Wednesday, September 26, 2007

Success Tracking

I've been reading Bach's blog and the comments, and I've been doing something everyday for the last year that I think some of you may find useful. This is my own, personal way of keeping track of every single measurable action I take toward my goals in the growth of my business every single day. I've assigned a point value for each one of these activities to help me gauge my efficiency aswell. The following are the things I track daily:

Personal Development: (Always work on yourself more than your business)
1 pt. - Goals I set (Daily/Weekly)
1 pt. - Each 1/2 hour of Self-Help, Audio Training, etc. (This also includes Scripture Reading)

Personal Activity: (Important things that don't neccessarily move me forward.)
1 pt. - Phone Calls (Simply making the call)
1 pt. - Voice Messages
1 pt. - New Contacts
2 pts. - Place a "Tool" (Paphlet, DVD, CD, or something to inform my Prospect)
3 pts. - Long distance Packages (Info. via Mail to someone >100 miles away.)
1 pt. - On Conference Calls (with business partners and Executives to stay informed)
1 pt. - Contact my "Work-out" partner (to hold each other accountable for our actions and stay motivated)

Personal Productivity: (These are the things that lead to results!)
1 pt. - Phone Contact (Actually being able to reach the person you called)
2 pts.- Set an appointment
2 pts. - 3-way call (for prospect to speak to an expert, or a satisfied customer)
3 pts. - Presentations
4 pts. - Membership Sales
4 pts. - New Associate/Business Partner
5 pts. - Host a Private Business Reception / Attend a Weekly Business Briefing
5 pts. - Plan with new Associate / Help them earn 1st Paycheck.

Now, I obviously don't do all of these things every day, some I only do once or twice a week. Sometimes I only sell one membership a month. It doesn't matter. The thing that matters is that I'm working on my business and setting goals daily. (I normally get 20 points a day. These last couple of days, however, have been in the 50s) I actually graph it out every day in Excel and then depending on my daily total of points I know If I'm just going through the motions of owning a business (staying busy) or if I'm actually getting somewhere. Some think this approach is too complicated and will just use their income as their measuring stick. That's usually what most people do, and that's fine, but with business - like everything in life - you can't expect to harvest in the same season you plant. This is the reason 98% of all businesses shut down in their first 15 years: They aren't persistent, they let their emotions, friends, and family deceive them, and they give up too early. There must be time to cultivate. If you see it, others will too. Some will, some wont, so what. Don't give up on yourself or your ideas.

If you want to actually see how these charts work, get a hold of me personally and I'd be more than happy to show you. I just thought it might help someone the way it's helped me.

Monday, September 17, 2007

New York Backyard

Presenting my latest creations, the Brooklyn Bridge and the Statue of Liberty... out of card board and paper.

I'm actually the Project Manager for D&T Entertainment here in Southern Utah, and last week I put together some decorations we needed for a private event in someone's back yard. The customer only gave us two days notice, and this is proof to me that - in many cases - desperation leads to inspiration. D&T was put together by Devin Brooks and Terry Meeds, and we're the ones that will be doing many of the major high school dances and university events from here on out. Our first major event will be the "Cedar Sheek" hair show/competition held in November. (Keep your eyes open for details two to three weeks prior.) Anyway, just keeping you guys up with where my creativity is going. See you guys later!

Latest from the Natest

Hail friends! With school up and running again it's obvious that everyone has little time to dilly-dally around with lesser priorities. I've had a to-do list on my white board that has only grown over the last two weeks! So, today I've decided to check off some of those items. One of which is this post.

I recently attended an international convention for my company, Pre-Paid Legal, two weekends ago in Las Vegas. One of the truly amazing things about a home-based business convention is that you meet so many people who are less capable than you are (as far as circumstances and skills), achieving great success by simply applying proven systems and "doing the thing". It proves that after finding a solid company with a solid product, if you stick and stay you'll get your pay. Something you don't see too often is a network marketing company that is supported by attorney generals and the president of the National Chamber of Commerce. In fact, on Saturday Sep. 29th a documentary (not an infomercial) put together by many of the U.S. attorneys general about PPL will air Nationally on Court TV. It is the first of an educational series to better inform U.S. citizens about the changes in our legal system, and what our company is doing to help average-income americans obtain access to it. This is really big for me, guys. Please tune in Saturday morning (the 29th) at 9:00 if you can, so you can know a little bit more about the credibility of what it is I'm so proud to be a part of.

You guys are great! Things are going well, I'll talk to you guys later!