Last week one of my readers e-mailed me the following: "Hi!  My name is Nanci and I am a new consultant with my company. I am so happy with my choice and believe I have finally found my passion in life.  I have a wonderful director who is working with me to help me do my best. My problem, however, is that I am off to a slow start – low attendance and low sales. I don't want to give up, but when I look around and see other members of my team on fire it's hard not to think that there's something wrong with me. How do you keep from comparing yourself out of the business?"

This is how I answered her: "Thanks for the e-mail Nanci. I understand your frustration. It's common among representative, whether brand new or seasoned. My best advice is to set your own goals, get clear about what you want for your business, make a plan, and focus on your own route. I guarantee, others struggle with the same issues you do, even if it doesn't seem like it on the surface. The more you focus on what you want and not what you're not getting or what you perceive that others are getting that you're not, the more successful you'll be. And just know that setbacks happen to everyone. It's how well you work through them that defines those who succeed and those who give up."

I wanted to share this exchange with you because I'd just about lay money that you've felt the same way at some point during your direct sales career (and you may even be feeling that way now). I've struggled with it myself as a direct sales trainer (and I'm going to share a video blog later in the month about how I've decided to handle it). I want to talk with you about how, once I finally stopped focusing on what my so-called "competitors" were doing and got very clear about my own goals, everything changed for me in my business. Stay tuned for that. Bottom line, as we head into fall, your only focus should be to set a clear vision for yourself and your business, create a plan for getting there, and then focus on your own path. What do you think? Do you struggle with this? I'd love to start a conversation about this in the comments below.

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