5 ways to stop attracting people without money.

Did you know that the words you use DIRECTLY relate to the caliber of person showing up in your sales conversations?

That’s why I don’t recommend using certain words to describe your people’s problems. Here’s a partial list:

– broke
– struggling
– overwhelmed
– confused
– wanting to be seen

Now those are fine words. And there are certainly plenty of people out there who will line up under a sign that says “Overwhelmed? Line Up Here.”

The trouble is, words are like little magnets. So you really have to be careful which ones you put in your pockets.

One of the words I carry with me is “challenge.” People with a challenge mindset don’t really think like regular people. They think like magical people.

Q: “But Stella, my people are really, really stuck.”

A: Please add “stuck” to the list above.

See, words have such power. I was recently reading an article where the author urged not speaking unless you had something useful, meaningful, and kind to say. Man, I wish that was a rule. 

(I’m horrible at it, by the way. There may need to be an another rule that says you can say things that are silly and outrageous, to lighten the mood.) 

This is why I’m over here picketing for all of us to stop using the words “struggle” and “overwhelm” in our copy. (My take on that tried-and-true marketing advice is here.)

So I wanted to give you some pointers on how to move beyond words that “call in” what I call “fast food” clients: 

1. Stop taking clients that you don’t love working with. When you’re starting out, sure, you’ll work with people who may not be your ideal clients. But keep working towards honing your vision of who makes a great client for you – and then have the backbone to turn people away when they don’t measure up.
2. Tell the truth in your sales conversations. Look, you’re going to talk to people who aren’t motivated. You want the breakthrough more than they do. Say that. There’s no judgment there. But don’t let them into your business. Find people who really WANT the results you can help them get.
3. Start looking at your own money stuff. I used to think this advice was total horse poop (hey, I’m from the Midwest… we’re skeptical of these sorts of things)… but then I read a book called Overcoming Underearning and realized I was totally incapable of even imagining making more than $24,000 a year. If you can relate, clean up your belief of what’s possible for you.
4. Stop being nice. If you buy into other people’s stories about how they “can’t have” this… or “can’t do” that… you’ll never be able to stand for them to make a change. This isn’t about being mean – it’s about rooting into truth. And then actually saying that. Even if someone hasn’t hired you.
5. Make sure your business solves a problem that people with money have. One of my clients is an executive coach who has a CEO client running a billion dollar business. What sorts of problems would he have that the rest of us don’t? How would he describe those problems? No matter what business you’re in, you might spend a few minutes imagining the wilder, wetter, juicier problems that people who are already successful + kicking butt have. You might find out something useful.

Mighty thanks to Kate Maldonado flickr photostream for the overwhelming image. 

I’m curious – have you decided to narrow your focus to people who have money? What have you learned? Share it the comments below.