Coach Dan Foster

Every year in July my team and I take time to reflect on the first half of the year and all it has brought forth. Reflecting on the past is not something we do as often as we should. Perhaps the past is full of pain or sorrow and the thought of remembering the struggles and challenges is too difficult. Often though, we don’t reflect because we just don’t take the time. We are so caught up in dealing with the tyranny of the urgent we forget what we were doing just a few hours maybe even minutes ago. This year I’ve asked my team to reflect on the first half of the year and I’ve provided them with the following five questions to help them in this process.

We all have those days when nothing seems to be going right and the world is literally against us. The words people use, their actions, and their body language tell us “you suck!” and are the cause of what I’m going through and pain I’m experiencing right now. Whether you are to blame or not, there are days when you will be treated badly for no reason. The question we have to wrestle with and answer is, “How do we respond in times like this?” Should we lash out and attack back or endure, knowing that we are innocent?

The world of sales is a complicated one right now. There are new regulations, tax implications, guidelines that have to be followed, and service expectations that need to be met. While information is readily available, certain clients still do not know how to protect their interests and negotiate a successful closing of a sale. Now more than ever, clients need sales professionals that are great advocates for them, take on their vision, and help them achieve their goals.

The first quarter of the year is in the records books. If you have a goal of living a life and running a business with purpose, then you know how important a 90 day review of your overall progress and results can be. I’ve blogged in the past about the simple and powerful exercise called Keep – Start – Stop. I highly recommend this exercise to those I coach and everyone on my team. Next week though, I am going to be asking myself and my team one key question, “Who hasn’t heard your message?”

Building trust with clients is extremely challenging in a world where people are becoming more and more cynical about corporations and professional service providers. One mistake (or perceived mistake) and trust can be lost in a matter of seconds over Twitter, Facebook, or a chat room. Because of this, having a strategy to deliver your message and build trust with your clients is more important than ever.

We have to be careful not to force a confidence or trust onto someone that is not prepared to give us either. In a world of instant gratification, learning how to effectively build trust over time can be tough. You see, people have to hear your message before they can begin to trust you. And, they cannot just hear it once or in one particular way. They need to hear it repeatedly and in many different ways. Consider these five strategies for delivering your message and building trust with clients: