One of the most deadly traits that continues to sabotage your success is perfectionism.

What do I mean by that?

Well, this past Friday at our Chapter Event, we had a long time member of our group, very wonderful and fun person, although, very strange, because his name is Joe – Strange. He owns and operates the Mystery Café (learn about it at http://www.themysterycafeindy.com). …He stood up and rattled off three things he’s now doing to grow his business.
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And, to be honest, he said it with great pride, and more enthusiasm than I’ve seen him talk amongst the group in a while. For good reason – because “take-action successes and executions” are worth feeling good about.

Because he broke through this superstition of Perfectionism.

Now, whether you like it or not, believe in it or not, the Dictionary says the word superstition equals “irrational belief”.

And that’s exactly why I call Perfectionism this.

The real evil power behind this word and feeling is F E A R!

So, that’s why I say, it’ll kill Your goals, dreams, success, and money flow faster than anything else.

Just think about it for a moment – if you’d like, make a list of everything You continue to put off, things you think about, then discount with a ‘real’ reason.

Are there actions or ideas you hesitate on?
Ventures or relationships you avoid?
Opportunities you waste or ignore?
Money you leave on the table?

You can say, all you want, that your inaction is because you “want it all to be perfect” but you’d be wrong – believe me – I, we, are all alike, that’s why weEntrepreneurs have got to stick together, at least if we want to reach our ultimate potential, it’s impossible if left to our own demise.

It’s all about Fear.

There are obvious ways to break through it.

The way Mr. Strange has done it – a couple ways that I’ll speak on his behalf are

1. being around other entrepreneurs, month in and month out
2. expecting more from himself and his business
3. reading marketing and sales books and material
4. constantly thinking about the possibilities and opportunities
5. just doing it and letting the results be the judge
6. playing the game ONLY to win

Now, You’re wondering what exactly he has done.

For starters,
- he’s begun sending regular emails to his Customer Database.
- He now captures the names of his guests for future follow-up
- He’s sent paper and ink letters with promotions to his best customers

Now, whether or not that impresses You, doesn’t matter, what does, is that you ask yourself the question, HOW OFTEN ARE YOU DOING EACH OF THESE?

And, then, of course, remember back, before You were, if you are, and how big a break through it was for you!

Fear of results or lack their of.
Fear of opinion of other people.
Fear of failure.
Fear of feeling bad.
Fear of loss of money.

All of these and more play into our belief system.

Here’s what we should be afraid of:
FEAR of losing Opportunity
FEAR of losing Time
FEAR of losing the Money You should be Getting
FEAR of moving Slow

And get focused around these Fears that will drive you through Perfectionism and straight to the realization of your goals.

It’s a constant battle we all fight; do what Joe did and fight through it.

Scott Manning
President, Manning Methods
sj@manningmethods.com

What is the quickest way to add profit to your business? See Chapters 1, 2, and 3 of free e-book. Click here to access.

I want to review and give you 4 very specific reasons WHY this type of Marketing is guaranteed to get you more customers, get you more money from those customers, get you more referrals, and let you have a wonderfully fun time while doing it.

Outrageous Advertising and Marketing works because;

1. Outrageous gets attention, attention attracts money.

It Gets Noticed! In direct mail, we say “open and read”, same goes for email. Bottom line is this, no marketing matters if it doesn’t get NOTICED.

That’s of critical importance and the first thing that matters in any marketing.

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2. Outrageous gets involvement, involvement equals money.

Once something is noticed, the next most important thing is getting the reader, viewer, listener, customer involved in what they are doing, thinking, feeling.

Outrageous is the equivalent of appealing to the 5 senses, in a way. Involvement breads commitment, which leads to a buying decision.

3. Outrageous gets shared, sharing brings money.

If you are looking for a ways to generate referrals, leads, more loyalty, etc. You need not look any farther than this right here. When you are Outrageous, otherwise entertaining, You give people something to talk about, something to share, something to pass on.

The biggest reason why people suffer from lack of quality referrals is because they give their customers no reasons to do so. Outrageous changes all of that.

4. Outrageous is an experience…Outrageous is fun…fun makes money.

People, yes we all sell to people, find life boring, monotonous, and well, unexciting and uneventful. When you show up with something that breaks all that down and changes the mood, it naturally puts people in the mood to buy.

Plus, they like you more, they see your “human side” not “selling side” and that goes along way. When people have fun, they enjoy the experience, they want to buy from you.

What is Outrageous?

Outrageous is different, standoutish, something that meets all 4 of the Reason why it works. And the great part about this, is when you embrace this type of Marketing and Money Making style in your business YOU have fun too.

In reality, and I’ve said it before in many place, but, if you don’t find “the marketing of your business” the most fun thing you do, hands down, and find yourself always wanting to do more of it…you just aren’t doing something right.

Scott Manning

Manning on Manning – a Compliment from my Brother

Just the other day, my brother Ryan said to me, “You know, I see a lot of Peyton (Manning, no relation) in You.” I said thanks, taking it for an obvious compliment, and then asked what he meant.

And, he had been listening to Steve Young on ESPN analyze various players and commented that Peyton is “always in a hurry to get things done, he takes every single yard and play seriously.”

Now, Peyton is as calm as can be “in the pocket” so what Steve meant was not “rushed” but “in a hurry” as in URGENT – everything is URGENT – and must happen NOW!

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Success, as in Scoring points in Football, IS URGENT.

In fact, right now, ask yourself – “What Are You In A Hurry To Do – Right Now!”

I sure hope, for your sake, there is something…

Talking with my Private Coaching and Mastermind Members this past Monday on my Monthly Call-In Day – a couple of them said they feel “overwhelmed” with all they have to do.

I said – “THAT’S GREAT”

That means they are doing something.

And coming off of Back to Back – BILL GLAZER and Mastermind Meetings, you can only imagine the “action ideas” and “implementation” they are hurrying to execute.

Just look around You – anyone, doing anything, that leads to Success – is in a hurry to get it done. Success and Money live by DEADLINES and thrive with SPEED.

So, I very much appreciate my Brother’s compliment that he sees the same sense of URGENCY in me, that Steve Young commented on in Peyton Manning.

And as much as I wish it were this easy – trust me – it doesn’t run in the last name – you’ve got to create it, embrace it, nurture it, accept it, and thrive off of it!

You may or may not have ever heard this song; I used to sing it when I was younger…

I’m in a hurry to get things done
Oh I rush and rush until life’s no fun
All I really gotta do is live and die
But I’m in a hurry and don’t know why

Don’t know why I have to drive so fast
My car has nothing to prove
It’s not new
But it’ll do zero to sixty in five point two

I’m in a hurry to get things done
Oh I rush and rush until life’s no fun
All I really gotta do is live and die
But I’m in a hurry and don’t know why

Can’t be late, I leave in plenty of time
Shakin’ hands with the clock
I can’t stop
I’m on a roll and I’m ready to rock

I’m in a hurry to get things done
Oh I rush and rush until life’s no fun
All I really gotta do is live and die
But I’m in a hurry and don’t know why

Oh, I hear a voice
That says I’m running behind
Better pick up my pace
It’s a race and there ain’t no room for someone in second place

I’m in a hurry to get things done
Oh I rush and rush until life’s no fun
All I really gotta do is live and die
But I’m in a hurry and don’t know why

Well, I am sure glad I found out WHY – because that is what makes it all worth it.

The “WHY”…

I know You’ve got a lot of things You want to accomplish, success you are chasing, people you want to help, Money you want to make – so by golly, make it important enough that you are RUSHING to get it done.

I’ve taken the liberty to modify the song to better fit me, these days:

“I’m in a hurry to get things done, oh I rush and rush cause Life’s SO Fun!”
“Got so much to do before I die, getting rich is just one reason Why!”

I sure like the line about “it’s a Race and there ain’t no room for someone in second place”

I just betcha that would resonate with Peyton too.

Make your list of things you are in a hurry to do…and step on it.

Life sure isn’t getting any shorter, and there are people out there who need you, you ought to be in hurry to go out there and get ‘em.

The concept of the “add-on” is one that is elementary to sales people, a foundational method for increasing sales. This is the most basic level and probably one most companies teach and use within their sale process…the ultimate question; is it maximized and does it really generate additional profits?

I believe the a la carte style ordering is really unjust in most businesses. If you want to be a Client Service Expert and keep your people coming back for more, you’ve got to give them what they NEED, which is seldom satisfied by just providing what they WANT. The method I am alluding to is packaging and/or bundling products or services to increase the size of transactions.

Understanding that, you spend a certain amount of resources to acquire clients and get them to “raise their hand” to do business with you. Capitalizing on EVERY transaction level, whether initial, basic, or upgrade products or services is what all ridiculously profitable companies do. Maximize EVERY transaction.

First things First –
Take a look at your products and service and evaluate the things you know your clients need to effectively and completely utilize your service or product. Begin with your initial sale, or your core business, and start adding.

Keep in mind that add-ons are not necessarily the end-all of the sale, just an option that you (and your sales people if they are on the ball) know that every client should walk out with in addition to their additional purchase or they will be unjustly under-served! When you adopt that seriousness, you will come across in a way that is sincere and believable and your clients should feel as strongly about getting the add-on as you do about convincing them to make the purchase.

I will give two sets of examples, the blatantly obvious and then some to think about – finally I will explain how to implement and maximize this usually common-sense method of increasing your sales. Keep in mind that we’re not looking at this only in the way the common business does – add-ons are easy, typically done in all businesses, just not to the level you will be using in this valuable marketing method.

Reminder: two things on which we base everything.
1) Are we doing everything possible to do what is right for our clients and doing it in a way that goes overboard on service and blows away their expectations?
2) Is it going to be crazily profitable and a consistent, systematical integration to your business?
Examples–Blatantly Obvious:

Hair Salon:
$20 cut and style (standard) + $15 gel to
style with (add-on)
$50 perm (standard) + $30 color (add-on)

Restaurant:
$10 regular meal (standard) + $5 dessert or
appetizer (add-on)

Bookstore:
$12 book (standard) + $2 bookmark (add-
on)

Car Maintenance:
$30 oil change (standard) + $20 tire rotation
(add-on)

Some to think about it:

Hair Salon:
$32 cut, style and gel product (standard) +
Mirror, styling, comb, neck trimmers…

Restaurant:
$13.50 meal and appetizer + dessert special
to take home

Bookstore:
Buy 2 books – get bookmark of your choice
free

Car Maintenance:
Pick: Option 1 – oil change, car cleaning
Option 2 – oil change, car cleaning,
tire rotation
Option 3 – everything that’s needed,
no questions asked!

Put it together
By now you should be feeling much more in control of your business – so many business owners spend time thinking about everything, all the little details, etc. – just never paying any attention to the things, the main things that are responsible for your mere existence – revenue generating activities

All the details are important, but not if you aren’t making a profit. Nothing else matters! Take this add-on concept seriously and look at all the potential. I think every day about some-thing I heard on a tele-seminar with Dan Kennedy, “you condition the people you do business with to do business the way you want them to.” That’s right; your clients are condition-able. If you have effectively established your business in your market, then future clients and clients should trust whatever it is you ask them to do.