Standing For What You Believe Is Right
A Reminder About How Reputations Are Formed From A Discussion With A Prospect Today
Standing For What You Believe Is Right
A Reminder About How Reputations Are Formed From A Discussion With A Prospect Today
Written by a human, for humans, always.
Reputation.
It is something that we all build over time...
Whether we recognize it or not.
The reality of it...
Is that for the vast majority of people...
They do not build their reputation intentionally.
They make choices...
Some based out of feelings of necessity...
Others, based on what they are told is the way that things work...
And many based on refusing to make a real choice, which itself becomes a choice.
Each time...
The reputation is built...
And it can come to define people.
That is one way.
But it is not the only way.
I was talking with a prospect today about the concept of masks and identities.
See...
Everyone has masks in life that they carry.
But...
There are two types of masks, and how they are used is very different...
Especially when we begin to take reputation into account.
The first way is to use a mask as a way to hide aspects of ourselves that we do not want others to see.
It is a tool of deception and is created out of fear.
We put on a mask to the outside world, hoping that they believe the mask “is” us...
While the truth is that we are terrified of people seeing what lies under the mask.
This will build one type of reputation.
The second way that you can use a mask is as a tool to highlight something...
Instead of hiding something, it accentuates what you want others to see.
It becomes a tool of power in asserting who we are under the mask...
Which people begin to appreciate when we put the mask down.
In this way, we build a reputation around who we truly are...
And the mask simply becomes a tool to highlight specific aspects of ourselves in a specific moment.
I discussed this and other things with this prospect about what they needed.
Then...
As any prospective call eventually comes to...
There is the discussion about money.
Now, when it comes to working with people...
There are a few things that I am concerned about most...
Do I like this individual?
Do they want to do good in the world?
Can I see how I can help them in their life?
Would they truly benefit from what I have to offer, or do they really need a different type of service?
These are the types of questions that go through my head.
What never goes through my head...
Is how much they can pay.
Why?
I know who I am.
I know what I am worth.
I know what I am here to do.
I value people more than I value money.
How I operate my business comes from the fact that I value humans.
I also understand...
How different factors can completely undermine the work I do with people.
If I lay out a number...
And they have no questions and go for it...
Then great.
But...
If that person has to make a decision between working with me and struggling to pay for their housing, or their food, or their family...
Either they are not going to work with me, which is a valid conclusion to come to...
Or they are going to try to work with me, because they know they need help, and they will put themselves into more stress than they can handle...
Which, when you understand psychophysiology, becomes extremely detrimental to the overall goal...
And if they cannot maintain that for 6 months to a year...
Then it is not going to benefit working with me...
And it can actually be detrimental.
At the same time...
They know they do need the help...
And if they do not get help...
Then they may not be able to get where they want.
My solution to this when I work with people...
Is to be up front about what I charge for time and services...
Hear out what they are thinking...
And if they want to work with me...
Tell them that we will figure it out and that I will not sell them immediately on the call.
I do not do it.
I refuse to be a “hard seller”.
It is simply against my moral beliefs and how I want to work with people.
The prospect heard me talk about this and asked if I had taken sales courses before...
And I have.
Many.
Between traditional sales courses like those offered by the family of Zig Ziglar that continue his legacy...
To different methods of using digital marketing to move into sales online...
I have taken many courses over the years...
And I can tell you that many of these methods work.
I can also tell you...
That many of them also exploit human psychophysiology.
They find weaknesses...
And attack humans.
The typical hard sell that you find often does this.
It is also something that I personally refuse to do to people.
When I talk about the pricing of my services...
I put on a mask of power to say...
I know what I am worth...
I know you need help...
And I will work with you to find a way to get you the help you need while honoring the work that I do...
And I refuse to put you in a corner to make a decision that you may regret later on.
That is how I operate.
This is also why...
Most of the clients that I work with...
Have stayed with me for years.
Because they know I actually care about them as humans.
Because they understand that I will help them find the solutions they need.
Because they know that they get better results with me on their side.
It is also why many of my clients...
Get more of my services over time.
They get the value they need...
They begin to live better lives...
Then they want to accelerate that process.
That is the reputation I have built.
It has been an intentional process that I have developed over time.
It is a reputation that has kept me in business for 10 years.
It is a reputation that has led to me entering the Hall of Fame as a leadership coach.
It is a reputation that has led to me being recognized alongside doctors in helping people improve their health and psychophysiology.
It is a reputation that has led to me being asked to become a United Nations Representative in a consultative capacity on leadership, health, and psychophysiological matters.
It is a reputation that has led to one Honorary Doctorate of Advanced Studies in Psychology, and another that is coming soon.
It is a reputation that has led me to being recognized on a billboard in Times Square, New York.
But..
More importantly than all of those...
It is a reputation that has allowed me to continue to help people.
All because I choose to stand for what I believe is right.
You have the power and capacity to create and design your reputation...
But you have to be intentional about it.
You will have a reputation...
Even if you are not intentional about it...
But for most people...
If they do not design their reputation themselves, it will become unflattering...
Often compromising who they want to be in life.
The world often tries to tell us who we have to be and what we have to do...
But you have the power to create a different form of reputation...
One that aligns with what you believe is right.
Do not be afraid to wear a mask of power that does not align with the rest of the world...
That choice may be what allows you to stand out as a beacon in an otherwise bleak world.
What do you want your reputation to become?
To Your Sageship,
Cody
P.S. - It can be Difficult to Figure Out How To Achieve…
Stress Optimization
Psychophysiological Freedom
An Exemplar Wayset
If you want Aid on the Path to Sageship, let me know - I’ll be Your Coach and Guide.
Just Send Me A Message.