Dan Gable was born in 1948 and grew up in small-town America, and as a kid, fell in love with the sport of wrestling. He never lost a single match in high school. At Iowa State University, he was a three-time All-American and compiled a record of 118-1, never losing until the final match of his senior year. He went on to win a gold medal in the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich.
He became head wresting coach at the University of Iowa in 1976 and went on to win16 NCAA national championships and 21 Big Ten Conference championships.
I heard Gable speak at a conference several years ago and one thing in particular stood out to me. It was the five “R’s” of success that Gable often repeated to his athletes and assistant coaches: “Reading, wRiting, aRithmetic, wRestling and Recovery.”
The first four “R’s” make sense, but what is “recovery?”
When Gable competed as an athlete, he trained and practiced incredibly hard. Some might have even accused him of “over-training.” But his super-human workouts never wore him out. They never left him too exhausted to practice at full speed the next day.
The reason for his resiliency was his belief in recovery. At the end of each practice, he had a strict routine – stretching, ice, sauna, steam room, massage and mental relaxation. He never cheated himself by skipping this critical recovery period.
Many of his fellow wrestlers would pack up and leave as soon as practice was done but not Gable. He considered recovery to be just as important as the practice and workout. When he became a coach, he demanded his athletes be just as committed to the art of recovery. This allowed his teams to exhibit unmatched stamina.
Gable believes that “recovery” is important for professionals too. It should be a part of your daily routine.
What does “recovery” mean in the non-sports world?
Recovery is necessary for ambitious achievers who want to make it to the top and perhaps even more important for people at the top who want to stay there. Reserve time for your recovery and be deliberate about it. Recovery isn’t something you’re supposed to rush through half-heartedly. Gable believes recovery should be a full hour at the end of the day. That’s difficult, when you’re busy, but the results speak for themselves.
Over the past couple weeks, I have heard the word “recovery” quite frequently as we start to recover from the coronavirus-related shutdown of the economy. Just as Gable is deliberate about recovery in his life and career, you will benefit by being deliberate about recovering your sales practice.
How do we do that? Review your 2020 goals and adjust your plan of action to maximize your success during the second half of the year. Determine if there are new prospective clients you should target and learn all about them. Get yourself in the right frame of mind – being positive/optimistic is necessary to succeed after an economic crisis.
And be prepared to work really hard. This recovery will require dedication and discipline. I watched a video in which sales guru Jeffrey Gitomer discussed the best way to recover from the economic shutdown. He advises people wake up early in the morning, before anyone else is up, and spend time reading, writing and preparing. This allows you to think and then create ideas that lead to success.
“Think about who you are, what you want to become and then work your ass off,” Gitomer said.
Successful recovery means you also make yourself better. Use this time to grow and develop.
One of the ways we do that is by embracing education. Constantly learn new things that make you a better sales professional. In that spirit, I invite you to participate in my upcoming webinar, “What to Say When Calling Prospective Clients.”
Join us, as we share:
- Exactly what to say to engage a cold prospect
- How to quickly capture prospects’ attention
- How to develop insights that demonstrate your competitive advantage
- How to gain prospects’ commitment to engage and collaborate
- How to completely and totally differentiate yourself from your competitors.
If you want to keep earning new business during a time of crisis, you need compelling language that captivates a prospect’s imagination.
Don’t miss this content-heavy webinar on Tuesday, May 12th at 1 p.m. Central, because you will leave with new prospecting strategies that will stand out and get prospects to engage.
The investment of only $39 will give you the strategies that top producers are using to cut through the clutter and stand out in this difficult marketplace.
Sign-Up NOW: What to Say When Calling Prospective Clients on May 12th at 1 p.m. Central.
