How do we explain the fact that two equally talented people
sometimes produce dramatically different results?
Some people believe success is the result of talent or
education, or "being in the right place at the right time."
Some of us think it has to do with "who you know", or
(let's be honest) that luck plays a part.
Well, I don't think "luck" has much to do with it. Instead,
I believe that some people have learned to do the right
things, in the right way, at the right time, and attract
the things they want in life. To me, that is not luck! It
is a skill, and it can be learned.
A few years ago, I read that a small group of top sales
people in a large insurance company earned 54 times more
than the "average" salesperson in the same company. Think
of that--some people earned 54 times more per year than
their colleagues who were selling the same products for the
same company, with the same training. How could that be?
Were those top salespeople 54 times smarter or 54 times
more talented? Would you argue they were 54 times luckier?
Of course not!
It turns out, the difference in income was almost entirely
the result of "small differences that made all the
difference."
Now, the top sales people DID make more calls per day--but
they did not make 54 times more calls, just a few extra
calls. The top people did return calls more promptly and
had slightly better phone skills. The top people read more,
and had a better understanding of their products, and were
perhaps better at communicating with prospects.
The essential piece, however, is that the things that
mattered were the ordinary, routine skills that every
salesperson has to master. It was the "little things" that
made all the difference!
If you watch the Olympics, the Super Bowl or NBA play-offs,
you see this principle in action. The winners are not
necessarily more talented, younger, stronger or richer.
Often the difference between winners and losers is a minor
slip, or a moment of distraction. The winners are not 54
times better, or even twice as good. The difference between
a gold medal and no medal is a tiny difference that makes
all the difference!
Winners work for perfection in the small things. They pay
more attention, they smile more, they read more, they get
up earlier and stay a bit later. They don't necessarily
work harder, but they do focus on quality, on performance,
on the "winning edge." So can you!
The keys to success are not talent or wealth or luck or
education. Someone once told me that winners are "ordinary
people, doing ordinary things, extraordinarily well." I
love that phrase and keep it on my desk every day. Today,
do the ordinary tasks and routines of your life with
extraordinary precision, with extraordinary energy, humor,
warmth and passion. These are the keys to long-term
success!
sometimes produce dramatically different results?
Some people believe success is the result of talent or
education, or "being in the right place at the right time."
Some of us think it has to do with "who you know", or
(let's be honest) that luck plays a part.
Well, I don't think "luck" has much to do with it. Instead,
I believe that some people have learned to do the right
things, in the right way, at the right time, and attract
the things they want in life. To me, that is not luck! It
is a skill, and it can be learned.
A few years ago, I read that a small group of top sales
people in a large insurance company earned 54 times more
than the "average" salesperson in the same company. Think
of that--some people earned 54 times more per year than
their colleagues who were selling the same products for the
same company, with the same training. How could that be?
Were those top salespeople 54 times smarter or 54 times
more talented? Would you argue they were 54 times luckier?
Of course not!
It turns out, the difference in income was almost entirely
the result of "small differences that made all the
difference."
Now, the top sales people DID make more calls per day--but
they did not make 54 times more calls, just a few extra
calls. The top people did return calls more promptly and
had slightly better phone skills. The top people read more,
and had a better understanding of their products, and were
perhaps better at communicating with prospects.
The essential piece, however, is that the things that
mattered were the ordinary, routine skills that every
salesperson has to master. It was the "little things" that
made all the difference!
If you watch the Olympics, the Super Bowl or NBA play-offs,
you see this principle in action. The winners are not
necessarily more talented, younger, stronger or richer.
Often the difference between winners and losers is a minor
slip, or a moment of distraction. The winners are not 54
times better, or even twice as good. The difference between
a gold medal and no medal is a tiny difference that makes
all the difference!
Winners work for perfection in the small things. They pay
more attention, they smile more, they read more, they get
up earlier and stay a bit later. They don't necessarily
work harder, but they do focus on quality, on performance,
on the "winning edge." So can you!
The keys to success are not talent or wealth or luck or
education. Someone once told me that winners are "ordinary
people, doing ordinary things, extraordinarily well." I
love that phrase and keep it on my desk every day. Today,
do the ordinary tasks and routines of your life with
extraordinary precision, with extraordinary energy, humor,
warmth and passion. These are the keys to long-term
success!
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