So we find ourselves gracefully at rule #2:

"Never Take a NO From Someone Who Can’t Give You a YES" - Unknown

Okay, so I’m not going to get all Alec Baldwin on you, but for us the name of this game is recruiting so you should ALWAYS be doing it.

A=Always
B=Be
C=Closing
R=Recruiting

I try to leverage every conversation I have (ref. rule #6) because nine times out of ten I can get something out of it. Being my own most important client, naturally I am recruiting you. Yes, you. I might be trying to recruit you on an opportunity I am performing a search for, or perhaps I’m trying to recruit you to engage my services, or maybe I want you to come work for my company.

Did you ever notice that the words “Sell” and “Recruit” may be swapped at any point in my blogs and it will still make perfect sense? That’s because recruiting is just a fancy word for selling that has the benefit of disarming the potential buyer (er… recruit).

I want you to ask yourself a rather simple question. Regarding your life right now, today: Who is the decision maker?

Almost immediately you should answer that YOU are (no, I’m not David Blaine).

If you happen to be married, your spouse really isn’t the decision maker. Neither is your boss. Certainly we can agree the decision maker is not the rest of your family or friends, although you might utilize them as advisors. Perhaps you bounce major (or minor) decisions off of them, and you might even be open to their input – but ultimately YOU are the decision maker for your life.

So, let’s say I wanted to ask you to do something… like come to work for me. Would I be SMART to talk to your spouse first? How about the person who does your hair? No? How about your boss? That’s a big NO, right? If I did talk to someone you know first and ask them, I would probably get a different answer based on each of their agendas. For example, if I wanted you to move your spouse might possibly say “no”. Your boss… well, let us assume your boss is happy with you and therefore wants you to stay, so I’d get a “no” there. And who knows about your hairdresser – your hairdresser only knows what you have shared while being groomed.

As close as some of these folks are to you none of them can really give me a qualified answer so far.

Not to be morbid, but maybe you are planning on leaving your spouse and haven’t mentioned it. Maybe someone I asked (like your boss) has their own agenda for giving me the big “NO” on your behalf. All these things are obvious when we start to dive a bit deeper into this, but now comes the BIGGEST reason I want to talk to YOU:

Not a single one of these people can give me a “yes” on your behalf. Imagine this phone call one afternoon:

Spouse: “Hi honey! Oh – I want you to leave work because you’re starting a new JOB tomorrow – I accepted it in your behalf! Aren’t you excited? Oh and by the way – I sold the house and we’re moving this weekend.”

You: What The ****??

Sound about right?

Action steps for success in this area are not only simple but universal for whatever you’re trying to accomplish.

1. WHO is the decision maker?
2. Who ELSE will be involved in making the decision?
3. The above answers provide you the roadmap of who to talk to. Not the receptionist. Not the decision makers’ admin. Not the spouse.

The only person you should target when you need an answer is the person who can give you a “YES”. Everyone else is simply an obstacle between you and your goal.

A winner finds a way around an obstacle.
A loser, befuddled, scratches his head and whines.

Happy Hunting!

-Art