“Don’t get old, there’s no future in it.” jokes Ed Clark, who is now 87 years old.
A nationally acclaimed artist, Mr. Clark has been honored by the Art institute of Chicago and has had his work featured in influential art galleries.
And much of the work being featured was done by him while he was in his 70’s and 80’s, a time during which his health had deteriorated significantly.
No more can he stand up for long, nor can he always paint for hours like he used to.
With the limited amount of energy he has every day, he uses it wisely, not wasting it on things that keep him from painting.
Unfortunately, many of us are not as disciplined about using our time wisely
We fill our days answering emails, sitting in on meetings, creating forecasts, etc. In addition to our everyday activities, many of us get busy with marketing (tweets, maintaining our hotel’s facebook page etc.), and operational activities (inspecting rooms…)
And in the end, we complain about how busy we are, how we feel pressured for time. And yet, we revel in our busyness, often giving it as proof of our work.
But is all this busyness leading to progress?
Are we booking more groups at our hotel than before? Are we increasing the number of prospects in our pipeline? Are we fostering stronger ties with more meeting and event planners?
Or are we just confusing “busy” with doing the actual work?
Chances are that not everything we’re doing actually qualifies as work
Sure, email, tweeting, CRM, meetings, and reports are some of the activities we have to undertake, but doing the work is different.
Doing the work means that we are spending the majority of our time on sales. It means researching new prospects, and then blocking out time to make those sales calls every single day.
Doing the work means that we are focused on looking for new opportunities in our markets so we can continue to increase the sales at our hotel.
Doing the work means that we are ready to respond to leads. Whether they are referrals, incoming calls, or RFP’s, we are making sure to respond within a day.
Doing the work means we are following up with prospects. And not just once or twice, but at least five times.
Doing the work means we are stepping out of the office to visit event planners, associations, companies, and government organizations every week.
Doing the work means not taking “No” personally. And not giving up either.
Doing the work means not being afraid to make a ton of calls to prospects. We all feel uncomfortable, but the most successful salespeople make the calls anyway.
Doing the work means being disciplined to follow our own course and not letting others dictate our day. While many activities may be urgent, fun, and interesting, we have to stay true to the goals that we have laid out for ourselves.
Doing the work means we spend time learning to improve. No one is born to sell. We all have to learn to get better. And we all have to spend time making incremental changes that will help us move forward.
Doing the work means listening to our customers, and I mean really listening and then being of value by providing solutions that solve their problems.
Doing the work means building relationships with travel coordinators, association directors, schools, country clubs, wedding venues, funeral houses, moving companies, insurance companies, real estate agents (commercial and residential) and many many more.
Doing the work means helping our groups have their best meeting or event. It means helping them solve their problems so they trust us and use us as a resource.
Just being busy is not purposeful enough
Because being busy saps us of energy. But doing the work, the kind of work that makes a real difference leaves us energized.
You’ll come into work excited about possibilities, not dreading the next task. And you’ll leave work tired, but wanting more.
So, are you doing the work? Or are you just busy.
What should you do next?
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