Going Back In Time, What Marty Fagan, Sandy Lutton, and Andrew Robertson Would Say To Their Younger Self

Mo asks Marty Fagan: If you could record a video about growth or Business Development, and send it back to your younger self, what would you say?

• First thing is to be authentic. If you truly are authentic, people can pick up on that. And if you're not authentic, they can pick up on that as well.
• If you’re talking to someone and you don’t think your solution is a good fit, don’t sell it to them.
• Closing the sale no matter what may work in the short-term, but it’s a terrible strategy in the long-term.
• The second thing is to have a passion for the solution you are offering to your customers. People pick up on your passion, which contributes to that feeling of authenticity.
• Having passion and authenticity establishes trust, and that trust needs to be in place to have a conversation result in a closed deal.
• If you’ve developed a deep expertise, it’s okay to be excited about it and convey that energy to people.

Mo asks Sandy Lutton: If you could record a message around growth and business development and send it to your younger self, what would it say?

• Early in her career, Sandy was intimidated by business development and felt that she had to win them over while being perfect, but it doesn’t have to be an intimidating process.
• Business development is simply about building relationships. Sandy would want to help her younger self take the fear out of the process. It can be fun and engaging, and you will learn a lot along the way.
• Practice for perfection, but play for progress. You start to see how brilliant your team is when you plan ahead, and even if you don’t win the business, you improve for the next one.
• When you’re in a meeting, look for the little wins and what the next step along the way is. Make sure you tackle all the issues and break things down into small steps. Moving anything forward during a meeting is a win, so keep that in mind.
• Instead of trying to wow the prospect, just give them what they are looking for.

Mo asks Andrew Robertson: If you could wave a magic wand and record a video around business development and send it back to your younger self, what would it say?

• There is very little in business that is as satisfying as business and relationship development. Landing a client and then getting them big wins is fulfilling and it’s a wonderful thing to be good at.
• Define victory as a series of steps, instead of an end result. This makes the journey rewarding and not just about the destination.
• If you can take the first step, which is the hardest, everything else gets easier.
• Start with the end goal in mind, and then break it down into the fundamental steps you need to make each day to achieve that goal, then celebrate when you take those steps. It doesn’t guarantee success, but it makes it much more likely.
• You can’t control whether a client will say yes, but you can control whether or not you ask them in the first place.

Mentioned in this Episode:

GrowBIGPlaybook.com

linkedin.com/in/martyfagan

sandy@designinginfluencers.com

Her Journey Told Podcast

andrew.robertson@bbdo.com