What is it about this industry that catches folk, pulls them in and never lets them go? Could it be love?
Read MoreCould This Be Love? My Valentine’s Blog
Author: Paul Kiewiet
What is Your Favorite Business?
Think about your favorite restaurant. Where do you like to shop for clothes? Are there any places where you love to spend money? Your goal is to acheive that level of favored status with your clients and customers.
Read MoreHow Sharp is Your Axe?
Abraham Lincoln said, “Give me six hours to cut down a tree and I’ll spend the first four hours sharpening my axe.” Your axe is the problem-solving ability you bring to your clients. If you are still doing the same things that you were doing five years ago and watching your personal productivity decline, you’ve probably got a pretty dull axe.
Read MoreA New Definition of Marketing
Are you ready to commit to making 2013 your best year yet?
Read MoreBe the Light or Be the Mirror
This is the season of light. The winter solstice is coming—the shortest day (light). For millennia mankind has celebrated the return of light with significant celebrations and holy days (holidays).
As you celebrate this year, think of and thank those who have brought light into your life and commit yourself to be bringing your light to others in your days ahead. Commit to being the light, bringing the light to your world this holiday season and throughout the new year.
Read MoreItʼs Not Your Clientsʼ Job to Remember You. Itʼs Your Job to Make Yourself Unforgettable.
So youʼre resourceful and you can find nearly any product. Congratulations. So can Google. So you can deliver on time and within budget. Congratulations. So can about 25,000 other distributors out there. So you really care about your customers and you seriously want to help them. Good. Most of us do, too. What are you doing that is going to make you stand out?
Read MorePrescription Without Diagnosis is Malpractice
How often do you sell something just to make the sale? How often do you approach a supplier at a show and ask “Whatʼs new?” Do you ever show your clients something because you get a special bonus or extra profit for selling it?
If so, you are lucky that no one ever gets sued for malpractice in our business. If so, you are a part of the problem that causes our industry to be perceived as the “t” and “t” words (or worse).
Read MoreYou DON’T Need An Elevator Speech
There is an old Egyptian proverb: “Your answers tell me how clever you are. Your questions tell me how wise you are.”
Read MoreYes! And…
Do you wonder how some actors can be so good at improvisation? Weʼre amazed by their ability to take a situation or word or suggestion and turn it into a compelling story or a hilarious comedy skit.
Read MoreListening, Letting Go and Letting Lucky Find You
I was just leaving the Constance Brown Hearing Center in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Yes, I do have hearing loss, and yes, I remain too vain to wear aids. I heard my iPhone ring and I listened—it was my sister, Carol. “Paul, please come over. Mom is failing and is asking for her baby.”
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