Faith makes things possible, not necessarily easy.

Blessed are they who have the gift of making friends, for it is one of God’s best gifts. Thomas Hughes

Change is inevitable except from a vending machine. Be a change agent for your organization and reap the rewards on the other side.

I reached out to a prospect after reviewing her LinkedIn profile and noticed she attended the University of Alabama. I mentioned this is my outreach to her and it grabbed her attention.

1. Cowboys have a good sense of humor. You see a lot of stark realities on the ranch; animals are born, they grow up, they die, they are sold, they get sick, or other. So cowboys have learned to appreciate life’s bigger picture. It means you will rarely find a cowboy depressed.
2. Cowboys have good manners…Ever see a cowboy not open the door for a lady or use the word ma’am? When you have met a true cowboy, you tell yourself, that would be someone that “I’d ride the river with.” They just built a know, like, and trust relationship with you.
3. Cowboys are great listeners…They understand that they learn more and hear better when their mouths are closed…They’ll actually figure out how to put themselves in the boots of their prospect.
4. Cowboys are honest…Their word is their bond…They’d rather die than not hold up their end of the bargain.
5. Cowboys are loyal to the brand…They defend their brand and they make sure their actions don’t detract from the reputation of the brand.
6. Cowboys are independent…They don’t need a crowd of people or a team to go accomplish something. They can ride out there and get the job done by themselves…Remember the line, One Riot, One Ranger?
7. Cowboys are protective…It’s in their nature to protect people or things that can’t protect themselves…Remember Val Kilmer as Doc Holliday in Tombstone when steps in to protect his friend Wyatt Earp and says, “I’m here Huckleberry.?” He knows he’s staring down the barrel of Ringo’s gun, but he was going to protect his friend. Ever have a colleague get into a bad situation at a conference? Ever have another team member that needs to go meet with irate client? Send the cowboy because they’ll absolutely protect that person in their care.
8. Cowboys are authentic. Ever see a hardened, wizened cowboy with a little kid on their knee? They are as gentle as a baby’s blanket. Their soft side simply shows that they are genuine people and they are perfectly comfortable in their own skin.
9. Cowboys are smart…They learn from experience…They can “read the sign” which are trails left by other living things when tracking them through the brush. They tell themselves, “the last several times I tried that series of questions didn’t work, so I’m going to try a different tact this time and see if I can get a better result.”
10. Cowboys are fearless…You want them to ride into that cactus and pull out that big steer? Ok. You want them to get on that bull and ride it for 8 seconds? Ok. You want them to go talk to a stranger and try to get their business? Ok. You want them to do that 1,000 times? Ok.
11. Cowboys help…Whether it’s helping a friend fix fence, helping a cow give birth to a baby, managing the livestock by rotating them into different pastures, or helping prospects achieve better outcomes, the cowboy’s job is to help. The last person that a cowboy is concerned about is himself.
12. Cowboys don’t quit…Ever…Remember the line from Billy Crystal in City Slickers? “A cowboy always brings in the herd.” There is nothing that keeps a cowboy from accomplishing his goal. Come hell or high water they will succeed.
13. Cowboys are courageous…Remember John Wayne’s line, “Courage is being scared to death, but saddling up anyway.” The cowboy knows he’s going to go out and get a whole lot of no’s, but he saddles up and goes anyway because he knows that he will get some that will say yes.