1. Plan your day night before. List and prioritize top five objectives you desire to accomplish when you get to office. Start with number one item on your list and stay with it until it is complete. Try to do most difficult tasks first.

2. Your first priority as a salesperson is to make appointments. If you do not have an appointment with a prospect, then get on phone and make one. I recommend you make your phone calls in morning when you are fresh and alert.

3. Let your friends and co-workers know when you do not want to be disturbed. Close your office door and stay focused on task at hand. An open door invites continuous distractions.

4. Get to office early. You will never be successful in sales profession if you get into habit of coming to work at “crack of noon.”

5. Avoid long personal phone calls, lunches and coffee breaks. How much of your day do you spend with a client or actively prospecting for new business? You may want to start an activity log and track how you spend your time.

6. Delegate, delegate, delegate. Avoid temptation of doing administrative duties and paperwork. Salespeople historically tend to hide behind their paperwork. Focus your efforts on things that you are licensed or hired to do and consider employing someone else to handle your paperwork. If you have any doubt, ask yourself “What is best use of my time right now?”

Head Gestures: There are four basic head positions.

· Head Neutral: Indicates a neutral and open attitude.

· Tilted Back: Indicates a superior attitude.

· Tilted Down: Indicates negative and judgmental attitude.

· Tilted to One Side: Indicates interest.

Facial Gestures: Facial gestures are easy to observe but are frequently overlooked due to their subtlety. Facial gestures are vitally important because

· Dilated Pupils: Under normal lighting conditions when a person is excited about something, their pupils will dilate. Conversely, when someone is upset or angry their pupils will contract. For this very reason, professional poker players frequently wear sunglasses. Aristotle Onassis always wore dark sunglasses whenever he negotiated business deals. As a professional salesperson you should not wear sunglasses while you are in front of a prospect. Eye contact is crucial for building trust and rapport.

· Eye Rub: Indicates deceit, "See no evil." When a person rubs their eye they will normally look away from you to avoid eye contact.

· Eye Roll: Is a dismissive gesture that indicates superiority.

· Looking Over Glasses: Indicates scrutiny and a critical attitude.

· Nose Rub: Indicates dislike of subject at hand.

· Hand or Fingers Blocking Mouth: Indicates deceit, "Speak no evil." When a person uses this blocking gesture while they are speaking they are literally attempting to block or filter their words. If your prospect assumes this gesture while you are speaking, this indicates they are skeptical or doubtful of what you are telling them.

· Glasses to Mouth: Used to stall or delay a decision.

· Chin Stroking: This gesture is used when a person is in final process of making a decision. When you see this gesture avoid temptation to interrupt your prospect. If gestures that follow chin stoking are positive, and it is appropriate, ask for order. If gestures following chin stoke are negative then you will know there is additional work to be done before you can close sale.

· Thumb Under Chin/Index Finger Pointing Vertically along Cheek: Indicates a negative attitude and critical judgment. Do not mistake this gesture for interest because in this case thumb is under chin. When you encounter this negative gesture, hand your prospect something to force them to drop their hand away from their face.

Matching and Mirroring: People want to do business with salespeople that they like and trust. You can build trust and rapport by deliberately, but subtly, matching your prospects body language. Matching and mirroring body language gestures is unconscious mimicry. It is a way of unconsciously telling another that you like them and agree with them. For example, if you notice that your prospect is crossing their arms, subtly cross your arms to match them. After you believe you have developed trust and rapport, check it by seeing if they will match you. Uncross your arms and see if your prospect will match and mirror you as you move into a more open posture. If you notice your prospect subconsciously matching your body language gestures, this indicates that you have developed trust and rapport. Conversely, if you notice your prospect mismatching your body language gestures you know trust and rapport has not been established and sale is in jeopardy.