Certainly, I have the Recession to thank for my very positive turn of events. During good times very few marketing decision-makers need a guy to increase sales when sales are booming. But, when the ‘cupboard is bare’ as it has been for the past year, I have been busier than a one-armed paper hanger!

Sadly, a few of these inquiries waited too long and found themselves already drowning in negative cash flow or worse having their assets repossessed. They just waited too long to take corrective action.

I’m not a miracle-worker. Granted, I’ve been fortunate to account for some very exciting turn-arounds but only because the opportunities and circumstances were aligned with my expertise and skills and the clients followed through with my timely recommendations.

The old definition of luck of ‘when opportunities meet the prepared mind’ may seem trite but it’s true and I have my father and my old high school Latin Teacher, John Bell, to thank for his often quoted, “everything one experiences in life is grist for the mill”.

For years, I labored diligently and stayed the course pursuing my laser-focus of mastering the sales prospecting process rather than wandering off course and trying to become all things to all potential clients who needed presentation, closing, and customer service skills training.

Make no mistake; many times I was tempted to accept sales training assignments outside of my area of expertise to pay the bills. I stayed the course and remained focused on b2b (business to business) sales prospecting and new business development challenges and now, I’m thrilled to say, it was the right thing to do!

This past weekend, I finished reading Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers, the best-selling ‘success’ book, which was filled with countless stories and affirmations of why it pays to become an expert in a discipline and how where we come from and how those around us are truly responsible for our successes in life.

“I chose the path less travelled and it has made all the difference’ Robert Frost’s memorable poetic words ring true, again. My purpose with this blog posting is to remind those who are at the crossroads of their careers to pursue a life’s work they genuine enjoy and a career where their expertise can be counted on to deliver relevant and timely value to others.

Years ago, Zig Ziglar, whom I once met at a National Speakers Association Convention, advised me to follow my heart and do well what I enjoy most even though the compensation (at that time) may not meet my expectations because eventually I would triumph and be paid what I am worth.

Those ‘years ago’ are now and I’m thankful I followed his sage advice!

I’m constantly getting e-mails and voice-mails from consulting associates telling me about the wonderful ‘exposure’ they received speaking for free at local trade association chapter or business networking luncheons. It’s their shameless way of coaxing me to do the same. Most often, I politely refuse and just keep prospecting and working my referrals. Exposure, without meaningful sales contacts, is counter-productive!

I could fill every waking hour in my appointment planner with free speaking or networking engagements but I don’t for several reasons. First, I have to pay my bills. Second, when I’m not on the phone or my laptop connecting to new sales prospects, following up on strategic referrals, or servicing clients; I’m not ringing up sales. Negative cashflow is a commission sales person’s worst nightmare. There are too few prime time prospecting hours in my day even though my day begins at 4:00 am.

So, today, I’m going to share with you my 4 test questions for deciding whether to be distracted or to pass on an ‘opportunity’. Distractions are always cloaked as ‘opportunities’. I still do an occasional free luncheon speech, and I selectively attend b2b networking luncheons but ONLY if they pass my test.

When I am invited to attend an event or to speak at an event, I always ask the meeting planner 4 questions:

• What is the exact purpose of the meeting or event?
• Were I attending as a guest, what would it cost me?
• Name some of last month’s attendees by company and their job titles?
• How many people attended your meeting last [week, month or quarter]? 

What is the exact purpose of the meeting or event? I avoid meetings or events positioned as ‘the networking event of the year’. It’s pure hype. Anyone who has to pitch their event so blatantly is seeking to seat  ‘breathers’,  not professionals. Not for me! Also, I’m not into networking luncheons open to ‘entrepreneurs’. ‘Entrepreneur’ is a code-word for b2c MLM sales agent who seem to be popping up, like attorneys at  traffic accidents. Since I only train b2b sales professionals and I only accept money, not beads and blankets (trade-outs) for my services, I avoid b2c MLM groupie events.

Were I attending as a guest, what would it cost me? I avoid free events. The food is usually marginal and the company isn’t much better. Moochers who are regulars at free events don’t spend money. I guess that’s why the moochers usually show up en mass. My interest begins at $35 per person. People who call themselves professionals realize they will not sit in the company of peers for free. They ‘get’ it and so do I.

Name some of last month’s attendees by company and their job titles? The answer to this question is the deciding factor for me. While b2b company names are important, I’m more interested in the job title of the typical attendee. Why? My best prospect-types by job title are: sales managers, regional sales managers, new business development directors and marketing directors. These are the people who sign contracts to hire me to re-tool their b2b sales teams and they make quantity purchases of my eBooks. So, an opportunity to rub elbows or to speak to a group of 40-60 of these job titles is worth my time. 

How many people attended your meeting last [week, month or quarter]?  For some reason, meeting planners have a tendency to add 10 to their last attendance count. Maybe, 10 more attendees is a lucky number! So, if I hear 25-30, I presume, it’s usually 15-20 which is too small for me to net any worthwhile contacts. When I attend functions, I’m seeking a critical mass of 40 – 60 attendees. This is true whether I’m the speaker or just an attendee because I will always meet 3-5 serious b2b decision-making prospects for my services. 

How do you find out about these business event luncheons? Of course, most daily newspaper have a business section with weekly event listings. Also, GOOGLE ”local business event luncheons by City, ST”. But what about business event luncheons of decision-makers, by their job titles, for what you sell?

Read Chapter 1 of my new How to Get Face-Time with People Who Buy What You Sell ebook (also called the PowerProspecting eBook) and you will learn how and where to get FREE Lists of these decision-makers, by their job-titles, for contacts in your local, regional or national sales territories. To preview my eBook for FREE, CLICK on Purchase The eBook Now, in the right sidebar. CLICK on Home Page. CLICK on View FREE Minibook. Remember, you have a 1 Year Money-Back Guarantee to tailor and test my Power Prospecting Formula to painlessly and systematically get qualified prospect appointments for your b2b products and services. 

Starting next week and every week, thereafter I’ll deliver shorter blogs beginning with Part 1 of How to Prosper in Tough Times.  Have a happy and carefree Halloween and remember to vote next Tuesday.