Walk Like a Giant, Sell Like a Madman

14.11. Work on Today's Business, Tomorrow's Business, and Future Business

One of the best ways to avoid a slump altogether is to always be working on today's business, tomorrow's business, and future business. Many salespeople fall into the rut of focusing only on today's business. Instead of building a business, they are constantly doing business, until sales taper off. Then, they shift gears and spend all their time chasing future business. This rollercoaster may seem exciting at first, but it gets old quickly and can really wear you down.

By continuing to work on tomorrow's business and future business while attending to today's business, you can flatten out the hills and valleys and establish a steady flow of business and revenue. This enables you to plan your business and scale your workforce more effectively, so you are not in a constant cycle of hiring people and then laying them off. You and your team will be much happier and more productive.

ABCD it. A projects are those that are close to being monetized. You want to keep moving B's to A's, C's to B's, and D's to C's, or delete the D's that are not worth pursuing or that you know will never move up the ramp. With this system in place, you can always be sure that you are working on today's business, tomorrow's business, and future business.