by Will Rotondi
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If you’ve ever been to the Highland Games, you’ve probably had the pleasure of watching big men in kilts trying to throw various, large objects into the air. I’m talking cabers, burlap bags of straw, stones – you name it, and they’ll probably try to see how high they can toss it.
Stone-moving isn’t solely a Scottish activity. Sisyphus comes to mind.
That might be how you feel about your prospecting, day in and day out. You come to work, you sit down, and you proceed to throw stones. Some get pretty high – you’ve found the right person to speak with – but then they turn you down for a discussion or a deal, and it feels like your rock has rolled back to the bottom of the hill.
The problem may be your mindset. Yes, prospecting is fraught with failure – but so are many competitions, just like the games I talked about above. How long do you think those men practiced throwing weighted objects into the air, just to compete in that one event?
When you focus on the failure and the repetition like our Greek counterpart above, that’s all it will ever be. But, if you look at it like a competition, and you acknowledge that it won’t be easy, you might find yourself more inspired to press forward. (And, when in doubt, start another pot of coffee.)
