The 8 Best Practices ofHigh-Performing S a ~

/ The $90,000,000 Challenge

Tony took a deep breath and stepped. into Ivan Kap eck's
ff. It was 9:28 AM. He was two minutes early. The \l/ }Jelllp
o ice. l k. a fa •11
.
him was a vast expanse of glass
. oo ing out over a dear blu
' e •kec1~~
d.
the 1stanc ea speed boat skimmed across the surface, the \l/hi te1sp,·In
• behind it· The· scene was beautiful but did little to settIe\·ay
arcmg
jangling nerves. In front of the window a wide o~k desk •nd t'li:
leather executive chairs sat empty. He walked quickly across the
thick beige carpet and took a seat. .
His right hand clutched the handle of the briefcase cradled in his
lap. A nervous sweat prickled the back of his neck. Although he 'liij
only 30 years old, he believed that the fate of his career in the mutual
fund industry depended on this meeting. He would find out whether
or not he could sell himself to a multimillionaire and break through to
higher income levels. The man he was waiting for, Ivan Kapeck, was
the most important prospect he had ever arranged a meeting with. An
expectant chill ran up Tony's spine. When he left the office in 45 min-
utes he hoped to have his first multi-million-dollar client.
Up till now, Tony had been sellin to people with much lower
incomes. He had been con entr tin on his n tura mar-ket-people
his own age who were making an average of $50,000 a ye~r. He felt
comfortable selling to his peers because~ kn<:_w them, understood
what ':'ade them tick, and_how to talk to them. Th;;;;-;,ere the peo-
~le he d gone to school with, played sports with, and worked with
m the summers. In the past year he'd made a decent liv' b .h .
j' ' d· 1ng, Utt elf
' ~ u t a limit on what Tony could earn. The on] had
so much money to invest in mutual funds Th y y .
of their careers had b 1 b · ey Were at the sunnse
to huge succes/ Tony ;~Y, egun professional lives that might lead
I n t want to lose th 1· h
~ew wife and a bab· h em as c 1ents, but, wit
. - y on t e way; he
income.
h h Plus, he want~d t0 I · ' Was eager to increase his
- earn and grow f'
t at, e would need to k as a 1nanciaJ planner. For
1i Wor on mor 1
cases. e Was now ang/i f, b. . e cornp ex and challenging
ng or igger fish. That's what brought him
7
 Chapter 1: The 8 Best Practices of High-Performing Salespeople

here, into foreign territory, to visit Ivan Kapeck. The thought excit-
ed him, but made him ill at the same time.
As Tony waited for Mr. K. apeck to arrive, he rubbed his sweaty
palms against the woolen pants of his suit. He had been researching
Kapeck and preparing for this meeting for weeks. He felt that he now
had the tools to sell Mr. Kapeck, but he knew that it would be impos-
sible, unless he managed to do one thing-earn Mr. Kapeck's respect.
And in order to do that, he had to overcome one major problem.
The problem was that Mr. Kapeck had known Tony for 25 years,
but as his son's friend. Tony realized it would be difficult to get Mr.
Kapeck to see him as a trusted financial advisor, instead of one of his
son's wild friends who used to stay out past cur£ew, sneak wine from
the basement cellar, and who was always hor-sing around in their
backyard pool. Tony knew that, although his acquaintance with John
had enabled him to get this meeting, he had to distance himself from
those days and change Mr. Kapeck's view of him.
Suddenly Mr. Kapeck burst into the room. A scowl knitted his
brow. Behind him, his executive assistant hurried to close the doors.
A small bubble caught in Tony's throat as Mr. Kapeck strode quick-
ly towards him. Mr. Kapeck was even bigger than Tony remembered
-6'2", 220 · pounds, gray hair, and a thick neck heaving over a
starched white shirt collar and the tight knot of his bright red tie.
Under his bushy, dark eyebrows his green eyes bulged. Tony was
possessed by a sudden, irrational fear.
· As Mr. Kapeck reached the desk, Tony stood stiffly to greet him.
He reached out a moist hand and tried to smile.
''Hello, kid," Mr. Ka peck said gruffly and then released Tony's
hand, brushed past him and took a seat on the other side of h1s desk.
Tony winced at the "kid" reference. He knew things wouldn't be
easy. "Hello, Mr. Kapeck," he began, but was cut off.
"I don't have a lot of time, Henderson," Kapeck said, slipping on
his glasses and looking down at a file in front of him. "You want to
talk about my finances, that right?"
 I
. High-Performing Salespeople
0
The 8 Best Practices {
I did. But ... " Tony paused. 1.r
I Yes actually' qe real!
"Well, yes, ···· •ng him like he was somebody wh }
eek to start treatl . . " o cou~
needed Kap kid wasting hjs ttme. Mr. Kapeck ,, .,.,
h than some f" . , .ton}
help, rat er · ff ou my services as a 1nancial planne ,,
"I'm here too er y . r.
began, . h d d pulled off his glasses, one arm at a t'1
M Ka eek s1g e an llle
r. Pld d your help? I already have lots of experienc d.
"Why wou 1 nee ,, e
eo le looking after my mon~y. . . . .
P p , h collapsed in on itself. He squirmed m h1s chair
Tony s stomac •
"You're my kid's friend and that's why I let you come and see
me." Tony nodded slightly. He knew enough to let Mr. Kapeck speak
while he listened for an opportunity. "But LJ_on't need ano~ er £91-
lege-educ_~ J llQM..YJUan..taki_ u ~of my ~usi12ess."
Tony's spirits brightened. This was his operung. He would have
to strike now, and accurately. "I'm not here to take another slice out
of your business, Mr. Kapeck. I'm here to help you build an empire
outsifle business-your personal --------estate." Tony saw Mr.--Kapeck
nod briefly with interest. "You see, you have done an incredible
thing. You've built a wildly successful business on your own. You
staned this company when you were only 17, hauling junk and then
freight around Muskoka. After you had built it up from one old
pickup to a fleet of 18-wheel rigs shipping across the country, you
began to branch out· vi ou d'1vers1·t·1ed mto• car dealerships. and restau-
rants And I'd ·
· now, estimate you're worth close to $90 000,000."
o:cross the desk Mr. Kapeck smiled in spite of hims;lf. "I can see
y ve done some horn-~ 1 h .
,, d .
Tony fel~ l . . ewor e said. This was the first goo sign,
4

imse f gammg .Mr

Kapeck to se h" momentum. Here's where he could get ·
"M K e im as a professional
r. apeek, you are the · I was
your years and reason your business has grown. t
years of hard the
$90,000,000 level Th work that took your company to
• · e proble · h d u to
contmue growing I . m is, t e company still nee s yo .
· t 1s your busi-
ness profitable y; constant effort that keeps your
d · ou probabl ffice
an when you're h Y spend most of your time at the 0
not ere yo ' a-
ny, worrying about h u re still thinking about your corllP
w at could what
go wrong, and trying to guess
 ~ t e r J: The 8 Best Practices of High-Performing Salespeople

. r might strike next so you can head it off before it destroys

d~~re . "
-
your business.
Jv1r. Kapeck nodded again. .
"If you are like most successful business owners," Tony said,
• ou're probably so busy with your business that you don't have
. to your persona1f'1nances. "
y to pay attention
time
Mr. Kapeck said, "I suppose you're right, but I make 30% on
every dollar I put back into my business. Why would I put my dol-
lars anywhere else?"
Tony knew this was where he could swing things in his favor. He
had prepared himself for this type of objection. "Mr. Kapeck," he
began, "let me explain it this way. I'm sure you are familiar with the
Gibson fiasco. Like you, he put everything back into his business
because it was growing so quickly. It looked like it was never going to
end. But the market slipped, and suddenly Mr. Gibson was in trouble.
Banks started calling loans, his suppliers stopped giving him credit,

- ~-
and he had to sell all his assets. In the end, he was left with nothing."
Tony saw Mr. Kapeck lean forward-now he was listening. Tony
______
------
kept going. "Gibson's problem was he ...
never offset the risk
.......-----·....... ..........
......,.__,.,_ ....... in hi~
business. He did -nQU uild up an estate outside his business. Mr.
--·--····---·~~- ·~
Kapeck, you have dealt well with risk inside your business. You have
diversified and built up several streams of revenue, so that a loss in
one~ ot wipe you o~ owe;;;;~:no b~~ine~-is b~he~p; ~; f,
and were your businesses ever to suffer, you would suffer some per-
sonal financial trouble. What we can do is work together to extend
the
. . management
. . . k outs1.d e your bus1ness.
o f your ns . . you are
Just hke
d1vers1fy1ng inside your bus1ness,
. we can d'1vers1fy . outs1de~out..Q.1Lsi.::_
.
ness. We can redu ce~ . l5-_by__ ___-----
_ns bJJI·1:i-- - ---
<:,1.1ng 1:1P------··-~-- _.,,,.,. al assets,
. Y-91:1.J~eriol!..
- ·your fat e_d oes no!_r_~_y~olely
So that 1 on Y£Ur business. This will --·--give
. w1·11 give
ybou. peace of mind · Plus, It . you-the
-freecloin to leave the
usmess
M Kwhen yo u choose-w1t . h your financial
. . affairs in order."
" r. apeck rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
Unfortunately M K k ' . -
to give you s , . r. apec , I don t thmk the business can afford
ome time off to take care of your finances O f
· n top :J
 . h p rforrning Salespeople
The 8 Best Practices of Hig - e

. ing your business, and that's e

. lies in manag . . JcactJy
that, your experuse . What I'm suggestmg is you let soni
h Id be domg. . h eorie
what you s ou ersonal fmances w at you' re d .
I d ith-your P ·-~ - ~ 01ri
who is cap.!9_e o-w . ~ Ana that person is me. That' g
right now with your_~u~~-s.t.o.. be your personal financial ad,,·s the
--- - -r I want visor~
reason I'm here to ay~ -an accountant, a stockbroker, an in .
"I already have advisors sur.
" Kapeck said. . b .
ance agent, d . rs are doing a good JO tn their area f
"I' sure your a v1so k o
m but wh at you need is someone to loo
ex ertise, 1 ~ntire fina
k at y our . n-
•_ 1 . y;ou need someone who
p -=-•A. ;on - - can ma e sure a I the p,iPces
------:-----::- ~ -- of
g_~~
your fmanc1a . ·1puzz le are
---working
-- together.
. . - -.You needh.someone who
can IooK
,:-at -your will to mak:e sure 1t 1s gomg to ac 1eve what You
want, and someone ~ ho c~ ~elp_E_Ut -~o_g ethe~ ~,!iings like an.estate
freeze to minimize taxes and protect your heirs. These are all the
things I will be able to do for you." Tony finished, and sat hack in
his chair.
There was silence. Tony waited. He didn't twitch, didn't move.
There were only a few more minutes left in their meeting. The ball
was in Mr. Kapeck's court now. Tony waited patiently.
Suddenly Mr. Kapeck broke into a smile. "You know, Tony, no
one's ever spoken to me like that before about my money. Certainly
not a JO-year-old kid. I didn't know John had friends as smart as
you." Mr. Kapeck rose from his chair and walked over to the far win-
dow, his back turned to Tony.
Tony closed his eyes, and braced himself.
"Tony,• Mr. Kapeck said, still gazing out the window, "why don't
you go and pu'. a plan togethe~_fo: _~ :r personal fll!l!Ilces. If I like
what I see, you ve got the job.,, ·
"Mr. Kapeck bf d bet·
ter understand ' e ore · We.put together a plan for you, I nee dtO u •
f . your situation. Would it be all right if I aske Y~
ew questions? It will take about an hour or two. Do you have IJlll'
now, or should w h
M e resc edule for another day?" J
r. Kapeck continued to star . d then turile
around "L , k . e out the wm ow,
· et s ta e the t1m 'T' • "
e now, 1.ony. Fire away!
6'
rs Wl@WWI'K a:

LChapter 1: The 8 Best Practices of High-Performing Salespeople

"Thank you, Mr. Kapeck," Tony said.
"Tony, call me Ivan."

Tony left the meeting, knowing he had accomplished one of his goals
for that day-Mr. Kapeck no longer considered him merely as his son's
friend. He had gained his trust. His second goal-getting the busi-
ness-would depend on his plan. He knew he could do that. A few
weeks later, he was working as Mr. Kapeck's financial advisor. Tony
was thrilled. He had only just begun using the 8 Best Practices of high-
performing salespeople and already he was on his way to success.

The 8 Best Practices

After closing the Kapeck deal, Tony continued to close large deals
• ~ . . . - . . - - . . . . _ . . . , ....._ _.. !P'>...'"1:l=c, ---~

with other older, very wealthy clients. Over the yearshe realized
~ . .
his
dream'""ofa s~ven-"'figure income. Today, Tony is 39 and ~ ~n-
cial planning company that employs 25 young mutual fund and
insurance salespeople and controls over $300 million in asset:5-
.
$115 million of which is under Tony's personal management. Tony

' ..__..,.,.-.--------- ·-----------~ ------

attributes his current success to the fact that he changed his behav- ·
..... _,... --- ......--.
.:

ior and put the 8 Best 'Pra~ ces.,,Qf_l}jg.h.:.performing salespeople i~to

action. In fact, I now consider Tony to be an exemplar of the 8 Best
Practices. Tony is proof that by simply adopting the behavior of
successful people you too can become successful. Throughout this
book, we'll be exploring in depth exactly what those practices are.
We'll take a look at how Tony used them to close the Kapeck deal
and others. We'll also see how many of my other clients have utilized
the 8 B~st Practices to break through to new levels of success. But
before we can do this, there is something crucial we have to look at.