The US presidential election is next week. Who are you voting for?
Now, if you paused when you saw that and said “Anthony, are you going to venture down a political blog post?” I understand your fear. But the answer is no, I’m not. The outcome of this presidential election is not going to have an impact on my business, it’s not going to have an impact on my mentality, it’s not going to have an impact on the life I live at home. Let me tell you why. In nearly 20 years of business, I’ve not had one president pick up the phone and call me and ask me how business is going. Yes, there’s consequences to elections. Yes, rules, taxes, things will change, but you know what doesn’t have to change? What goes on inside your brain. You know what doesn’t have to change? How you approach your journey of sales, fitness, health, entrepreneurship, whatever that journey is for you. Because I promise you, whether it’s a Democratic-led presidency or a Republican-led presidency, neither party is going to to have an impact in your life, in your business, greater than the one you’ll have yourself.
I associate a presidential election much like a quota in an annual compensation plan or an annual sales plan. In that process, I have to figure out how to navigate the conditions that will exist in the upcoming year. Who wins the presidential election is just a condition. Who wins the presidential election is not an objection or an obstacle for you to be successful in 2021.
So I’m taking a moment on this week’s blog post to switch it a little bit away from the sales and leadership training to really talk about mindset. If you approach your business with the idea that it will be directly impacted by the outcome of any election, you’re not going to make the growth in your business that you want. That’s because only you control your destiny. The only thing that’s going to change with this presidential election is the rules in which we play the game. And the best business person, the best entrepreneur, the best salesperson, learns the rules and exploits them.
With that in mind, there are two things you can do today that will help change your mental approach on this presidential election.
Worst-Case Scenario
Write down the worst case scenario for a Democratic-led presidency or a Republican-led presidency. What’s the worst possible case scenario that can happen in your business? Write it out, and really think it through. You might find that it won’t impact you as much as you thought it might. Or maybe there was an aspect of it you hadn’t considered. Either way, sitting down to really think about it rationally will help you zero in on what matters most.
What Can I Control?
Once you have your list, ask yourself what you can do to change that worst case scenario? When you’ve done that, you’ve just planned your year ’21 business plan because I think you’ll realize one thing: Neither of the people running for that office control your business. They’re not going to check in on you. They’re not going to ask you if you’re meeting your quotas. Only you are in control of it. You’re responsible for your own destiny. Take control of it. Don’t give that control to someone else.
One final note. Do not allow the presidential election to separate friends and family, loved ones, customers. The beautiful thing about being in this country is we’re all allowed to have our own opinion. It is okay to tell someone I don’t respect your opinion, but I respect you as a person. There’s a generation of younger kids that are watching how adults are behaving during this presidential election, and we have to model the best possible behavior.
If you need help trying to figure out how you’re going to hit your sales goal because things have changed so much with the COVID pandemic, do me a favor, schedule some time on my calendar. I’d love to talk with you. I’m in a position right now where I’m accepting a few clients, love to have conversation with you.
https://youtu.be/z4VJ2RCJWsE
