77 Rules of the Road (for Marketing, Business and Life)

• October 16, 2020

Here are 77 mindsparks to get you back to work with the right mindset and motivation:

1. Whatever it is you’re working on – it’s NOT what you think it is
2. And it’s BIGGER than you think it is
3. Your job is not to work alone – lone wolves starve to death
4. Your job is to build containers for collaboration
5. You need three groups of people…
6. You need your posse (partners, colleagues, team)
7. You need your tribe (followers, fans, customers, clients)
8. You need your dream team (advisors, coaches, mentors)
9. And you must avoid one group at all costs…
10. Keep away from the herd (sheep, lemmings, goofballs)
11. “Yes” is almost never a good first answer
12. Focus like a maniac on what matters most
13. Turn off email – Yes, really
14. Live out of your calendar, not your inbox
15. Be kinder than you need to be
16. Let go to move faster
17. Stop letting fear make your decisions for you
18. Learn to love the verb DECIDE…
19. Make more decisions
20. Make faster decisions
21. 90% of your decisions can always be changed later
22. The magic word to get most anything you want: ASK!
23. Charge premium fees…
24. Good clients will follow
25. Bad clients will fall away
26. Stop asking for permission…
27. Why? Because you already have it
28. You don’t need to see the whole staircase – just the first step
29. Action eliminates fear
30. Overdeliver like crazy
31. It’s better to have a capacity problem than a sales problem
32. Customer loyalty goes both ways
33. The saddest referral is one that was earned but never given (See #22)
34. If it doesn’t matter to your customer, it doesn’t matter
35. Forget features and benefits
36. Focus exclusively on outcomes, results, and payoffs
37. Learn to speak prospect language about prospect problems
38. If you want to sell fire extinguishers, first show the fire
39. If you don’t risk turning some people off, you’ll never turn anybody on
40. Diversify while still specializing
41. If you can prove what you do works, you win
42. People never argue against their own opinions, data, and feelings
43. When selling an idea, show up with a bucket, not a microphone
44. There is no “sales gene”… it’s a learned skill for all of us
45. Everyone can sell once they find their own voice
46. Marketing comes down to four words: Offer value, Invite engagement
47. Imagine that it’s easy
48. Good things come to those who bust their ass and never give up
49. Your success day in and day out, year in and year out depends on two things…
50. How fast you’re willing to learn (relearn, unlearn)
51. How much you’re willing to grow (personally, professionally, emotionally)
52. Every prospect qualifies – they just might not qualify for YOU
53. If the first version of your product/service isn’t embarrassing, you waited too long to launch it
54. Happy people are that way because they want to be
55. Miserable people are that way because they want to be
56. Secure your own mask before assisting others
57. If you’re a great starter, learn to finish
58. Are you willing to do what you have to do so you get to do what you want to do?
59. If you ain’t got people skills, I don’t care how smart you are – you’re dead
60. Stop acting like a numbnutz and your life will improve
61. Different isn’t better
62. Better is better
63. Until you have loved a dog, part of your soul remains unawakened
64. Get out of the office – yes you – yes now. That’s where life happens
65. Happiness is to have family that you consider friends and friends that you consider family
66. Everyone needs allies, advocates, brothers, sisters, and co-conspirators in mischief and merry-making
67. Getting what you want is easy – Deciding what you want is the hard part
68. Fish gotta swim, birds gotta fly, writers gotta write, dancers gotta dance…
69. So what are you waiting for?
70. Don’t hand out home-made business cards…
71. Don’t build a free template website…
72. Professionals use professional tools
73. Get serious, get help, or get out
74. If mama ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy – remember that
75. Once a day, do something brave
76. Once a day, do something kind
77. Once a day, do something smart