Arnel's Blog

Want more sales; you must know your personality type!

   

  About a few months ago, I was given a book, "The Art of Speeding Reading - How to Size People Up and Speak their Language by Paul D. Tieger and Barbara Barron-Tieger" by one of my friends and client, Jan Solock, the owner of The Closing Table. I was not excited about reading a book about personality types and traits. I could not figure out why Jan gave me this book.  How was this going to help me and my business?  After reading the book, I realized that it was long overdue. I was able to determine my personality type and determine how it helps and does not help me in business, especially in business development. 

    For example, my personality type is "INTP" which stands for Introverted, Intuitive, Thinking, and Perceiving. About 3 to 4 percent of the American population is INTP.  INTP personality types are intensely logical, analytical people. They possess an inner confidence knowing that they can tackle any problem by logically working their way through it. In a crisis, they are calm and unperturbed. They do not pay specific attention to mundane facts and details.They see possibilities where others cannot. They are eager learners in effort to become competent. One area of weakness is being competent in the area of interpersonal relationships. They are not good communicators. They are good at seeing flaws in ideas and generating innovative solutions. They are better at starting projects versus finishing them.

    How does my personality type "INTP" affect me in my business in regarding business development? Let me share some observations that I have seen in myself that did not serve me in my business. The observations are: 1) I am an Introvert (An Introvert is energized by being by themselves), therefore I prefer not to go to networking events because they can be exhausting and not energizing, 2) I am Intuitive (Intuitive take information through my sixth sense), so I usually am drawn to what is new and different, 3) I am a Thinker (Thinker makes decisions logically) and so I make decisions after careful review of all the information- listing out the pros and cons before implementing an idea and 4) I am a Perceiver (Perceiver tends to wing it) resulting in unprepared presentations = less closed sales.

    Knowing some of these observations based on my "INTP" personality type and how it was not serving me, I was able to make  minor adjustments in my business immediately. Let me share those adjustments: 1) Since, I am an introvert, I had to change to make sure that I was well rested before attending an event with many people, had the correct mindset, and executed my game plan, 2) Since I am an intuitive, I have to change to make sure that I do not get stuck on implementing new ideas and concepts all the time; I must work on the strategies I committed to and follow through on each of them, 3) since I am a Thinker, I had to change the mindset to "Implement now and perfect along the way", and 4) since I am a Perceiver, I had to change by preparing for my all presentations by writing out scripts to use as guides during the presentation. 

  Knowing what my personality type is, I was able to determine what was not serving me; therefore, I was able to make some adjustments along the way.  As a result, I was able to significantly increase my revenue by 30% over the last 4 months. I want to thank Jan Solock, the owner of The Closing Table for being who she is and always having the spirit of helping. So let my ask you a question. Do you want a 30% or more increase in your sales for your business? If you do, find out your personality type and be willing to make adjustments today.  

I am Insultant!

 Many have asked, "What is an insultant?"  An "Insultant" is a term that comes from the book, "The Breakthrough Company: How Everyday Companies Become Extraordinary Performers" by Keith McFarland.

I was doing some research on the web and I found this blog - Leading Blog: Building a Community of Leaders (www.LedershipNow.com). The title of the article is "Insultants Wanted" and it explains that insultants are needed in order for companies to breakthrough. Take a moment and check out the website and the article. I will share a brief description and my thoughts.

From the book, insultants are "inside consultants". The author of book describes them as those people “willing to ask the tough questions that cause a company to think critically about its fundamental assumptions. The value of insultants is that they will go to great lengths to get their companies to reevaluate a position or adapt to a changing environment.” 

I believe that in order to assist you to advance to the next level in your business, it is crucial that I always ask the tough questions.  For example, "Why do you do it that way?" or "Is there a better way?" I am always looking for ways for my clients to be more effective versus efficient. It is my role to push them to go out of their comfort zone so we can get the results they want.

I tell my clients to build their business based on their strengths, passions, and talents. One core belief of an insultant that I live by is that I will tell them the truth even if it means my client will be offended and/or I will lose them as a client. I see myself as Pinocchio's trusted advisor, Jiminy Cricket.  Not only do I tell you the truth, I encourage you and recognize what you do well.  

I believe insultants are needed if you are a small business owner with revenues under $1,000,000 and especially if your revenue is under $500,000. From my experience working with business owners and being a business owner myself, we are our worst enemy. Secondly, no one is willing to tell us the truth about our business and how we operate in our business. This why 48% of small businesses fail the 1st year in business, and 80% of them fail in five years.

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