Picking Up Your End of the Stick

If you won’t help yourself, then no one else will help you as much as they might otherwise.

If you won’t act on your own behalf, you make it difficult for others to intervene on your behalf.

If you don’t believe that you need to do something, to take some action to further towards your own goals and ambitions, others are less likely to throw themselves into helping you.

There are certain things that no one can—or should—do for you.

• If you are not willing to prospect and create new opportunities, then additional training, additional tools, and additional coaching aren’t going to help you. You have to be willing to get uncomfortable and do what is necessary. Your sales manager and sales leaders can’t do your work for you.
• If you aren’t willing to prepare for a sales call, you make it difficult for your prospective client to help you understand their needs or to create a compelling case for change. If the first question you ask is, “So what does your company do,” you are difficult to help.
• If you won’t put forth the effort to read and study your business, your client’s business, and the general issues impacting your prospective client’s business, your marketing department may provide you with a slide of compelling reasons your dream client should change. But, you won’t have the chops to engage in a conversation with your dream client, least of all the ones who need a really trusted advisor to fill in their gaps.

No one can provide you with the internal motivation you need to wake up when the alarm clock rings, foregoing 9 minutes of extra sleep so you can hit the gym before work.

No one can make you do the most difficult—or most important—tasks first thing each day, ensuring that you can call your day productive and successful before 9:00 AM each day.

No one can be “willing” for you. You have to be that for yourself.

There are plenty of people who would love to help you. They will give you the answers. They will model success for you. They will even pick up the other end of the stick for you. But if you don’t pick up your end of the stick, you are refusing their help.

If you want help, start by helping yourself. You’ll be surprised by how much other people will help when they see you helping yourself.