us to determine what our attitude will be as to a particular situation.
Here’s the most extreme example I can think of: One of my favorite books of all time is Dr. Viktor Frankl’s Man’s Search for Meaning (Pocket Books 1963). In it Dr. Frankl recounts his experience imprisoned in Auschwitz and other concentration camps for years and how he struggled for reasons to live. He was able to survive by taking control of his attitude toward the situation. His story is a deeply moving one, and I have never forgotten it.
Another quick example of the practical power of the mind (in this case to limit us) is an example I heard years ago about golf. For a lot of golfers, there is usually one club in the bag that is perceived as the hardest to hit with. For many golfers, that would be the 3 wood. But when you think about it, the swing is the same, the head of the club does the work per usual, the grip is the same, etc. But the mind of the golfer has framed the golfer’s negative attitude or perception of that particular club, and the golfer avoids using it!
These examples are but a couple that illustrate the point that the mind is much more powerful in framing our ability to either deal with a situation or not.
Many professionals who attempt to exponentially increase their business are looking at business development like that 3 wood mentioned above. They have framed their minds a certain way, and may not even know it. It is just the way they have conditioned their minds to perceive the concept of business development and their potential (or limitations) to achieve great success.
Use Crux Rainmaking to sensitize yourself to the power of mindset when it comes to developing your business. Remember that many people will not be resetting their minds. They will perceive the 3 wood as they always have, and will avoid it or use it with hesitation. They are your competition. Determine to reset your mind to be passionate about what you do for a living, to be committed to the process of rainmaking, and to be confident in your ability to not only get a new client, customer, or donor, as the case may be, but to take care of them far better than your competitors.
Reset your mind, and radically improve your business development world!
J.B.
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