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Welcome back! It's mid-February. How are you doing on your 2010 goals so far? Have you researched the 20 prospects you said you'd find? Called or e-mailed them yet? Set up (or even held) any in-person meetings with these new prospects yet? Or are you one of those folks who didn't even get around to setting an actual numerical goal, something that could be evaluated, measured, quantified? If you started 2010 saying, "This year we should do more benefit auctions," and yet you haven't made a 10-day, 30-day, 90-day, 6-month, 1-year and 3-year plan, then at the end of 2010 your "we should" may end up as a "we should have" regret. Where will you be at the end of this spring fundraising season, or at the end of the year, if you DON'T actually take the time to make a strategy, what's known as a "strategic business plan" for success? If you don't have a clue how to do this, or you think you don't have time, or you could make the time but you don't have the discipline (!), then continuing education is for you! You've got lots of options: 1. A friend in my Mastermind group this morning mentioned that he'd discovered a sales term he wanted to know more about (personality selling) and so he'd immediately ordered all the books on Amazon on that topic! (continuing education) 2. Take a course, almost any course! This weekend I start facilitating a 13-week financial course, Dave Ramsey's "Financial Peace University". When I took it last fall, it was so well delivered and insightful about all money matters, I knew I wanted others to experience the program too. (Plus, I'm looking forward to seeing it again.) 3. Join a club. Recently two auctioneer friends in Colorado attended their first Toastmaster meetings. One has now joined a club; hopefully the second lady will join too! Toastmasters, the world's largest public speaking organization, is the safest place to fail! Everyone in the room is there by choice, gradually making friends and gradually becoming better speakers. Toastmasters is a go-at-your-own-pace program, with no scoring or intimidation, just support. Whether your palms sweat when talking to strangers or you're used to cracking up crowds of 500, every Toastmaster member practices and polishes whatever skills she/he has on Day One. 4. Look for continuing education courses specifically on Benefit Auctions. The July NAA Conference is not that far off, so set aside the time and money now to sit in some education sessions or take a multi-day course. There is also a Benefit Auction Summit coming up this September 20-21st, so mark your calendars now. And ask me if you would like to interrogate anyone who's been through my BOOTCAMP for Benefit Auctioneers program. Whatever you prefer, just DO something. Today, right now, jot down in the margin of your desk calendar how many outgoing Benefit Auction prospecting calls you will make by February 28th. Just one? That's okay, it's more than you've done so far, right? How about 5? Could you do 9? That's just one inquiry squeezed into each work day. Can't squeeze in that extra 5 minutes to make a Benefit Auction prospecting call? Hmmm, then maybe you should think about getting around to that strategic planning! Happy (shortened) week! Jenelle
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