By Randy Gage
A director on my front line called to ask if I would accompany him on a one-on-one presentation. I was kind of surprised, because he had a large group, and hadn’t needed help with a presentation for months. I asked why.
It turns out the guy he was prospecting was the CEO of a multi-billion-dollar public company, a guy who was in the business pages and financial publications every week. The candidate made a $10 million salary, and also had stock options which made him millions more. He went to the same church as my guy, and so that’s how the connection was made.
How could I resist?
We went to the appointment, which was in the candidate’s office. (Now that’s a mistake, but I went along with it, because it was already arranged.) His office was bigger than the apartment I lived in. Seriously. He had a conference table in there that probably cost at least fifty grand. I was a little on edge, but we sat on the end of that table and started the presentation. The candidate sat through it very attentively. When I was finished, he admitted that it was quite fascinating, but he couldn’t get involved because his contract with his employer prohibited him from doing any other business ventures. He went on to say that he was delighted my guy had found the opportunity and even recommended some people he thought would be good for the business.
There are a couple of significant lessons from that encounter…
First, some of the highest paid people in the world are still slaves to their job, and don’t own their own life. Isn’t that fascinating?
Second: The easiest people to get presentations with are usually the most busy, ambitious, successful people on your list. And the hardest people to get in front of are the ones who are the people who need it the most!
Why?
Because that’s why the people who need it the most need it the most. They might be lazy, closed minded, or just so busy meeting with their parole officer or watching reality shows they don’t have time to meet. Look for the guy who works two jobs, volunteers at his church, and drives part-time for Uber – and you’ll often find someone who will make time to see your presentation.
The candidates you may discount the most – professionals like doctors, executives, lawyers and accountants – may be at a stage in their career where they’ve finally recognized that they are victims of the trading-hours-for-money trap. Once they reach this stage, they’re usually quite open to finding out how they can harness the power of leverage for financial security. Adjust your sponsoring mindset and strategy to reflect this reality, and you’ll see a lot more growth.
- RG
