Distraction-Proof® Advisor Ideas

AdviserBlast – Quick Tips to Accelerate Your Practice

In this issue: Don't get fooled into thinking that simple things are easy to do.

Just because something is simple to understand, that doesn't mean it's easy to do.

When we hear about straight-forward and uncomplicated activities, we often quickly assume that doing them will be easy. When we find that it's not as easy as we thought it would be, we become frustrated or even disillusioned. This is compounded by the fact that we then feel worse for failing at something that initially looked effortless.

Think about losing weight, as an example. Losing weight can be distilled down into a simple formula: expend more calories than you consume. Simple!

Yet, while expending more calories than you consume might be simple to describe and understand, doing it successfully and safely is clearly not easy! Weight Watchers' 2009 revenue was $1.5 billion, with the entire US weight-loss market exceeding $55 billion for the year. A lot of people need help to succeed in this area!

When we presume that the effort required to reach a goal is directly related to our ease of understanding what needs to be done, we open ourselves up for disappointment.

Ease of achievement is not necessarily correlated with ease of understanding.

"Simple" is more of a cognitive response, but actions still require a physical and emotional "doing." Just because cognitively we can understand it, doesn't mean physically it's a cake walk.

When you're pursuing goals:

• Understand that even when things sound simple (such as picking up the phone and dialing prospects), they are not necessarily easy to execute.

• Just because a task can be briefly articulated, don't presume the effort needed to achieve it is small.

• Don't get discouraged when you find that what sounds simple turns out to be more difficult than first expected.

Instead,

• Break the process into smaller steps you can act upon and complete.

• Realize that taking even small steps is progress, and enjoy moving toward your end goal.

• Increase opportunities to grow your business by doing what most people will not because it feels too "hard."

Put It Into Practice
While personally speaking with your top 45 clients each month sounds simple, actually make it easy by calling two people every day.

Rather than getting to the end of the day or week and realizing time has once again slipped away from you, calendar a time-blocked schedule for next week so you know specific activities will get done at designated on definite days.

Keeping papers and files organized sounds simple, but make it happen by consciously spending 10 minutes at the end of your day putting things in their place and clearing your desk for a fresh start the next morning.

Take a simple step forward, every day, and make your life easier!

Copyright Paul Kingsman 2010

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As a motivational speaker and executive coach, Paul Kingsman provides financial services professionals practical tools to overcome distractions and stay focused so they can get the money they need, clients they want, and time to do what they love. Combining his experiences as an Olympic medalist and his background as an adviser for Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo, Paul understands how to stay focused over the long haul, as well as the unique business challenges faced by advisers, and equips them to build the businesses they desire.

To find out more about how he can equip you or your team to achieve your own Split Second Success® through his presentations or executive coaching, visit paulkingsman.com/coaching or email him at Paul@PaulKingsman.com

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