How to Become Unstoppable

Last week, I was honored to deliver a keynote to over 300 top performers from a top 20 U.S. based bank. When asking the client what message they wanted the audience to receive, they said, "We will have a room full of high-achievers. We'd love for you to help them realize how they can achieve this success long-term."

So, hundreds of high-achievers made to become unstoppable. Got it.

In customizing this presentation for my client, I dug into what truly makes us as professionals, and individuals, unstoppable in our success.

There are 6 elements of your demeanor that I found truly separate you from your competition, delight your clients, and also help you achieve greatness as an individual as you strive to achieve personal goals and growth:

Resilience

If we've learned anything in the last couple of years, it's our resilience. As companies, teams, and individuals, we have faced some of the most unexpected change in our generation. While this wave of change has been beyond challenging at times, we have figured things out. Keep in mind, we had to face resilience way before the pandemic, and we will for the rest of our personal and professional lives. Understanding that if you get knocked aside, or flat on your back, you can and should always get up and keep moving. We all have resilience within us and it activates when we are faced with challenge and adversity. 

By focusing on your why, your goals, and your abilities, there is nothing that will keep you down when you take a shot. Get up, smile (pleasantly or competitively), and keep going.

Fearlessness 

We are all faced with decisions to make in life. Some have more time than others to sort things out or carry some sort of weight, but nothing monumental. Then there are those "Oh ____!" moments where we need to act. It could be anything from putting forth an idea in a team meeting or simply getting out of bed in the morning to face the day. When we let the negative "what if's" get to us, we pause, hesitate, and may miss the opportunity. Take a breath, be confident in yourself, and be ready to move when the opportunity presents itself. Fearlessness ironically isn't the lack of fear, it's the conviction to move in spite of it. You will not progress in life if you stand still in fear.

Obsessiveness

I shared a story with the audience about my obsession with beating my competition when I was in medical sales. I studied my product inside and out, but I also studied theirs. I wanted to be prepared with every answer to every question. Even if it was a known fault of my product, or something that our competition had a true advantage on, I knew it. 

How well do you know your company and your competition? Every moment you can spend improving, it helps you to have thorough, knowledgeable, and expert conversations. 

Additionally, I shared with them that success doesn't happen overnight, but neither does failure. Once you reach a certain level of success, what are you doing to keep yourself there? How are you protecting the success you built? How are you working to continually improve yourself? It's that attention to detail that will protect your wins and progress for the long term.

Relentlessness

Once you have the knowledge and strategy to gain ground and cement your success, you need to put it into action. Along with the story of my medical sales growth, I shared with the audience that I was relentless in my pursuit of success. I visited prospects, shared value, offered assistance, but never SOLD anything. By that, I mean I wasn't pitching them. 

I just wanted them to know that I was around, that I would continue to be available, and when they decided to work with me, they'd continue to receive the same attention. My relentlessness wasn't aggressive or self-serving, but more a relentless attitude towards client service and support. That exact attitude is what won me my first client. They gave me the business because they felt that, in my consistent behavior, that I would take care of anything they needed and I wouldn't be a pushy salesperson, ever.

Are you willing to spend the time to brand yourself as the continually consistent deliverer of value? If you're not, do you think your competition is?

Passion

I feel like this is the one factor, out of all of these, that if you can figure it out, you truly set yourself apart. 

When I sold medical supplies, I sold cast tape and the materials to make casts and splints. Not sexy stuff at all. I got really good at talking about the benefits, the features, and even sold competitively on price.

However, it was when I shifted my mindset to "How does this product improve the lives of the physicians and the quality of care for the patient?" that I blew the roof off my territory. When I was selling time savings, care, quality of finished product, ease of use, and the emotional benefit talking points, I didn't have to talk about price anymore. Doctors wanted my product because it saved them time and helped take even better care of their patients. That meant the world to them. 

At the end of the day, very few competitors have truly different products or services. It's how you're improving lives and talking to the emotional benefits that makes you stand out to your clients.

Visualization

I will swear by this tactic all.....day.....long. From meetings, to pitch presentations, to short and long term goals, even workouts and conversations, everything can be accomplished with visualization. I shared with the group that when I spent hours upon hours and miles upon miles training for the New York City Marathon, I was motivated by one single vision every single step. I wanted to cross the finish line on FaceTime with my family so that my sons could see what it looked like to accomplish something big. To prove that when you set your mind to something and truly visualize it, you can achieve anything with hard work. 

Almost to every detail, this picture is EXACTLY what I visualized in my head during my training and during the marathon itself. The visualization of crossing the finish line, of finishing what I started, of accomplishing what I thought was unachievable kept me going the entire time. 

When was the last time you wrote down a goal and then closed your eyes and pictured your own success? What did it look like? What were you doing? What was different about you? How did it feel?

When we settle into that visualization, our emotions take over and push us through the hard times and keep us moving towards what success looks like for us.

After the presentation, I was stopped in the hall numerous times and the common theme from the attendees was "Thank you. Thank you for helping me refresh and re-energize my mind to go to greater heights." 

That's what it's all about. Working towards big goals isn't easy. It takes a lot of work and dedication, but with these foundational elements driving you, you will become truly unstoppable in your pursuit.

If you would like for me to share this high-energy, motivational keynote with your team, company, or sales organization, please let me know. You can reach me at rich@richbracken.com.