How to Tank a Million Dollar Business

You can listen to this blog on YouTube here

At this week’s Notary Symposium, I was asked a question during the Q & A portion of my presentation. I had posited that when I finally took my notary business seriously, and decided to grow it, I had to stop doing the things that a $30,000 earner did, and start doing the things that a $100,000 earner did.  

The question one viewer posed was, “what are some examples of what a $100,000 earner does?” 

I was on the spot in front of a couple hundred notaries, still basking in the glow after sharing the stage with Hal Elrod, and I answered, “remove the naysayers and fortify your network with your believers.” 

And I am not entirely satisfied with my answer.  

It’s certainly true. And it’s definitely important. Entrepreneurship is hard enough as it is, and your inner critic probably handles more than your share of negativity within, so you certainly don’t need anymore from external forces.  

But there’s more to getting the results you want- what most of us would call “success.” 

You must move from overthinker and talker to doer.  

That’s it.  

No magic pills. No secret sauce.  

It’s just doing the work you either know you should be doing… 

OR 

Having the endurance to continue the work long enough to get the results you want.  

You can learn just about everything you’d ever want to know (and then some!) on YouTube.  

And Evr’body and their mothers (and grannies too!) have an online course or book now.  

Knowledge ain’t the problem, honey.  

Action is.  

For our notary businesses, I’ve written about the exact Daily Do’s I used to boost my income to nearly $400,000 a year as a loan signing agent ($364,000 in my top year, to be exact).  

Those aren’t secrets either. You can download the checklist here.  And I give away the full Morning Mastery training here.  

And I think we all know that having tasks on a to-do list doesn’t get them done.  

You actually have to do them.  

This was a long, hard, ridiculous lesson for me.  

One of my 26 business failures was a sort of hybrid vacation rental booking agency, before AirBnB was really a thing. I was so sure I could make it work, I even borrowed money from my Mom so I could invest as a partner.   

My responsibility in that role was to expand the Scottsdale and Sedona market. My job? Cultivate relationships with vacation rental owners.  

All I had to do was call and have a conversation about how my company could save them time, energy, and money-a clear winning proposition.  

I had a list of thousands to work from, with phone numbers, and mailing addresses.  

My mentors showed me the ropes. Gave me the winning formula. Showed me their own version of the Daily Do’s for their multiple six figure earning markets. Some of the partners went on to earn seven figures… 

A million dollar business, and all I had to do was pick up the phone and call.  

Guess how many sales calls I made.  

Four.  

Four calls… in three years.  

And I didn’t talk to a single homeowner.  I just passively left them a voice message.  

Every time I sat down to make calls (after doing EVERY possible chore and errand to avoid it), I’d dial the number, but before I hit SEND, I’d think: 

•  “Well, what am I going to say? “ 
• “Oh, I need a script.” 
• “Oh yeah, Larry gave me a script.” 
• “But I’m not Larry, I could never say those things. It’s too salesy.” 
• “Let me just take a minute to write a real script, just for me.” 

And then I’d spend hours developing a script. Hours turned to days. Days into weeks. Weeks into years, making something that would ultimately never be used.  

That’s what resistance looks like.  

You’re resisting greatness. We all do it. It’s that little thermostat inside each and everyone of us that wants things to stay the same because same is safe and change is "dangerous."  

Trust me… 

You don’t need another script, you need to hit SEND.  

Again and again, hit SEND.

 Bill Soroka is the founder of Notary Business Builder, an elite community of professional Notary entrepreneurs that are committed to building a successful business in any economy by leveraging authentic sharing technology and cultivating deeper relationships.  He is also the best selling author of three books (and counting) designed to help notaries build their dream business. 

Connect with Bill on LinkedIn here.