Todd Smith is a classy guy and a true ambassador to the network marketing industry. He’s a top earner with Unicity, and he’s been in our industry more than 20-years now.
More importantly, he’s earned over $20 million in commissions during his career, and he’s helped countless other people become successful, so he definitely knows what he is talking about.
I have never personally met Todd Smith, but I would love too! I recently watched a video of his on YouTube where Eric Worre spent some time interviewing him.
I took several pages of notes and what I want to do in today’s post is share some of the lessons I learned from the interview. Each lesson will be in bold and italics. I’ll also provide my own two cents for each lesson. Enjoy.
Todd Smith Quotes
# 1: Success begins with a burning desire. Without desire you won’t do the things you need to do to succeed.
I learned this concept myself in the book Think and Grow Rich. Unless someone really has a big burning desire to achieve what network marketing can offer them (time, money and health), they will never do the work. Desire will keep you hanging in there through the tough times. Without desire, it’s easy to quit (or do nothing). With a big burning desire, nothing can stop you.
# 2: You can never get ahead exchanging time for money.
Whether you are a doctor or a ditch digger, if you don’t have residual income you will have to keep trading hours for dollars if you expect to get paid. That is fine, until you can no longer work or no longer wish to work. Whether you make $200 per hour or minimum wage, you’re only ever going to get paid for the hours you actually work. You have no leverage. Network marketing is a better way.
# 3: Be the kind of sponsor that you wish you would have had.
Lots of network marketers moan and complain that they don’t have a great sponsor. Yet, these same folks act like a crappy sponsor to their own team. Having a good sponsor helps, but it’s not going to make you successful. It’s your business. You have to take ownership of your own business and set the example for your team. Be a good sponsor for the people you bring into the business. Do the things you want your team to do!
# 4: The only time it doesn’t work is when people quit.
Network marketing is a weird industry. We are the only industry in the world that I can think of where people start a business and quit in 90-days or less. Would you start an accounting firm and quit in 90-days? I hope note. Would you open a barbershop and quit in 90-days? Hanging in there is more than half the battle. The other half of the battle is getting off your butt and actually doing the work.
# 5: Have the discipline to do what you know you should be doing even when you don’t feel like it.
So many folks let their emotions control their actions. That is a big mistake. If you only build your business when you feel like it, you will never build a big business. It’s easy to let life get in the way when you have less than $100 invested in your business. A smarter approach is to let your actions control your emotions. You don’t have to be motivated every single day, but you do have to be committed every single day.
# 6: Handle yourself with honor and integrity.
Always do the right thing. Treat everyone you talk to and work with as well as you would treat your best friend. Don’t lie or cheat others. Say what you do and do what you say. People are always watching you and it’s your job to set a strong example. As long as you always do the right thing you never have anything to worry about.
# 7: Your business will only grow as much as you do.
This is a business of personal growth. You won’t hit your future goals if you don’t grow and change. For your business to grow you have to grow (thanks Jim Rohn). Work on your personal development and strive to get a little bit better every single day.
Remember that you get paid for the value you bring to the market place. If you want to make more money, focus on increasing your value. Focus on serving more people. You can increase your value by increasing your knowledge, skills, attitude, mindset, and education.
# 8: Measure your progress by how long you’ve spent talking with prospects, not how long you’ve been in the business.
Just because you’ve been in the business two or three years doesn’t mean anything at all. Ultimately, it’s the amount of time you’ve spent on the money producing activities that matters most. If you spend 2-years in the business and only shared your business with a few people, why would you expect yourself to be successful? Until you’ve shown the plan at least 100 times yourself, you haven’t even began your business (just my thoughts).
# 9: Don’t confuse activity with accomplishment.
Anyone can be busy. And most people are. It takes a disciplined person to work smart. Every time you are working your business you should be focused exclusively on the money producing activities: retailing and recruiting. Everything else comes secondary. In network marketing, and every other business, you get paid on results, not effort.
# 10: Don’t waste time with people who aren’t serious.
Your time is your most precious asset. It’s your job to identify people who are serious and spend your time helping them. You should offer your help to everyone, but you should never work harder for someone than they will work for themselves. Match people’s effort, but don’t build their business for them. Manage your time wisely or it will control you.
# 11: Set the tone of what the relationship will be like.
When you sponsor someone, you need to let them know upfront about what you expect from them. Tell them how you like to communicate, when to communicate, how often to communicate, and what your relationship will be like. Set boundaries and clear expectations. Let the other person know you are here to help them, but let them know you have limits as well.
# 12: Act as if you were already making the money you desire.
If your goal is to make $20k per month with your MLM business, act like you are making that now. Just to clarify, I’m not telling you to spend money you don’t have. Nor am I telling you to tell people you are making more money than you are actually making.
What I am telling you to do is to have the confidence and posture of someone who makes $20k per month. Dress like a success. Act confidently. Have good posture. Believe in yourself. After all, you attract what you are, not what you want!
# 13: Prospects evaluate you more than they do the business.
In our industry, people join people. They don’t join businesses. You have to realize that your prospect is sizing you up, right from the first time you talk to them. They want to know that you are serious about the business, that you won’t quit or disappear, that you are committed, and that you can and will help them. Prospects will evaluate YOU more than they do your company!
# 14: If you’re not getting together face to face with people your conversion rates will be low and your attrition will be high.
Very few people, if anyone has ever built a long-term, successful MLM Business strictly online. Ultimately, you have to spend some face to face time, or on the phone or SKYPE, if you expect to solidify your relationships with people. Email, social media and technology are great, but nothing trumps personal relationships. If you do everything online, people will quit just as fast as they join.
# 15: This is a business of relationships.
This is a marketing business UNTIL you sponsor someone. After you sponsor someone it quickly shifts to a relationship business. Your job is to build rock solid relationships with the people on your team. It’s hard to quit on a friend. It’s nice knowing you have someone in your corner who actually cares about you. The more relationships you develop, the more your team and commission check will grow.
# 16: Everything in life is a numbers game.
Whether it’s dating, finding the perfect job, or anything else, life is a numbers game. Not everyone is going to be interested in what you have to offer. Most of the people you enroll will do nothing and quit. But if you work through the numbers, you will find the right people. Your job is to sift and sort, not convince.
# 17: Strive for excellence at the little things that matter.
The little things do make the difference. Make it your goal to improve daily. Find ways to improve what you say, improve your message, and improve your skills. If you can master the little things, everything else will fall into place.
Final Thoughts
The bottom line is that Todd Smith is a legend in the network marketing industry. He’s a tremendous leader, coach, speaker and trainer. He’s been there, done that, and most importantly he’s helped many others achieve success in this great industry. He is exactly the type of sponsor or upline you would want to have in your business.
What do you think? Which of these Todd Smith quotes listed above is your favorite and why? Leave a comment below to share your thoughts. I look forward to hearing from you.
Connect with Todd Smith
Chuck Holmes
20+ Year Network Marketing Professional
Top Earner & Top Recruiter
Email: mrchuckholmes@gmail.com
P.S. Learn how to grow a successful network marketing business. Secret tips, training, and practical ideas. Free training delivered by email.
My favorite quote from this is “Strive for excellence at the little things that matter”. I believe this is very true. When you master the little things, you appreciate the bigger ones so much more. Not wasting time with people who aren’t serious is a great one too. I’ll have to find Todd Smith on YouTube. Great post!
I’m glad you enjoyed the post. Todd definitely hit the nail on the head when he talked about mastering the little things. I believe we are all a result of our daily habits. To change our lives, we must change our habits and routine.
Todd Smith certainly did say some wise words in the few quotes you put here. I especially was drawn to these ones:
#6-handle yourself with honor and integrity. This is one of the most important. If we lie, cheat and steal, it will come back upon us in time. If we treat others with respect, that too will come back. What goes around comes around.
#11-Set the tone. If we are clear and precise in the beginning, prospects will know just where we stand.
#17-strive for excellence in the little things. If we are doing our very best in the little stuff, the big stuff will fall into place.
Yes, Greg. Those are all great quotes. Everything he said in the video really resonates with me. He’s my kind of leader!