Dominating Sales and Networking as an Introvert with Matthew Pollard
For today’s episode, I gladly welcome Matthew Pollard, an internationally-recognized consultant, speaker, blogger, author, mentor, coach, serial entrepreneur, and the Founder and CEO of Rapid Growth, LLC, a company dedicated to achieving maximum ROI for businesses of all sizes. Matthew is also the host of the popular podcast The Introvert’s Edge and the author of the book of the same name.
Matthew has had to battle challenging personal and professional hurdles before realizing the success he has today. From having a learning disability and being painfully introverted, to being laid off from his first job just weeks before Christmas, he has made remarkable progress to pave the way for success. Being an introvert myself, I am excited by the opportunity to interview someone who resonates with me in multiple ways.
Matthew was born in a small, blue-collar town in Australia called Craigieburn, to a family of miners, sheep shearers, factory workers, seamstresses, and secretaries. He was hindered by a lifelong visual processing disorder, misdiagnosed until his teenage years which left him with the reading level of a sixth-grader, making school a nonstop struggle. Uncertain of what he wanted to do with his life, and exhausted from the effort of finishing school, Matthew decided to postpone university, and instead ended up at the only job he could find, which was commission-only door to door sales.
He landed his first sale after knocking on almost one hundred doors and was ecstatic! Because of his reading limitations, he discovered YouTube and started learning field testing and sales from the videos available. He discusses how he completely immersed himself in learning and often spent 16 hours a day practicing. This eventually led him to become the top salesperson of this company that also boasted the highest volume of sales and marketing in the southern hemisphere!
Matthew then started his own B2B cell phone company, which turned out to be the largest broker of B2B cell phones in the country. He went on to have five multi-million dollar businesses, all before the age of 30. He suggests introverts practice projecting extraversion in lieu of trying to become an extrovert. He says most people struggle to interact with others because it takes a ton more energy and they feel inauthentic when they're doing it. By knowing exactly what you’re going to say, who you’re going to speak to, and what is going to trigger their interest, introverts can manage well in these interactions.
Matthew shares his experience writing his first book and how difficult it was for him with the reading difficulties he had. He also talks about interviewing Tom Ziglar, son of Zig Ziglar, and learning from him how his father had also been an introvert. In discussing his podcast and how it has helped him, Matthew said that if you can't articulate the value of what you provide face to face when someone's politely listening to you, you’re going to have a hard time when you need to do that digitally.
With The Introvert’s Edge Podcast, Matthew provides a step-by-step process by which even the most introverted person can become a sales master, while still remaining authentic. He is on a mission to erase the stigma around introversion and to empower introverts to recognize and leverage their innate strengths and abilities. Matthew believes successful people share a few common traits and that they are all under your control. He said high-achievers have a 100% commitment to their goals, a drive to work hard, an ability to synthesize information and create reliable systems, a mindset of self-belief and a positive outlook, and the attitude of smart risk-taking.
With the incredible success he has created in his life and the unparalleled ways of sharing his practices, Matthew continues to revolutionize and reshape the industry. Do not miss out on this powerful and life-changing interview on the Just Start Real Estate Podcast with uber-successful entrepreneur, Matthew Pollard!
Notable quotes:
“I focus on making sure that every introvert out there knows that introversion is really just about how you draw your energy.”
- Mathew Pollard
“I watched my dad break his back for 80 hours a week to support the family, so there was no way I was going to sit and watch Oprah for the next month or so. So I pulled out the classifieds.”
- Mathew Pollard
“I'm up for hours before a presentation to make sure I'm ready and rock-solid for that event.”
- Mathew Pollard
“I'm really focused on helping people realize that they don't need to be extroverted. As a matter of fact, that's a disadvantage.”
- Mathew Pollard
“Realize that 90% of all success in networking happens before you even walk into the room.“
- Mathew Pollard
“When I go to a networking event, I know exactly what I'm going to say, exactly who I'm going to speak to, and exactly what is going to trigger their interest because I've researched it in advance.”
- Mathew Pollard
Links:
The Introvert's Edge: How the Quiet and Shy Can Outsell Anyone
Level Jumping: How I Grew My Business to Over $1 Million in Profits in 12 Months
