Paterson Principle 7

Oops! My week got away from me. Sorry this is late.

7. Your Library is

the Artesian Well of Knowledge

"You determine how much of a fortune you want to earn by how much you decide to self-educate" - Jeffrey Gitomer

I love that quote. Another one I believe in is "Your life is what you make of it." We are as successfully in life as we make ourselves. Some people may not agree with me on that, but I truly believe that most people who have nothing in life have done nothing. Those who are successful in life have worked hard to get there (of course there is the occasional child born with a silver spoon in their mouth).

The best way to succeed is to self-educate. How many books do you have in your library? What kind of books make up your library? How much time do you set aside DAILY to read? You can't learn unless you have books to read. True there is the library, but to invest in a book will give back to you ten times more, because you won't just read to book once (quickly) and then return it, but you will continually refer to it for reference or clarification. You may have a friend who is very successful. Ask to see that friends library, and you'll see why. Maybe you do have a lot of educational books, but what good are they if you do not set aside time DAILY to read them!

This is your task this week. Get a good educational book to read. Here is a list of books that I highly recommend for success:

1. "How I Raised Myself from Failure to Success" by Frank Bettger. Frank sold Life Insurance during the Depression and was the highest paid salesman in America. (This is also the book we are studying at Selling North Idaho book club on Thursday mornings at 7:00 at Z-Spa in CDA. Come join us, and learn!)
2. "Rich Dad Poor Dad" Highly recommended by associates of mine, but I have not yet had the chance to read it.
3. "The E-Myth" also highly recommended by associates of mine.
4. "The Paterson Principles of Selling" revived and revised by Jeffrey Gitomer (the book I am using for this study)
5. "The Sales Bible" by Jeffrey Gitomer. One of my favorites. I also HIGHLY recommend his seminars. Also go to his website wwwbuygitomer.com and sign up for his Caffeine Ezine. He is highly motivational for sales people. I have worn my book out because I constantly go back to it for new ideas.
6. "The complete Idiots Guide to Cold Calling" by Keith Rosen. If you have trouble making that first call to get the appointment with a prospect this is a very easy book to follow and get ideas from. Many different styles to try out until you find what works for you.
7. "101 Way to Promote Yourself" by Raleigh Pinskey. Also one of the books for our book group. Many great ideas. I'm still working on this one.

How many of these have you read? Are you saying ouch, or patting yourself on the back? Well don't pat yourself too fast if you don't use your books regularly for reference or continue to educate yourself further. There is one concept that I see so many sales people struggle with, but if you want to be successful you better wrap your brain around this "you will never know it all." So set aside an hour a day to read and learn. If it is hard to make yourself read a sales book, then start with something you are interested in. Get yourself in the habit of reading an hour a day, and then it will be second nature.

Welcome to Success