SalesMotivation.net

by Kent Burns

I own a large recruiting firm. Like many professions, time management is a real challenge for us. Recruiting is a continuous balancing act amidst the demands of prospecting for business, identifying and contacting candidates, coordinating interviews, checking references, negotiating offers and managing all the other emotions and expectations of the interview and hiring process. It’s a tough, rollercoaster business, and not many do it well.

Recruiters, like most salespeople, can be horrendously inefficient. A question that I regularly ask my people is, “How many ‘live’ selling situations did you have today with a viable client or candidate?” It is THE critical question. There are so many other things that compete for our attention. These “other things” are often a recipe for inefficiency and mediocre results. Icontinually warn my recruiters of the whirling vortex of non-sales activities that beg for attention every minute of the day. Checking voicemail. Reading and responding to emails. Reviewing resumes. Searching internet job boards. “Checking in” with a candidate who is in the interview process. Calling a chatty hiring manager and shooting the breeze. Writing job ads. I have heard dozens of times that these things are all “selling” in some form or another - that they all play a part in the process. But it’s also a lot of non-value-added fluff. Salespeople everywhere fall prey to the same trap — engaging in acts of self-sabotage that keep them from entering “The Zone.” If they’re in the The Zone, they sabotage themselves right out of there.

So what is The Zone? The Zone is a state of activity in which you are totally focused. You’re in a natural rhythm. One call or meetingflows right to the next. You’re confident and smooth. You don’t find yourself searching for the right words. They just seem to be there. You don’t hang up the phone and then waste five minutes trying to figure out whom to call next, why you need to call them or what to say when they answer. You ask the right questions. Time passes quickly - an hour seems like 10 minutes. You are fully engaged in each moment, unaware of distractions around you. My good friend Jeff Kaye calls it “life in Nintendo” - a phrase he coined to describe his kids while they were in front of the TV playing video games. They were in The Zone.

How do you get there? And how do you stay there as long as possible? First, you must have a solid plan. How long do you want to be in The Zone? You need a plan for that time period. It might be an hour, or it may be a block of a few hours. Next, you must knowwhat your objectives are for each interaction/sales call. Be prepared - it’s tough to stay in The Zone if you are fumbling for things to say. You must also eliminate distractions. Turn the cell phone or Blackberry off. I can’t be in The Zone if it’s buzzing with calls and emails every few minutes. If I am in the office, I don’t answer incoming calls. Why? Because my plan includes scheduled time for returning voicemails. I am an email addict, so I turn off my Outlook. It removes the temptation for me to constantly check my inbox. If I need to send a message out, I’ll scribble a note to myself to send it later. Don’t allow others to interrupt you. If somebody stops by your office or cube, don’t engage. Stay focused and let them know that you’ll catch them later. They’ll understand.

This takes discipline. It’s not easy. You may need an accountability partner to help you form some newhabits. But if you accept the challenge and give it a shot, you’ll experience something amazing. You’ll get more done in less time that you ever have, and you’ll actually still have plenty of time do those “other” things that are currently keeping you from entering The Zone.

About the Author

A business owner, finance leader and top performing sales executive, Kent’s combination of experiences is quite rare in the field of executive search. He is an equity Partner and perennial top producer in MRINETWORK’S Indianapolis-North office, which is consistently ranked in the top five of over 1,000 offices Worldwide. In 2003, Kent was the Top-Producing Individual Account Executive for MRINETWORK, outperforming approximately 3,500 recruiters. He is a frequent speaker and has been featured in publications such as Forbes, CFO Magazine, HR Magazine, The Journal of Accountancy, The Boston Globe, Reuters, The Houston Chronicle, The Indianapolis Business Journal and the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Kent is able to achieve speed and candidate quality that is unequaled in the world of human capital acquisition, making him one of the country’s leading human capital sourcing consultants