Be Selfish to Succeed

By BNI & Referral Institute - May 03 , 2011

By Lester Salvatierra, BNI Area Director

Be selfish with your business and grow faster than you ever thought possible.

Business selfishness is good, positive, and helps you build your client base quickly. Personal selfishness is not positive and many of us know the negative repercussions of living a lifestyle of not giving back to others. So what is being selfish in business all about? How will it help me grow? Here are a few tips.

§  Be selfish with your time. Focus part of each day and week to personal growth. How can you service your clients and offer the best products if you’re not up to date with current skills and knowledge in your industry? Keep learning and growing by attending workshops, seminars, conventions, and reading updated journals and engaging in tutorials. Only by being selfish with your time and scheduling segments of your week to improve as a professional can you stay sharp and remain competitive in the marketplace.

§  Be selfish with your product line or services. Never let your products go “stale”: Constantly try to improve them, make them more efficient and effective while keeping the cost fair and competitive. A product or service that looks the same as it did two years ago most likely is not current nor the best you can give your customers. Keep up with the evolving demand, it keeps on morphing because we, as consumers, are conditioned to seeing improvements and enhancements with everything we use and spend money on. Obsolescence is at the highest rate it has ever been and the trend is unlikely to change.

§  Be selfish with your clients. Protect your customers by keeping their contact information private and confidential. Spoil them with each “touch” by giving them the best service possible, always going beyond what you promise to deliver. Treating them like family, which is distinctly different than how you treat your prospects. This keeps your retention rate high and profitable for the long run. As you may know, it takes many more resources to get new clients than it does in keeping the ones you already have. Offer value by updating them on important industry changes or trends, package special programs for them, and give them “insider” discounts for their loyalty. Let them know they are special and they will stick with you even when the economy takes a dip.

Being selfish with your business obviously doesn’t mean not sharing; it means focusing on the key elements that are crucial to your long-term success. Set aside the secondary priorities to make sure that what you offer, who you are, and how your clients perceive you is as a genuine and caring professional.

Business selfishness will lead to success by always improving who you are and what you offer.

Lester Salvatierra is an experienced Finance Specialist with First U.S. Finance (http://www.FirstUSFinance.com). He helps small to mid-size companies lease or finance a wide variety of equipment and special projects for upgrades and expansions. He is also a networking pro and BNI Area Director in Ventura County, CA. Lester@FirstUSFinance.com Ph: 805-217-9896