One of my favourite activities in the world has to be taking a sauna. I just love it so much!

A Touch of Finland in Dubai

My apartment in Dubai is coming closer to completion now, and the bit I am loving the most is that we have our own Finnish sauna in the master bedroom. Every morning after the gym, I have a good hour, in and out, mixing it up with a couple of cold showers.

I have just ordered an ice bath, which will be fitted on my balcony before the end of the month. Then I am totally sorted!

Debunking Morning Routines

I am not a believer in ‘morning routines’. There is a long list of things people think they should be doing, almost superstitiously, to ensure success. People always want to know what Elon Musk does, what Tony Robbins does, etc. in the morning so they can copy it.

But these people aren’t successful because of their morning routines; they are successful because they are successful for many other reasons. Their morning routine just happens to be what it is, and lazy people who are looking for quick fixes and don’t want to put the work in think that they can substitute years of learning, hard work, and stress for 15 minutes in a cold pool, 30 minutes of meditation, and then riches will be guaranteed!

Have a plan. Be a vociferous learner. Do the work, no matter how shitty it is. And that will guarantee your success. It really is that simple.

Sauna as a Multitasking Haven

Now that said, I do like to go to the gym and sauna in the morning to set me up for the day. But it isn’t the reason I am successful! And I am conscious that time in the sauna is time taken away from getting work done. So I like to double up while I am in there and multitask as much as possible!

I will make calls (with my AirPods in and my phone outside the sauna before you ask!), I will listen to podcasts, and I will have some quality thinking time to get my head around issues that I am struggling with at the time.

But I have now added a new task: making some morning content for social media while in the sauna!

The 90-Second Power Play

It is my 90-second sauna power strategy session, as I like to call it! 90 seconds because that is the maximum length of an Instagram reel, and it forces me to give as much actionable information as possible in the shortest possible time.

I did subsequently realise I could just post videos that are longer than 90 seconds, but they don’t have the functionality of reels! But I like the pressure for efficiency and keeping it tight, so we will stick with the 90 seconds!

So this is my cue to remind me that if you aren’t following me on social media, then make sure you do it now, please! I post daily on Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn, so make sure you don’t miss out on my stories, advice, and, no-holds-barred, behind-the-scenes views on what really goes on in the world of business and how you can short-cut your way to success by avoiding the mistakes I have made and following what really works.

Sauna Talks: This Week’s Insights

So what did I talk about in the sauna this week? 4 key things that will generate a rapid ROI, and if you read to the end, I will let you know what I am going to be recording when I sweat it out later today!

Find and connect with the people you want on LinkedIn.

Actually finding the people you want to connect with is often one of the hardest parts of networking. You know these people are out there, but where?

I always say that a really simple rule is that you should always behave online the same way you would behave offline. And this logic applies when looking for future contacts, too.

If you wanted to meet people in, for example, the aerospace industry, what would you do? You would find someone who is already in it and ask them for some introductions, as undoubtedly they know lots of other players. And then you would ask those introductions for further introductions.

Well, you can use a similar strategy online. Go on to LinkedIn and click on the profile of someone who you know is already in the space where you want to connect with people. Look at their latest posts and see who has been liking or commenting on them. If you start to look at their profiles, these will usually be the people they are connected with, and they are very likely to be in the same or similar industry, and therefore people you will want to connect with. So connect with them! Simple right!

Volume Solves All Your Problems

I have never known a successful person do too little or an unsuccessful person do too much. If you aren’t getting the results you want, then you need to look at the output you are putting in. If you have a plan and you attack it with maximum volume, then you can’t fail to be successful. Seriously!

Ok, I can’t guarantee you will become a billionaire or that you will be the next David Beckham, but you will achieve levels of success in your chosen field that beat 99% of your peers, because I guarantee you they won’t be doing the work.

Cold calling, door knocking, more press-ups in the gym, outreach on Instagram, building a sales pipeline, lining up potential new employees—whatever it is, DO MORE!

Volume + consistency = results.

Double Your Productivity With Shorter Meetings

I hate wasted time. I hate people asking how my weekend was when I answer the phone on a Monday morning! And I seriously hate the 10 days people spend at the beginning of January talking about what they did on New Year’s Eve! It’s banned if you are calling me!

But the best way to avoid small talk, BS, and wasted time is to not allow time for it in the first place. Meetings expand according to the amount of time planned for them. So just allow less time, and you will force yourself to make everything happen in the time you have allocated.

This especially applies to Zoom meetings. People naturally book in 1 hour for Zoom meetings because that is an easy calendar default, and then people sit talking shit on the call because they know they still have plenty of time left to get on to the work later. So don’t allow it!

Book 30-minute meetings instead of an hour. Book 15-minute ones instead of 30. Start halving that time now, and I guarantee you 90% of your meetings will still achieve all you need them to while doubling your productivity!

Networking and relationship building Success comes from focus.

I saw a message in a WhatsApp group the other day that said, ‘Anyone need medical insurance?’ And people wonder why ‘networking’ gets a bad name! That isn’t networking; it is scattergun desperation.

If you want success in networking, relationship building, and selling, then you need focus. You need to identify your potential relationships, whom you have selected for a clear reason, and reach out to get their attention. Build the relationship, add value, then make a sale.

Running around asking anyone you see if they want your product isn’t hustling; it’s just stupid.

Think of it like dating. Would you just post a random message saying, ‘Anyone fancy a shag?’ Of course you wouldn’t, because the only people who would likely respond, if anyone, would be people you absolutely wouldn’t want to have sex with!

Find that 10/10 girl who isn’t just smoking hot but has similar interests and values as you. Reach out to her privately. Send flowers. Send funny messages. Keep doing more until you have her attention, then get her on a date and close her!

It’s exactly the same, whatever your business is and whatever product you are selling. Focus is where the big money is.

Never Ask a Question Where the Answer Could Be ‘NO!’

This is a simple but great technique when selling to keep fiction to a minimum and make it more likely to get what you want.

Let’s apply a dating analogy again!

If you call a girl and say, ‘Hey, do you want to go for dinner with me on Friday?’, then it is very easy for her to get out of it and simply say, ‘No, I am busy’.

Imagine rephrasing it as, ‘Hey, I want to take you for dinner on Friday. I have booked a table for us at a great new Italian restaurant; should I pick you up at 8.30pm or would you prefer to meet me there?’

So much more difficult to get out of it, right?

It’s exactly the same in your business. Asking questions like ‘would you be open for a meeting’ will most likely never get the results you want.

Reframe it, and never allow ‘No’ to be an acceptable answer to the question you are asking.

There are 5 short and simple tips and tricks there that will have a massive impact on your success. I use every one of these every day; I promise you, they work!

Have you got a tip, trick, or productivity hack that you want to share? Reply to this email and tell me about it, and I will share it in a future sauna session!