People are simply not interested in what you have to say!
98% that’s ninety eight bleedin’ percent of people I talk to about business and personal development are not be in the least bit interested in changing their lives; they have not the slightest interest in what I have to say FACT!
Of the remaining 2% I find that half of them will appear captivated by the great wisdom I share, but will do absolutely bugger all about it, and finally, a measly 1% will listen and actually take action.
Q. What do you get if you cross an Irishman with a spider?
A. Paddy Longlegs!!!
Pathetic isn’t it? And for those who don’t understand the joke, Paddy is an affectionate nickname for an Irishman. I have to point out before we proceed, that no offense is intended to all you Irish (see sticky Labels)!
The fact remains though, that daft joke was my killer weapon in a desperate war waged against the holidaymaker. Poor, defenseless tourists who had been looking forward all year to a break in the sunshine would take their first walk along the promenade in Tenerife, unaware of the hideous, spotty, teenage timeshare touts waiting to pounce like coiled springs at any given moment.
It would be literally seconds after they’d left the sanctuary of their apartment before they were approached
Every couple of minutes they were ambushed by young reprobates who would try just about anything to get them to take a tour of the timeshare resort they were promoting.
“Just hop in this free taxi and it’ll take you back to your hotel” (via a three to four hour grilling designed to part you from several thousand dollars they can ill afford).
“Hi, I work for The Holiday Programme and we are filming at this wonderful vacation destination. We need genuine holiday makers to make up the numbers at our featured resort how would you like to be on the TV?”
They arrive – no one filming!
“Oh that’s a shame, you’ve just missed them, but seeing as you’re here, why don’t you take a tour anyway there’s even a free gift by way of an apology for the film crew not being here” (everyone got a free gift regardless!).
The most resilient holiday-makers would only last a short while before relenting to the pressure and half-truths. They would eventually jump into the taxi and be whisked, smartly up to the resort where they would be introduced to the infamous Super High Pressure, Nitrous Oxide, Turbo Charged, Timeshare Sales Rep.
Some holiday-makers would manage a day or so before they gave in, but give in they would, if only to be able to say to the tout that they had already taken a tour … it was carnage!
Personally, I never had to stoop as low as some who would say anything to earn a commission. Once my killer joke had broken the ice and put a smile on their face they were putty in my hands! I was persuasive and above all, extremely tenacious.
I would not stop talking until the weary couple had taken a tour and I had another bonus in the bank.
The barrage of solicitations heaped upon innocent tourists was relentless. It’s awful, I know, and if you’ve ever been to a destination where timeshare touts operate you’ll know what I’m talking about. And if you don’t know what timeshare is, it’s a way of selling holiday apartments. Instead of buying the property freehold, you buy weeks in that property that can be swapped at resorts all over the world. It’s a great concept when run properly.
The way it was sold left a bit to be desired! You have a team of kids on the streets whose job was to generate leads and send them up to the resort where high pressure sales tactics were used to make the sale on the day!
As you already know, I was one of those dreadful pests; I was a timeshare tout.
Why was I involved in the systematic harassment of sun worshipers whose only desire was to get to the beach and forget all about the systematic harassment they experience in their stress-filled lives at home?
One reason … The Money!
Oh! and the sun, sea, partying and general debauchery!
I will say that I was only nineteen and knew no better at the time. I had got educated in a magnificent part of the country only to find that the jobs in advertising were all in the smog of London. I spent a dreadful time there trying to get a job, so this was an escape for me and I was determined to make a go of it. Working timeshare afforded a good life for someone right out of university granted: Beer and girls! Oh and more beer and more girls! But without a doubt, the greatest attraction of all, was the big fat pay cheque. Actually, it was a fad wad of cash.
The income structures and incentives were phenomenal. The end of each week would see teams of young men and women dribbling as the cash yes, tax-free cash was handed out.
We were taking home more than most white-collar professionals!
But, this was not easy money!
There were around six resorts in Tenerife where I was employed and each had a team of approximately ten to fifteen OPCs (Outside Personal Contacts) as they were called. Dog-rough, pain-in-the-arse, touts for short!
The main strip that we were allowed to patrol by the authorities was only two miles long at most, so potentially, there were 90 youngsters crammed into a very small area … nightmare!
By the end of Day #1, holidaymakers were thoroughly fed up and some were even at the stage of issuing profanities!
And who could blame them!
By the end of their holiday most wanted to go home for a rest.
It was hard for them, and understandably it was very difficult to get a couple to even look at you, let alone stop so that you could deliver your well-rehearsed pitch. That’s where my killer joke came in, it broke down defenses.
We were paid commission on each and every tourist we managed to cajole into taking a tour of the resort. Competition for our quarry was fierce.
This truly was basic animal behavior, survival of the fittest. Nevertheless, there were a select few of us who consistently earned top money. Notice the word ‘us’, I included myself in that group because I was one of the best!
The most prolific performers were a tight-nit group of friends, and I was at the very top of our team.
Two mates and I regularly out-performed all others. In fact, most weeks our cumulative total was more than the rest put together.
Week in, week out, we marked up the highest scores.
Week in, week out, we took home the biggest pay packets.
Week in, week out, the rest of the team would ask us how we did it!!!
We had a formula, and contrary to what most would do when in possession of a recipe for success … we shared it!
What did we have that made the difference; what was it that set us apart from the rest?
What was it that was so powerful that it ensured we always took the top three positions on the winner’s podium?
What was that winning formula?
We understood the Numbers Game nothing more!
We knew that, as a rule, one person in twenty we talked to would take the tour. That’s it, and once you embraced that concept the rest was plain sailing!
Talk to twenty people, and one will take the tour!!!
Talk to forty people, and two will take the tour. How simple is that?
Obviously, you need to throw in a bit of drive, grit and determination, which sadly many of our contemporaries lacked, but that’s it!!!
If I got paid £20/$30 for every person I got to the resort and, on average, I would get one person in twenty to visit. Then a quick calculation will show that each person I talk to is worth £1/$1.50. (this was big money back in the eighties)
Whereas, the other OPCs would look at a holiday maker and see only the knock-back, the rejection all we could see was a big, fat $ sign on their head.
Now apply the same rule to your business!!!
Building any business is simply a numbers game.
You can’t be all things to all people. In fact, it’s impossible to be anything at all, to all people!
No matter what you do in life or business, there are only a small fraction of the population who share your sentiments, ideas and paradigms.
This is a wholly good thing and what makes the human race so diverse and successful. What a dull place the world would be if we all wanted the same things.
Not everyone wants to be rich, not everyone wants success; not everyone wants to drive a fast car or sail a magnificent yacht. Not everyone wants the same things as you!
I found this an exceptionally hard concept to grasp but it’s reality, most people are quite happy with their lot. You’ll often hear them say they’re not but inside they’re just not programmed in the way I expected.
Saying you want change and actually generating the desire, then taking action are entirely different things.
This is part of human nature and there’s nothing we can do about it more importantly we don’t want to do anything about it!
Your job is to find the pearls.
A pearl diver discards many oysters before he finds a jewel. But he knows that he must continue in his search to be rewarded. He knows that there are an average number of shells he must break open before he finds a pearl … so he breaks open as many as it takes and each one is simply a number in the equation!
He doesn’t waste his time trying to grow a pearl in an impotent oyster, he simply takes a look and if there’s no fertile ground he moves on!
Success is a journey of choice. Be sure to make wise decisions and select authentic, positive people that sincerely respect your journey. People see the journey you have chosen to be one of happiness, love, fulfilled dreams, and manifested hopes.
