The first two and a half years I was in sales, I lived in the world of peaks and valleys — with very few peaks.
Every year, the last week in August, our company had a “national booster week” when we were encouraged to do nothing but sell, sell, sell. It proved to be a life-changing experience for me.
During that first national booster week, after I finally hit my stride, I sold over two and a half times as much as I had ever sold in a single week. When the week ended I drove to Atlanta, Georgia, to spend the night with Bill Cranford, who had brought me into the business. I arrived at about three a.m., and for the next two and a half hours I gave Bill all the minute details of my marvelous week — a word-by-word, non-stop description of every call I had made. Bill patiently smiled, nodded his head and said, “That’s good! That’s good!”
At about 5:30 or 6:00 a.m., I realized that I had not even asked Bill how he or his business was doing. I was terribly embarrassed. I said, “Bill, I’m sorry! I have just been talking about me. How are you doing?” Bill, as only he could, graciously said, “Zig, don’t give it a thought! As pleased as you are with your results this week, you’re not nearly as proud as I am. You see, Zig, I recruited you, taught you the fundamentals, encouraged you when you were discouraged, counseled you and watched you grow and mature. Zig, you will never know how I feel until you have experienced the joy of teaching, training, and developing someone else who does well.”
In retrospect, I realize that was the beginning of the development of the concepts on which I’ve built my life and career, namely that you can have everything in life you want if you will just help enough other people get what they want. Give that philosophy a try and I’ll see you at the top!
____________
Zig Ziglar was a motivational speaker and author. His work continues to inspire people all over the world to pursue success and go for their dreams. Learn more about him at www.ziglar.com
* Zig Ziglar is the author of the success classic, See You At The Top.
Josh’s Commentary: What do you think of the ideas shared in the article above? I think there’s a powerful message in the importance of encouraging and building up others. Truly, when we help others to be the best they can be, we can’t help but benefit (if even only indirectly) in some way as well… It’s your life, LIVE BIG! – Josh Hinds