More Than a Golf Lesson
It's not a secret that I love to play golf. In fact, I can even enjoy myself when I'm not playing well. However, when the gap between what I know I'm capable of and the results I'm actually producing gets too big, I seek help. This is actually pretty good advice for any situation in life. Fortunately, my swing coach is nearby and it doesn't take too long for us to schedule something together.
I was trading texts with him about what I thought I was doing wrong (really attempting to be able to solve the issue on my own before we could meet because I didn't want to wait). I knew it was something in my backswing, but I just couldn't feel the issue. What he got out of me after a brief exchange was that I really felt like I was trying too hard, and that was leading to some really bad habits.
"What's your intensity level when you're playing?" he responded. "Let's take a look at that when we get together."
After stumbling upon a solid fix for my backswing while I was warming up, which changed the trajectory of the lesson entirely, he went back to the intensity subject.
"Hit this shot like it's the most important shot you've ever hit and everything depends on it. We'll call that intensity level 10 out of 10."
I did, and while it wasn't the worst shot I'd ever hit, it wasn't the best either. He then asked me to hit the same shot with an intensity level of 1, basically as if I was out there with my buddies not really keeping score or paying close attention. Another mediocre, if not poor, result.
"Now I want you to get to level 5. Be focused, but don't be so tied to the result."
Boom. Stripe show. A towering five iron with a little draw that covered all the distance I needed and landed like a butterfly on a rose petal.
"I knew that was going to happen," I told him, and he just smiled.
We talked further on the concept, and I told him that my default intensity level on the course is a 7 or 8. I expect to play well every time I'm out. Mistakes happen, situations compound on themselves, and often, before too long, I'm on full tilt- like a 12.
"But you make your best swings when you're at a 5..."
Point made, lesson learned. Thank you for indulging the story, but I think you see the parallels to your business, right? If you're too tuned up; when you want it too badly; you actually don't perform as well as you could.
If you focus on a process, you get results. If you focus on results, you get frustrated.
I don't recall where I first saw that, but I really like it and I use it a lot.
Results matter, they always do, but when you tie yourself too closely to a result, you tend to get a little more emotionally involved than you need to be, and that can easily knock you off your game.
I don't know what intensity level you operate on at default in your business, but if you've been at it for any length of time, you probably have a good idea, and I'm willing to bet that it's not at either extreme of the scale. Once you know where that level is, you need to do your best to be aware of where you are in relation to it. Remember last week when I referred to Star Wars and Obi-Wan Kenobi? I'm not saying you have to have an ultra-low resting heart rate, but you should know what your emotional state is like when you perform your best, and you need to be in that state as often as possible.
Frankly speaking, I think a lot of startups fail because they're either pushing too hard or taking too many things for granted- signs that they don't know where their best "level" is. Regardless of the product, the tech, and even the messaging, if the execution is poor, it's tough to win. You can't execute properly if you're not in the right frame of mind.
Operating in the middle of the scale is easier said than done. It requires stable emotions, including trust in the process you're working through as well as in the work that you've already put in. I was always a more accurate ballplayer when I threw the ball rather than aim it. I'm a better golfer when I swing the club rather than steering it.
You're a better salesperson when you're in the moment and engaged, rather than trying to force an outcome that isn't appropriate or ready to happen yet.
Think about the sales you've made after you've already covered your number for the month, or when you're on a hot streak and you feel like you can't miss. That state of flow is a lot of fun, and you can put yourself there a lot more often if you can stop pressing, divorce yourself from the results, and focus instead on your process.
Do what's necessary to let things happen more than trying to make them happen, and I think you'll like the outcomes a lot better.
What do you think? Join the conversation in the Rethink The Way You Sell Community.
Jeff Bajorek
Real. Authentic. Experience.
There’s a big difference between knowing how to sell and being able to. Jeff Bajorek spent over a decade in the field as a top performer. He’s been in your shoes. He knows what it will take. He can help you succeed.
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