Todd Pillars

August 7, 2011 By Todd Pillars 8 Comments

Why the talk about being Authentic all of a sudden?

The Real Deal So I’m watching my Google+ stream and up pops Chris Brogan with I am not Authentic. Now, I’ve become an interested follower of Chris and this kind of perked my ears up a bit, especially in light of his recent interview with one of my mentors Bob Burg. Bob’s core principles include “The Law of Authenticity” and it’s one that I’ve struggled a bit with, too, until I understood it.

It’s also more than a little bit interesting because I’ve seen multiple posts about bloggers (or solo entrepreneurs that want to blog) embracing Authenticity. Here’s one by Tamsen McMahon that gets really close to the truth of the topic .

I agree with Chris that you shouldn’t strive for Authenticity. My feeling is that you either ARE authentic or you ARE NOT authentic. You are honest and sincere or you are disingenuous (at best), or misleading (at worst). And, by labeling yourself as being Authentic you are bringing that very honesty into question.

Most of the blog posts I’ve seen are using Authenticity to mean open or transparent. That misses the mark although those things are included in being Authentic. As I commented on Chris’ post, “Being authentic would be better misused to mean congruent as opposed to open or honest.”

Congruence, I believe, is the cornerstone to Authenticity. Sometimes this means taking a stand. Sometimes it means not agreeing with everyone (or anyone). Being Authentic doesn’t mean you are always right, but it does mean that you’re not afraid to share your point of view. Being congruent is what allows people to make the decision to align with you or your beliefs.

My grandfather, the late Ivan Pillars, Sr., drummed into us, “Always tell the truth and you only have one story to remember.” Consistently telling your truth, your story, is what brings people closer to you.

Consistently expressing your congruence is what builds a community.

UPDATE: Brian Clark over on Copyblogger just extended the topic of Authenticity. Go take a look http://www.copyblogger.com/authentic-marketing

Please share your thoughts in the comments below.

May 11, 2011 By Todd Pillars Leave a Comment

Potential; The difference in being a hero and not

potential po·ten·tial (pə-těn’shəl)
adj.
Capable of being but not yet in existence; latent.

Heroes do not have potential.

Heroes run when their legs shouldn’t be able to support them.

Heroes do the nitty-gitty things that cause normal people turn their eyes away or noses up.

Heroes get in the game even when the odds of success are stacked against them.

Heroes step up to the responsibility and teach, comfort, discipline and nurture our future.

Heroes get shit done. They are spent, exhausted, and they do it EVERY! SINGLE! DAY!

Do you have potential? How do you feel about that?

Filed Under: Leadership Development, Personal Development Tagged With: achievement, beliefs, genuine, goals, just do it, Personal Development, values

March 16, 2011 By Todd Pillars Leave a Comment

You know what I mean?

Um, yes… but the way that you ask I refuse to answer you.

Lazy salespeople and marketers have, for some reason only known to the high mucky-muck of gurus, decided that the assumptive close must be further simplified. Let’s call it the implied close. Here’s a recent example:

I get a phone call from a relative that I’ve not heard from in well over a year. “I’ve got an exciting opportunity that will help you take care of your family for years to come”, he says.
“That’s nice”, says I.
“Times are tougher than when we were kids”, he continues, “we have to prepare for OUR kids future. YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN?”.
“Sure”, I replied.
“Great, I’ll email a link over to you and we can get started. Just click on it…” (There’s real excitement in his voice).
STOP.

I probably wouldn’t have been so abrupt but early that day I had a similar conversation about making an introduction. It went something like this:

“Do you have direct access to Tom?”, asked the caller.
“Yes”, I said.
“It makes you look important when you interview well-known people. YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN?”, said the caller.
“YES”, I said.
“When can you introduce me to Tom?”, asked the caller.
Um.

“You know what I mean?” is not a closing technique. It’s a (weak) rapport building question, IMO, as there are much better ways to build rapport quickly.

The lesson of the day? If you don’t want to come across as a cheesy or manipulative salesperson please try not to use “you know what I mean?” as a period to end your sentence.

Filed Under: Business Development, Direct Sales, Leadership Development, Personal Development, Sales Tagged With: closing techniques, genuine, Sales, sales close, sales management

August 3, 2010 By Todd Pillars 2 Comments

Are You Acting Like a Scared 9-Year-Old?

You’re standing on the playground and it’s the first day of school. You know exactly two people – your little brother and the lady that says she’s your new teacher – neither beneficial to making new friends. You’re scared stiff and you’re at a crossroads… Do I act like them? Or, do I be myself? What’s the best way to get them all to like me?

Wisdom tells us you can’t please everyone. However, it can be tough to call some entrepreneurs wise. It’s been my experience working with first time business owners and salespeople that it’s instinctual to group “everyone” into the “user of my product/service” category. We want everyone to fall in love with our wares. It’s also been my first-hand experience that no, not everyone is your ideal prospect (or client, partner, etc). Some customers can actually cost you money! How, you ask?

By being so different from you, and most importantly your core values and beliefs, that you are forced to repeatedly convince them why they need you. Then you have the added burden of selling them your product or service. Then you have to constantly reinforce their decisions just to retain them. Have you recognized your worst clients yet?

So what’s to do about it? Repeat after me: “Just like them”.

Be yourself. Be genuine, heartfelt, grateful. Be true to your beliefs. Be nice. And be visible in the marketplace doing all those things. Show people how much they will benefit by you being in their lives. Show them how they’ll be treated as part of your group. Show them how you value the same things they do and believe in the same things they do. They’ll be much more open-minded to hearing about how your product or service can help them. You’ll be surrounded by people that are just like you. And they’ll bring people just like them to hear your message. And they’ll bring more just like them…

Oh, and be polite. Say “Please” and “Thank You!”

Please visit here again.

Thank YOU for being here NOW!

[Originally posted at http://www.jerrykennedy.com]