“Everybody is looking for certainty in an uncertain world.”
Internet marketing guru Alex Jeffreys learned this valuable insight into human nature from a mentor years ago.
“So now that you know it’s uncertain,” his mentor continued, “It’s up to you to go forward and figure out what works and what doesn’t, and just focus on what works.”
As Alex Jeffreys took his mentor’s advice to find business success, he learned another valuable lesson. Even in an uncertain world, it’s crucial to invest in mentors who have done what you hope to do and achieved what you hope to achieve.
“I’m not the smartest cookie in the jar,” he said. “But there’s one thing that I’ve learned many years ago, and it was this: To get ahead in business, you want to invest your money in mentors to learn from their mistakes, which will save you time so you can focus on just what works.”
The advice and guidance from mentors who have grown the same hundred-million dollar businesses that he aspires to build has given him the sense of certainty that everyone is looking for, Jeffreys said.
“I’m moving forward in their footsteps, learning from their mistakes,” he said. “Having them guide me and give me the confidence to do certain things — and that gives me certainty.”
Gaining a sense of certainty translates to more than just confidence. For Jeffreys, it inspired a new mindset that gave him the courage to stop sabotaging himself and achieve success through programs like Marketing with You.
“I was always the underdog,” he said. “I never wanted to be the big dog. I realized, wow, I’m self-sabotaging a lot. So, I fixed my mindset and my bank balance followed.”
With this new outlook, Jeffreys found tangible success. He signed more clients to his coaching service, which created more success stories, ultimately leading to even more business.
Numbers Don’t Lie
Following in the footsteps of accomplished mentors is only half of the equation for success. The other half is knowing your numbers.
“The number one lesson I learned in business is to know your numbers,” he said. “Your numbers should dictate everything you do within the business. And the numbers do not lie.”
While your revenue and costs will fluctuate in the beginning, you will reach a point where they will become more consistent, Jeffreys said. This is when you’ll know how much you have to spend to sign a new client. This key figure is the benchmark you need to know to realize the full potential of your business.
“As soon as we see the numbers and they are healthy, we say ‘slam the gas,’” he said. “That means you can spend as much money as you want because it’s very hard to fail. I don’t even know how you can fail.”
Ramping up your spending to invest in your business can be terrifying for many new business owners. Knowing your numbers will help you overcome this fear because figures don’t have an emotional value, Jefferys said.
“Numbers don’t have emotion,” he said. “It’s the people who have the emotion.”
To illustrate his point, Jeffreys drew on the experience of trading simulators. It’s easy for people to get hit the jackpot in a simulation, but replicating this success in real life is challenging, he said.
“As soon as they’re using their own money, they get scared because there’s now an emotion attached to the trade,” he said.
Instead of focusing on the emotions, refresh your mindset to focus on your dream and what you’re trying to achieve. Jeffreys recommends writing out your goals and why you want to achieve them.
“Nothing should get in your way to achieve those goals,” he said. “Unless you want to be mediocre like most of the world.”