I remember back to the ‘90s when I was making a major move from the East Coast to the West Coast. I had plans to end up in San Francisco, and no idea I would be in Dallas, but that’s another story for another day.
While I was preparing for my move, I was not able to sell off or get rid of some things that I just could not take with me. There was some furniture and other miscellaneous things. Most of the items I left with family and a friend of mine jumped to help with the furniture. I thought it was no problem to them, and that is what the wife of this couple led me to believe: it was not problem; just leave it with her.
It was many years later as I was trying to tie up loose ends that I realized they still had the furniture. No agreement had been made for them to purchase it and I had someone in the area who could bring it to me on a trip they were making. It’s when I made the phone call to get the two parties to meet that I found out this had all been a hassle on their end, something I never knew of.
I mention this story because all too often these situations never get communicated, and with great intentions many of us believe we are paying it forward to help. With the communication being dropped, the person helping never gets the help back in return.
I was surprised to learn that I was considered a “pay-it-forward” person from a friend and fellow speaker who I admire. I heard that person say this while I was making a recording for a radio show of theirs at a recent event.
As coaches, we are taught from others that we are to pay it forward; we are to give free content, a speech with training material, a free coaching session (or sample session) in hopes to then try to sell a larger package or turn the potential client into a paying client.
Paying it forward is just part of the marketing process, but as my story showed you above, there are always some things that you cannot plan for. When people just keep coming for the free content and never want to make the investment, does this make you feel like giving up?
I know some people in the industry who will point out every person who has taken advantage of them. They will not forget that it’s part of the process. Some people are never going to take the action to correct or improve their lives. They will never invest to make their businesses grow.
So how do we solve this problem? We keep doing what we are doing and we do more of it. If you follow the old sales process, you know that if you are not making enough sales, then you need to make more sales presentations. The next thing is to let go of those that do not invest. Yes it’s easy to be upset. But think back to the value of your service or program and know the value is far more than forcing them to buy when they are not ready.
And that takes us into tomorrow’s post about the idea of paying it forward and karma. Come back tomorrow for another story about changes and how people are short-selling their success.
I’m Tim Gillette, the Rocker Life Coach. It’s time to live your dream, to love what you do and the life you live. Are you making changes to make 2013 rock?
