William Winch asked:
The selfless acts of helping people achieve their dreams in Network Marketing often go unnoticed as we work on a day to day basis. Those with the mindset of a leader know exactly what to do with people they are leading. They understand the art and science of building confidence in others. Believing in people and knowing how to be honest with them is the key to a successful home-based business.
Even though we speak every day, most of us have never fully comprehended the power of making someone’s day a little brighter. Leaders who are eminently successful in Network Marketing understand the power of genuine encouragement. When you believe in someone more than they believe in themselves, you begin to build their confidence. They suddenly have the courage to get up and get going.
When you work for someone else in a regular job, your boss will most likely focus on your shortcomings and scold you when mistakes are made. If they had the mindset of a leader, they would know that it’s more productive to build confidence than tear it down. You ultimately became fed up and decided to begin your home-based business. The same applies to your downline if you treat them the same way your boss treated you. Reps do not have to stick around and take abuse.
Start to focus on the traits, talents and qualities you see in your downline that will be assets to their future success. Words of legitimate encouragement will open the floodgates of creativity and production. Even the smallest of qualities should be put on the table and addressed. People like to hear others say good things about them. It makes them want to continue in the same direction.
Unfortunately, there will be moments when leaders need to say difficult things that are painful to hear. It will never be fun to deliver bad news or criticism, but it is a necessary part of leadership. There is a lot of freedom that comes with owning your own business, but people must be accountable for certain things in order be successful. If your main concern is to be liked by the people you are trying to help, it will be difficult to lead anyone.
Knowing what to say and how to say it is a vital aspect of leadership. Don’t be afraid to say things that might upset someone if it needs to be said. Just make sure you share your thoughts in a soft and wise style with compassion. People will keep repeating the same mistakes over and over again if you can’t learn to say the negative things with positive encouragement. Sharing negative news with someone is something we must do sparingly and with great care and respect.
Practice saying things like You know that I want you to succeed, so let me show you what I did. It is different than what you are doing, so focus more on… When you balance content and context, it is like comforting with one arm and punching them with the other. It is the depth of caring that gives them strength to handle the force of the message.
Establish clear expectations with everyone. Make sure they know how the business works and how well their techniques should pan out. If they are making 100 calls per day, they should be expecting results that are in direct relation to calling 100 people, and so on. This prevents people from having false expectations of achieving a certain level of success they are not putting forth the time for.
If you want to help someone be successful, don’t sit back and expect them to act professional. They may have all of the drive and conviction in the world, but they may have never been told how successful people think. Encourage them to take their own business seriously, to invest themselves in those who are teachable, to have less patience with people who make excuses and complain and to place value on their time. The appreciative team players will plug into the system if they are serious.
Leaders must develop a trained eye for studying people. Look for individuals with talent and teachability, and those who have demonstrated an ability to overcome obstacles without making excuses. Remember that belief and commitment levels increase over time just by association with others who are motivated and successful. Choosing to demonstrate leadership qualities puts you in the best possible place to helping others grow their businesses.
Make a difference in what they believe about themselves, what they can become and what they can do.