“It will wait until tomorrow.” There are times when it is so tempting to tell yourself that, and actually believe it. Clearly, sometimes it is true. However, when we continually put off for tomorrow those things that could and should be done today, we become less effective today. And while it is true that it is only one day, the truth is that we will never have that day back again.

If we accept mediocrity in our performance for one day, we will never be able to gain that time back, and live that day over. And a day wasted can easily become another day, and another, and eventually turn into a habit. Habits turn into character traits, and character eventually determines our performance.

Procrastination, the character trait of putting far too many things off to be done later, is one of the insidious cripplers of sales performance, lurking under the surface of sales performance, and sucking the energy out of a salesperson’s performance.

The best salespeople guard against procrastination. They work hard, with discipline, to insure that every day is spent as effectively as possible. They recognize the temptation, and build tools, practices and disciplines into their routines to prevent themselves from falling prey to it.

There are proven tools and techniques to help with this. Scheduling appointments as fully as possible throughout the course of the day keeps you working. If you have an appointment for this afternoon, it’s difficult to put that off until tomorrow. The best salespeople are in the habit of making appointments for at least the first call of the day, as early as they can, and the last call of the day, toward the end of the day. That way, the temptation to put something off until tomorrow conflicts with the need to stay mentally in the job until you are finally finished.

“To-do lists,” re-organized at the end of every day, with firm priorities and deadlines, is another effective tool utilized by the “do-it-now” group. By creating a prioritized list of the things that you must do, and assigning deadlines to each of them, you force yourself to confront the necessity to get things done.

And, of course, the regular discipline of developing realistic goals and attaching clearly envisioned rewards to them is one of the most common devices used by the pros to keep themselves in the moment and on top of their games.

The best salespeople understand that they need to manage their weaknesses. They understand that their ability to manage themselves is one of the keys to sustained sales excellence. That’s why they excel at overcoming procrastination.

Dave Kahle is the President of the DaCo Corporation, specializing in helping business-to-business companies increase sales and develop their people. Learn more at www.davekahle.com

SalesDog.com is the world's largest network of sales and business growth experts. They offer free sales tools including expert sales advice in their free weekly newsletter. Click here to get yours.

We often warn salespeople to be careful not to waste too much time when it comes to LinkedIn and FaceBook - but I don't think we often give the other point of view - the benefits they can bring to your business! Sales expert Colleen Francis shares this point of view with you today.

Our sales marketplace is changing. While it used to be run almost exclusively on face-to-face meetings and transactions, today, we have been transformed into a space occupied by networks of people where social capital is earned and valued. This has important ramifications for sales, because the real power behind social media is how it can help transform you from being a complete stranger into a known quantity even among groups of people you've not even met yet. Linked-in and FaceBook are great sites to start the transformation for all sales markets.

Linked-in: Widely considered as social media's go-to place for business, Linked-in helps you connect all your professional relationships and trusted personal contacts. This service is a great way to reinforce your network of clients and suppliers and discover previously untapped connections between people you know. It's also a great place for testimonials—to receive them and to write them about others who have provided you with great service.

One of the best ways to communicate your expertise and gain followers on Linked-in is by asking and answering questions. To do this effectively you can:

1. Join groups that are relevant to your business and participate actively in the forums;
2. Start your own group, focused on creating a community of focus on your product, service or topic / expertise area;
3. Search for questions based on keywords and supplant yourself in the middle of an ongoing conversation; and
4. Ask questions that will help you start a dialogue or gather research in an area that can better serve your customers and prospects.

Regardless of how you use questions make sure that you are delivering value in your answers. Do NOT shamelessly pitch your products or invite people to "check you out" on the web. Use the questions function in LinkedIn as a tool to showcase your expertise and knowledge in a specific subject matter and users will seek you out as a resource.

FaceBook: While many treat FaceBook as a more personal-focused networking tool, there's no denying that it's a great place to get noticed just by maintaining a presence. Remember: this is one of the most visited places on the web every day. Nielsen research in January 2010 ranked FaceBook third among the top-ten web brands in America today. Therefore, if you have a time-sensitive message that needs to get out, this is a good place to do that. Top-ranked real estate agents are masterful users of FaceBook, using the status updated to post news about their latest hot listings, encouraging readers to share that news with friends and family.

Make sure to create a fan page for your business and invite clients to join. The best companies ensure they deliver knowledge updates in the daily fan-page status field. They also share links and resources to fans on a daily basis. The aim is to create an active community that will dialogue with you and between themselves. You will attract referrals and testimonials if you provide high value advice everyday and reward the community for participation.

Colleen Francis, Sales Expert, is Founder and President of Engage Selling Solutions. Armed with skills developed from years of experience, Colleen helps clients realize immediate results, achieve lasting success and permanently raise their bottom line. Start improving your results today with Engage's online newsletter "Engaging Ideas".

SalesDog.com is the world's largest network of sales and business growth experts. They offer free sales tools including expert sales advice in their free weekly newsletter. Click here to get yours.

"I have never known a really successful man who deep in his heart did not understand the grind, the discipline it takes to win." -- Vince Lombardi, American Football Coach

Anyone can be successful - but only if they put in the time and effort it takes to be successful. You can't really put in one or the other - too much time and not enough effort, and everything you're doing is a waste. A lot of effort but not enough time will leave you with unsatisfactory results.

Decide now that you'll dedicate the time and effort it takes to be successful. Then focus on using every minute as wisely as possible. Don't get distracted, don't waste time. Both are precious things that will take you to the top!

SalesDog.com is the world's largest network of sales and business growth experts. They offer free sales tools including expert sales advice in their free weekly newsletter. Click here to get yours.

If you been in sales for any length of time you've probably heard someone say, “Cold calling is a numbers game.” It might have been your manager, or perhaps one of your colleagues who advised you to simply keep dialing because if you speak with enough prospects one will eventually say ‘yes’ to you. Keep “smilin’ and dialin’” is often how that advice is framed.

Unfortunately many sales professionals blindly follow this advice as if it tells the whole story. And all too frequently sales managers tell their struggling sales representatives to simply make more dials, and more dials, and more dials.

Hundreds of daily dials, however, does not always result in success. Hundreds of daily dials does not always fill the pipeline. The reason for this is that while ‘the dial’ is the basic unit of measurement for success, it is not the only factor that influences the outcome of a cold calling campaign. Sometimes the problem for a representative lies not in the number of dials but in the preparation before the dials or in the execution of the dials.

The first factor that will influence the outcome of your cold calling campaign is targeting. Without a list of highly targeted prospects your cold calling efforts are doomed to failure. Those sales trainers and sales professionals who rail against cold calling as being ineffective generally site the idea of opening up the phone book and calling anybody. This is a fundamental misunderstanding of what cold calling really is. Cold calling is not opening up the phone book and calling anyone. Cold calling is a process by which you introduce yourself, your company, products or services to highly qualified prospects. You will never be able to introduce yourself to highly qualified prospects by simply opening up the phone book. Step one in any successful cold calling campaign is to do the homework and develop a highly qualified list. Then and only then should you get on the telephone.

The second factor is skill, your skill in accessing decision-makers and your skill in conversing with them. The really good news here is that cold calling is a communication skill and like any communication skill it can be learned and it can be improved upon. Unfortunately, because so many rely on the idea that cold calling is a numbers game, few take the time to really hone their skills in this area. Sales professionals who will spend hours preparing prospect presentations and designing and redesigning PowerPoint slides, will get on the telephone with a prospect and wing it. Then they wonder why the prospect was not interested in what they had to say. And while it is definitely more difficult today to reach prospects directly, it is not impossible. Representatives with persistence and skill are able to get through to have productive selling conversations with their prospects.

A successful cold calling campaign then hinges on three elements: First preparation and putting together a targeted list. Then dials. Then skill level. In combination these three elements are powerful. Any cold calling campaign that is missing one of them will fail. Cold calling is a numbers game plus.

Known as "The Queen of Cold Calling," Wendy Weiss is a sales trainer, sales coach and author specializing in cold calling and new business development. She helps clients speed up their sales cycle, reach more prospects directly and generate more sales revenue. Learn more at: www.WendyWeiss.com.

SalesDog.com is the world's largest network of sales and business growth experts. They offer free sales tools including expert sales advice in their free weekly newsletter. Click here to get yours.

As a person who needs a list to stay organized everyday, I’m always happy to see new time management strategies. Today business growth expert Diane Helbig shares her tips to getting it all done – without feeling overwhelmed!

There are steps you can take to get things back in line and start taking effective action:

1. Start by listing all of those to-do items. While it may seem scary, once you have them listed you can start attacking. If they only occupy space in your head they can seem bigger than they are. So bring them down to earth and onto paper.

2. Prioritize the list. This is a key part of taking action. There really are items that are more important or pressing than others. So, put the list in order of importance or urgency. As a part of this discovery process identify any items that you can delegate. Ask yourself what the best use of your time is and if anything on your list falls outside of that scope, delegate it.

3. Take the list of items you couldn't delegate and break them down into bite size steps. When to-do items are large they can seem overwhelming. However, remember the saying 'you can only eat an elephant one bite at a time,' and list the action steps that are necessary to accomplish the to-do item.

4. Then schedule those action items. When will you get them done? This may require taking a step back and looking at your calendar from a distance. Scheduling activities in a constructive way will help you spend less time on them and actually get them done. And keep your goals to three at most. Only add an item after completing one. If the deadlines are different consider staggering your activity so there is no down time.

5. Set up an accountability partnership. This is someone you can partner with to monitor your progress and celebrate your accomplishments. As you complete your tasks and move projects toward completion, make sure you acknowledge it. In addition, your accountability partner can help you schedule action items in a realistic way so you are more apt to be successful. And as a partnership, you will be helping them as well. I find that having these relationships helps me stay focused and on track.

Getting things done is an important aspect of success. You can't afford to allow a large list of to-do items paralyze you or derail your efforts. Remember that feeling overwhelmed is a common occurrence for small business owners. This feeling doesn't have to rule your world - you rule your world. So, take control, create your list, schedule your action items, and partner with someone who will help you stay the course. As you knock down item after item you will find yourself enjoying your business even more.

Diane Helbig is a Professional Coach, and President of Seize This Day Coaching. She works one-on-one and in groups with business owners, entrepreneurs, and salespeople. Visit her website at http://www.seizethisdaycoaching.com