Check Your Watch. What Time Is It? - Bob Sherman - MediaBizBloggers

If it is any time between, let's say, 8 A.M. and, oh, 6 P.M. you are, and this doesn't make you a bad person, a typical seller (executive). Hey, please believe me. I write these blogs solely to give you some things to think about with the hope that they will inform and inspire you so that you can rise above the pack, not to insult you.

I'll bet that long restaurant lunches and movie matinee revenues have steadily declined over the past decade and a half, commensurate with the growth of time spent with emailing (outgoing or incoming). I'm not a shrink but have always been interested in, and an observer of, the qualities that separate the average from the uncommon and remarkable performers, whether they be account executives or CEOs.

Clearly, a key discerning factor is the use of time, a commodity in very short supply.

Have you ever heard anyone comment that what they like about selling is that they are not bound to a desk? I'm pretty sure that for most sellers, not being bound to a desk means that they are free to roam about, most of the time, surely, to generate sales, but also with the ancillary benefit of their activity not being scrutinized by management in real time. "Hey Charlie, free for lunch today? Let's grab a martini at P.J.'s." Or a quick walk with looks over the shoulder to the noon showing of "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid." Back row, corner seat, of course. Ah, the good old days.

Today, reading and writing emails eliminates the queasy aftereffects of bygone long liquid lunches and the sheepish feeling associated with movie adventures. Today, you sit at your desk, look, and in fact are, busy. The only issue is whether all of the busy computer work is doing anything more than self medicating a lack of direction, work ethic or motivation. Every email you open during the day that is not URGENT, I mean really URGENT, results in under-utilization of your most precious commodity...TIME! What about researching customer issues, you ask? What about customer communications? The test is easy. Can these activities be done at night? After dinner? After helping with homework? After the "How was your day?" and "What's on your platter for tomorrow dear?" conversations?

You have eight to ten hours a day to initiate contact with people who can benefit from your services. The more you connect with, the more businesses grow, including yours. Most people would agree that the computer has made life much easier to organize and work much more efficient. It can, and will. But it can also be a substitute for a Manhattan or a flick.

And... it's of no consequence to me whether you read Greatsellersgotoheaven at 10 A.M. or 11 P.M. So don't worry about my feelings.

Great Selling!

Bob Sherman has 40 years experience managing relationships between media companies and advertisers in old and new media from radio, cable and TV to the Internet, and from sales executive to chief executive and from the biggest media corporations to his own entrepreneurial companies. He is currently in partnership with Pilot Group, LLC. Bob can be reached at rsherman@pilotgroup.biz.

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