MRL #064- 7 Things I'd Tell Myself As A New Producer

For much of my first 3 years in the business I spent my nights tucked in the fetal position.

Overwhelmed, anxiety ridden, and lost, I stared at the wall with my stomach in knots.

You see…

At 35, I left a successful career as a Territory Rep to try my luck at this Producer thing.

And with 3 kids at the time (now 5) I couldn’t afford to fail.

But much to my chagrin “failing” was all I seemed to do in those early years.

Some of it was circumstance, some of it was of my own making…

But either way…

After 3 years, I found myself sitting across the table from my agency principals having “the talk”. They politely informed me my draw was up, and if I wanted to stay, I would have to go straight commission.

3 years in and I had less than a $200K book. What a failure.

Looking back on it now, I can still feel the embarrassment and shame.

There’s so many things I’d do differently.

If I only knew then what I know now.

Which brings me to my point…

What if I could know then what I know now?

That’d be awesome, right?

What if instead of writing to you…

I just write to 2018 Max, and tell him a few things?

What did I need to read back then?

What would have helped me?

Let’s do that, shall we?

Hop in my little time machine with me…

And let’s go back and leave a little note for New Producer Max.

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Dear Max,

This is 2024 Max.

Let’s be honest, things aren’t going well are they?

That’s okay big guy, hang in there… I’m here to help.

I’ve made a list of 7 things for you.

If you’ll just do what I say, things will turn around for you.

Promise.

Ok big guy…

Listen up.

#1. You don’t need a fancy outbound sequence!

You can choose cold calling, cold emails, drop-ins, direct mail...

Doesn’t really matter.

You just need to pick one and master it.

Keep it simple.

#2. Stop wasting your time!

I know 3 years seems like a long time, but it’s not.

The days will go by slow, but the years will go by fast.

Make every year, month, week, day, and minute count.

Time will be up before you know it.

#3. People buy from you, not the logo on your shirt!

Sell “your agency” and all your “super cool resources” all you want…

Just know, they’re really buying from you.

Do they know, like, and trust you?

That’s all that really matters.

Stop selling your agency, and start selling YOU!

#4. You need more at-bats than you think!

You’re gonna have to prospect like crazy.

I know you think you’re a great closer…

But this industry is just different.

You’re gonna need more deals to get across that finish line than you think.

Oh, and here’s an article worth reading.

Moral of the story…

Know your prospecting numbers, and reverse engineer into your daily activity.

#5. Pick one sales process and stick with it!

There’s a million ways to win, but you have to pick one.

Mixing and matching other people’s way of doing it is a recipe for disaster.

Find one person whose done (or doing) it the way you are…

And just follow their lead.

Pssst…

Here’s a hint… M-I-C-A-H.

Ignore everybody else.

#6. Pick one or two niches and stick with them!

You’re going to see a lot of people win in a lot of different ways in a lot of different niches.

Ignore your shiny object syndrome.

Stick with the two you picked.

Every time you pivot, the clock starts over.

#7. Stop stressing!

You can’t function effectively if you’re putting more pressure on yourself than there already is.

This job is hard enough…

Don’t make it harder.

Deep breath.

You’re going to be okay.

Just know…

You’re Not Alone

Countless others have been where you are…

And made it out alive.

You will too.

It gets easier, I promise.

So, keep your head down…

And start listening to Micah for crying out loud!

That’s all you need to do.

Keep your head up, and keep giving em hell!

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See you next Sunday.

Kick ass take names,

Maximus F Revenue

P.S. If you liked this newsletter, there are 2 more ways we can help you:

1. Go check out The Producer Playbook 

   It’s our step-by-step guide to building a $1,000,000 book via cold prospecting. It costs less than a night out with friends.

2. Join Max Revenue HQ

   It’s our community by Producers in the trenches, for Producers in the trenches. We’ve got almost 400 Producers already inside. Oh, and it’s FREE (for now).