I’m challenging you to have your BEST year ever. So far, I’ve given you the first eight elements of how to make that happen:

1. Define yourself.

2. Develop a sales mission statement.

3. Have a deep belief in the three critical areas of selling.

4. Develop greater pride in accomplishment.

5. You are what you eat.

6. Get rid of one time-waster.

7. Read a book every two months.

8. Get your (sales) pipeline full.

Here are the next four elements to master:

9. Meet your monthly sales quota by the second week of the month. If your pipeline is full, then the arbitrary quota, or sales goal, or sales plan that your company has set for you, will be blown away. Reason: Sales goals, sales plans and sales quotas are set so that mediocre salespeople can achieve them. You’ll know you’re on your way to your best year ever if you can meet your sales quota by the second week — instead of begging for it on the last day.

10. Start branding yourself. My name is my brand. My company’s name is Buy Gitomer, and if you’ll notice, everything I do has my name attached to it. It’s not “The Little Red Book of Selling,” it’s “Jeffrey Gitomer’s Little Red Book of Selling.” In anything I do on my Web site, you’ll see my name or my picture. In my e-mail magazine, you’ll see my brand all over the place. But you’ll also notice in my e-mail magazine that I am helping other salespeople — like you — make more sales. I do this so that when I ask you to invest in a teleseminar, you’re happy to do so, because you believe in your heart that I can help you. Here’s the good news: I believe in my heart that I can help you, too.

If somebody mentions your name, what words follow? What are people saying about your brand or your reputation in your marketplace? Some people have nicknames that define who they are, and define their brand. Ernie Banks — Mr. Cub. Wayne Gretzky — The Great One. How do they brand you? “The bragging one”? “The whiny one”? “The underachieving one”? Let me give you two words that you might want others to speak about you behind your back: FIRST CLASS. If you’re known as first class, everything else will just fall into place.

11. Get up earlier. I hate sleeping. I think it’s a waste of time. At some point in the next 30 or 40 years, I will be asleep permanently. Until then, I consider every waking moment an opportunity to accomplish something or have a blast. I spend every waking moment in one of my definitions of myself.

12. Write down your thoughts. Begin capturing your thoughts and ideas in writing. I have been writing for 15 years. Every penny I have earned since March 22, 1992, I can trace back to something that I wrote. Capturing your thoughts in writing not only helps clarify them to yourself; it helps clarify them to others. Writing does not just lead to success; writing leads to wealth. If you’re looking to have your best year ever, begin writing down how that’s going to happen, and what things you have to do to make that happen. And begin to list the people who can help you, and the ways in which they can help you. I recommend that you begin by writing down things at the end of the day that are on your mind. The more you write down, the less you will have on your mind, and the easier it will be for you to create new ideas. In order to have your best year ever, you have to have your best ideas ever. And in order to come up with ideas, your mind has to be both clear and positive.

Now you have 12 of the 20.5 elements. More than halfway home. Yes, the ENTIRE article will be available on my Web site AFTER the last part has run.

Return next week for part five of how to have your BEST year ever.

In the meantime, I’d love to know what you are doing to have your best year ever. Send an e-mail to bestyear@gitomer.com and all ideas will be posted on my site.

Jeffrey Gitomer can be reached by phone at (704) 333-1112 or by e-mail at salesman@gitomer.com.