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Easy!!  Rick Smith was a GREAT COMPETITOR!

Yesterday as I watched the playoff between Tom Watson and Stewart Cink at the British Open I was reminded of Rick.  Tom Watson and Stewart Cink were both doing what they are exceptional at just as Rick and I always did when we "played" each other in the world of technology sales.

Tom and Stewart were playing great golf.

Tom and Stewart were professionals.

Tom and Stewart were loved by their customers/fans.

Tom and Stewart genuinely appreciated one another skills.

Tom and Stewart loved the game.

Tom never gave up.

Stewart did not quit early.

Stewart was standing and applauding Tom as were the fans as he made his next to last shot and when he finished his final putt Stewart was still applauding.

Tom was smiling and applauding Stewart as he took the claret jug.

On this day as with each sale there can only be one winner.

The joy of a great competitor is it makes the win even more special.

Is your competitor worthy of celebrating?

If not, perhaps you aren’t playing with the right players.  Up your game TODAY and find yourself a competitor that is worthy of your great skills in selling.

**There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t miss the fun that I had selling against Rick Smith…..so the dedication in my book will forever remain:  Rick Smith  1957-2007  My greatest competitor EVER!

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Last week we had sent out a Happy 4th of July newsletter and asked you for your favorite Top 10 Freedom’s.  It was amazing and heart warming to see them and I have a couple to share below that incorporate what many others said.   One thing I wasn’t expecting was there were a couple of people on my list that I thought were Americans and they were not.  They filled out their list with the 10 freedoms they appreciated in America that they did not have in their own country and stated that these freedoms were things they were grateful for each day.  It reminded me again that we have so much that we take for granted….imagine if we did not have these freedoms…we too might take them much more seriously.

1. the freedom to live where I want

2. the freedom to pray to the God of my choosing

3. the freedom to marry whom I want

4. the freedom to associate with whom I want

5. the freedom to learn to read and go to school

6. the freedom to earn a living in the fields of my choice

7. the freedom to go where I want, unescorted by brother, father or husband

8. the freedom to wear what I want, no veil unless I choose so

9. the freedom to read the books, magazines, etc. I want and to see the films I’d like

10. the freedom of speech, to be able to respond to this message openly and honestly–God Bless America!!

Freedom affords me the ability to:

1.  Worship as I choose

2.  Travel as I please

3.  Speak my mind

4.  Write my ideas

5.  Express my beliefs

6.  Sell and buy in a “free” market

7.  Vote my conscience

8.  Stand up publicly for what I know to be right

9.  Participate in the legal and justice systems

10.  Choose…Choice is the cornerstone of Freedom

I’ll start with the first four that Franklin Roosevelt described in his State of the Union Address to the Congress, January 6, 1941:

"The first is freedom of speech and expression–everywhere in the world.

The second is freedom of every person to worship God in his own way–everywhere in the world.
The third is freedom from want–which, translated into universal terms, means economic understandings which will secure to every nation a healthy peacetime life for its inhabitants–everywhere in the world.
The fourth is freedom from fear–which, translated into world terms, means a world-wide reduction of armaments to such a point and in such a thorough fashion that no nation will be in a position to commit an act of physical aggression against any neighbor–anywhere in the world."

And here are my six, at least for 2009. One of the joys of true freedom is that you can pick new ones any time you want.

1. The freedom to make an idiot of myself.
2. The freedom to recover successfully after making an idiot of myself.
3. The freedom to ignore social classes.
5. The freedom to invent new freedoms.
4. The freedom to give up my freedoms (Not recommended. The price of freedom is, of course, eternal vigilance.).
6. The freedom to bitch and moan about not having any freedoms (frequently used; vastly underappreciated, at least by some folks).

************************************************************************************************************************************

My Dad and brother are buried less than 100 yards apart in Arlington Cemetery.  There is not one day that the impression of that hallowed place doesn’t remind me of the blessings of living in this country.
Freedom is knowing that those that you have brought into this world have the best chance to succeed compared to anyplace on the planet.
Freedom seems to know no boundary of race or belief, we seem to always try to pull together when things are bad and enjoy our lives when things are good.
Freedom is the ability to think any thought and know that the Constitution gives you that right.
Freedom always seems to give us more chances to do the right thing.

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http://sports.espn.go.com/broadband/video/videopage?videoId=3380875

Sales is a contact sport complete with your team and their - competitors - team. 

Does your team know your "home run" dream? 

Would the competitors team think enough of you to help you get it?

Often times people think the profession of sales lacks character.  I am here to tell you that is not true!

Many have asked me about the DEDICATIONS page in my book, The Field Guide To Sales….and WHY in heavens name would I dedicate my book to a COMPETITOR???????????  This video reminded me of Rick Smith -my greatest competitor EVER! - and how he was like the two young women who didn’t hardly hesitate to do what was right with no time to think about what this would do for them…..but knowing that young woman on the OTHER team could not make her dream of a home run come true by herself and her own team could not help her.  Their character is as second nature to them as breathing…is yours?

Some days it is not about the number on the scoreboard….the girls who carried their competitor over home plate so she could score a home run did not win the game……and they were not losers either.

Play ball!!!!!!!!!!      

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A special thank you to you Donna for hosting us at the beautiful TransSynergy Group offices…..thank you to Betty also for helping get everything coordinated!:)

Thank you for sharing in Karel Anne’s and my excitement over our books….each of you make it extra special!:)  We would love your book reviews after you read them….or in the case of Karel Anne’s books we would love to come and do a taste test of the recipes you prepare from her book!:)

Chip Richie was with us on Wednesday….and now in his SEVENTH:) decade of film making:)….who remember when he was in his FIFTH decade….I do, I do!:)…..please see his email below for the link to his newest trailer on YouTube….as always, he is doing amazing things….and finally the world is recognizing him for it!:)

Our best to each of you always!:)  Let us know if we can do anything for you!!:)

Hugs,

Deb:)

You can view a trailer of Chip’s next film on YouTube.

Our Spirits Don’t Speak English:  Indian Boarding School

http://youtube.com/watch?v=OQ48PlBr7Oc

and an interview that will break your heart

http://youtube.com/watch?v=qDshQTBh5d4

Available in two weeks at

www.richheape.com

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The Chicago Sun Times featured Chocolate Prescription in their Wednesday Food Section.  Here’s the link to the online version of the article.  In the paper, they printed a photo of her 1 Week Prescription!

 
http://www.suntimes.com/lifestyles/food/922599,FOO-News-fancy30.article

I hope all is going well for you and that you are eating lots of dark chocolate!  : )

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How do you get your message to the WORLD???  Needless to say meeting everyone on the planet one on one is probably not an effective use of your time or even possible!:)

What if you have someone help you tell the world…or at least 60 countries on the face of the globe?

Enter a wonderful Johnny Appleseed who is helping me sow the message for sales that I want to get out to the world.  His name is Forrest Ward and I want you to know him too!!  Forrest has a program called Living & Leading on an internet radio site called Apostle Radio and he invited me to be his guest speaker to tell about my background, my business and the community things that are important to me that might help others in how they make a difference in their world.

Hear the interview here:Debbie Mrazek - Living and Leading interview with Forrest Ward

Forrest and I met at a luncheon hosted by Jeff Crilley who has written THE book on Free Publicity - Free Publicity: A TV Reporter Shares the Secrets for Getting Covered on the News.  Jeff had allowed us to stand up during the luncheon and tell about our new book, The Field Guide To Sales, and afterwards Forrest came up to me to ask if he could buy a copy and told me he had a radio show that he would like to interview me for…WOW! was all I could think!!  (NOTE: You know how I am always telling you that you need to show up for something to happen…this is a great case in point!!:))

Forrest uses the radio program to showcase others and get the message out about what he does for companies in his business.  His firm is committed to working with entrepreneurs to expand their businesses through developing business plans and marketing strategies, facilitating those plans and strategies, pre-screening and testing potential employees, training new employees, and providing a network of services to obtain clients.  Feel free to Call 817-880-5651 or email Forrest@ForrestAllenWard.com to have Forrest work with you and your business or speak to your group.

How do you get your message out to the world???  Engage with others who use a different medium to get the word out or who have a different market.  I use newsletters, blogs, speeches, articles,etc to get the word out.  Forrest uses his great LIVING AND LEADING radio program.  So today I tell my world via my blog about him and he tells his world via his radio show about me….this is how the world becomes our oyster!!

Who has an audience that you would like to reach today….call them and see if they will share your story with their audience and you in turn can share their story with yours…and the world gets bigger!:)

Happy Selling!
Deb:)

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What are some other different kinds of ways you could have FUN with your colleagues and get to know one another, engage in meaningful conversation, talk comfortably…..some other ideas might be:

• A wine tasting - usually done in quiet environments over a few hours and everyone is usually "happy" when they leave
• Hot air balloon ride - get everyone out to do something they may have never done before but that is engaging and highly memorable
• Cooking class - we all know the way to the heart is thru the stomach right??:)  We all can’t be Julia Childs but a group can put out a great meal like Julia when they have someone showing them every step of the way!  Check out my friend, Chef Karel Anne’s cooking school that does this sort of event   www.kitchen-friends.com
• Concert in the park - find a group that all like the same artist and buy tickets, sit in the grass, rent a bus to ride together to go there, stand in line for nachos and beer together in between sets….great way to get to know people and have time to talk!:)

Whatever you do just do something FUN….sales does not have to be drudgery to be successful….the best sales are always done with people who genuinely like one another and enjoy being together whether at the conference table, over lunch or at a FUN event!:)

Happy Selling!
Deb:)

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What groups do you belong to?  Professional, community, school, etc??

Why do you belong to them?  How long have you belonged to them?

What do they do for you?  Do you participate or merely show up from time to time?

Obviously, you have thousands of organizations out there today that you can belong to.  How do you choose?

I generally choose because of the leadership, the mission, the members that are involved. Ten years ago I joined an organization called   eWomenNetwork because of it’s two founders, Sandra and Kym Yancey, who were just beginning this new organization that was only going to be on the web - I loved them as the leadership, believed in their mission to connect women all over the world by having a website where they could find one another sorted by their areas of interest or geography and I knew the membership would be great because it would be other terrific women.

After 10 years not only have I met an unbelievable group of women but the organization changed after a couple of years of being on the web when they continued to have women ask them if they could get together in person. 

Fast forward - we have met in person hundreds of wonderful women at monthly meetings, spoken at different chapter meetings, attended the International Conference and Business EXPO (which if you are in Dallas July 10-13th you don’t want to miss this—remember your girls dorm in college and how fun that was?? Well, this is the downtown Hyatt Regency as a 4 day dormitory with fabulous women and it is legal to drink alcoholic beverages without getting expelled!:)),had the opportunity to speak for all of eWomens Managing Directors from Canada and the United States as well as do a conference breakout session - also, eWomen is the one who recommended me to speak in various cities for the Office Depot Success Strategies for Businesswomen Conferences,  we joined another eWomen initiative the eWomenPublishing Network - learned how to create a book, have created a book, have published our book The Field Guide To Sales —and  yes that is our book on the first page of the networking site!:) ***at our monthly meetings we also have sponsorship tables….this was us yesterday at our monthly meeting at Glen Eagles Country Club - contact Kym Glass - Managing Director, Plano if you would like to join us next month: kymglass@ewomennetwork.com

Has it been worth the time, the money, the effort?????????? YES a thousand times over!!!  Can you say this about organizations that you belong to?  If not, find a great new organization where you can volunteer, participate, learn, network, connect with other awesome people like yourself who share your drive and ambition….it is money in the bank when you do!!!!!$$$$$

Thought you might enjoy some of the points that I did from our monthly meeting last month when Sandra spoke on WORKING TOGETHER WORKS :

We love a down economy; everything is on sale!!

When you think no one cares about you – skip a payment.

Universe never shows up early or late….it is always right on time.

Believe what you see; see what you believe.

Don’t need to adopt others way but adapt in a way that honors yourself.

Your fortune is in the future because of follow-up.

People like people who smile.:)

-Sandra Yancey

Founder, eWomenNetwork

Author, Relationship Networking: The Art of Turning Contacts into Connections

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