FBO: Never Lose Your Cool; Don’t Blow It

Tuesday, November 4th 2008 by Shanel Yang

[For “FBO: Give It to Them in Dollars and Cents,” click here.]

This part of the “FBO” or “For Bloggers Only” series is actually NOT JUST for bloggers, but FOR ALL entrepreneurs, employees, and nonprofit organizations seeking to raise funds to support their goals.

If you want millions of viewers, readers, customers, clients, members, etc., then you’ll want to follow along as we go through, one by one, the rainmaking secrets provided by Jeffrey J. Fox in his book How to Become a Rainmaker: The Rules for Getting and Keeping Customers and Clients.

NEVER LOSE YOUR COOL; DON’T BLOW IT

A. FOX’S TIP NO. 25 FOR ALL RAINMAKERS

Fox’s Tip No. 25 for how to become a great salesperson, or rainmaker, is the practical tip: “Never forget: Everybody is somebody’s somebody.” As he explains:

It was a typical luncheon place. There was a counter, booths, and tables. The menu, a collage of pictures of sandwiches and sundaes, was laminated. The prices were reasonable. The waitstaff included a bunch of summer-job high school kids. The restaurant was in an affluent area.

One customer was upset about something. He was angry with one of the young waitresses. He was loud, rude, and nasty. Perhaps she had made an error on the bill, or there was not enough B in his BLT? Whatever it was, his overreaction brought tears to the teenager’s eyes. The guy finally threw some money down and stomped out.

Three other kids watched what happened. One of the two boys behind the counter said, “I know that guy. I’ve see him in my father’s office.”

Remarkably, each of the four high school kids had a parent who was a doctor. They found out from the boy’s father that the angry customer was a salesman for a pharmaceutical company. Then and there, each kid planned to tell their parents not to do business with that salesman.

Being nice to somebody’s somebody may not get you a client. But being hurtful to somebody’s somebody could hurt you.

Rainmakers make friends, not enemies.

B. APPLYING FOX’S TIP NO. 25 TO BLOGGERS

If you want to become an A-list blogger, apply Fox’s Tip No. 25 above to your blogging business by never losing your cool and risk blowing it in public.

In some ways, this tip is similar to “treating everybody you meet as your viewer.” And, remember, there’s nothing wrong with restating important lessons. However, for this lesson, I want to focus, not so much on the fact that any stranger could end up helping or hurting you, but more on the equally important fact that whenever you loose your temper, you also lose your ability to think straight and act rationally. And, that’s definitely bad for you and, ultimately, your blogging business.

If you even suspect you might have issues with anger, see “Easy Anger Management.” Starting and operating your own business, even one so seemingly liberating as blogging, tends to bring out the best and worst in all entrepreneurs. Whatever your weaknesses are, they will get magnified. You can’t hide them, and you can’t hide from them. The answer is to face them and work on them.

If your tendency is to procrastinate, you’re procrastination will become even more intense and have an even greater negative impact on your blogging business than it ever did for you when you simply worked for others. (For help with overcoming procrastination and time management issues, see, “Eat that Frog!”; “Get a Handle on Procrastination”; and, “20 Tips for Highly Effective Time Management.”)

If you tend to be too nice and let people take advantage of you, you will find yourself even more taken advantage of by unscrupulous business people and sharp business tactics when you try to run your own business. (For help with overcoming codependency and improving your assertiveness, see, e.g., “Help with Overcoming Codependency“; “High-Maintenance Personalities“; and “How to Be an Extrovert.”)

In short, know yourself and work to strengthen each of the areas that you suspect need improvement in order to become the most successful blogger you can.

CONCLUSION

Losing your cool when things don’t go your way not only hurts your reputation as a blogger, an entrepreneur, and a decent human being, it is dangerous to your health! And, no amount of satisfaction from vengeance is worth that heavy a price.

If you would like your own copy of Rainmaker someday, here’s what it looks like.

[For “FBO: Always Be on ‘High Receive,’” click here.]

[For entire “FBO” or “For Bloggers Only” series, click here.]

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