Looking Toward The Finish Line

By Steve Hoffacker, caash, caps, cgp, cmp, csp, mcsp, mirm

Hoffacker Associates, West Palm Beach, FL

There certainly is more 2010 in our rearview mirror than there is ahead of us, but that doesn’t mean we should focus on what’s behind us. It doesn’t matter what didn’t get done that we planned. It doesn’t matter where we were successful. It doesn’t matter where we stumbled or faltered. It doesn’t matter what sales got away from us or haven’t happened yet. All that matters is where we go from here.

If we’ve had a fair measure of success so far this year, we can’t coast the rest of the way. If we have struggled so far this year, there’s still time to finish reasonably strong.

If you have ever heard or read reports about marathon running or tried it yourself, then you are familiar with the concept of “the wall.” This is an emotional and physical barrier that occurs around the 20-mile mark of the 26-mile race — or a little over three-quarters of the way to the finish. We are a little closer than that to the finish line of December 31, but the comparison is real.

The idea of the wall is that we get mentally and emotionally fatigued from running that distance and our bodies become tired to the point of wanting to quit. It’s pushing through and past this point that produces winners. A year is long time to compete.

We need to call upon our mental and physical reserves. Our conditioning, our preparation, our stamina, our determination, and our perseverance will propel us the rest of the way.

Now, December 31 is not the end of the race — unless we don’t plan on competing in 2011, but it is how we keep score for 2010. In that sense, it is the finish line. That is where the official clock will stop and we’ll be able to measure our accomplishments against our goals — number of sales, dollar volume, number of cancellations, number of new contacts, number of appointments set, number of presentations made, and number of conversions.

So, it’s definitely not too early to be looking at that finish line, but we shouldn’t be so focused on it that we stub our toe on an opportunity that is right in our path or overlook something important that we can take advantage of.

Perspective is the key. Look toward the finish line but have peripheral vision that allows us to take in a full scope of opportunities as they present themselves to us. We won’t necessarily use all of them, but we should be able to recognize them as they appear.

The finish line is fast approaching.