3 Tips for Putting Yourself in a Massive Value-Creating Mindset

As human beings, we have many traits that are incredibly difficult to escape.  Some of these traits are to our advantage and some are to our disadvantage.  One of these traits that’s to our advantage is the inherent desire to repay people for what they’ve done for us (even in the vending business).  Why?  We are born with a desire to maintain equal footing and be in harmony with our surroundings.  If we’re just paying out or just taking in, that can’t happen.  Repaying is a big part of life.

We Crave Balance

If you’ve read the book Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert Cialdini, you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about.  If you haven’t read that book, do so immediately!  Not only is it a fun read, it’s dead-on and will teach you a phenomenal amount about human psychology.

Sure, some people are ok just receiving and never giving…existing in completely one-sided relationships…but that’s not most of us, and those people are never successful.  Furthermore, they’re usually miserable. Because their relationships don’t last!

That’s why the most successful vending business partnerships and the finest relationships are focused on providing value.  Because when one person provides value for the other, the other person, even if they don’t realize it, has an inherent desire or instinct to provide value for that other person.  It might not be immediately, and it may come in many different forms, but it exists, and usually will come into play.   So one party provides value to the other, then the other person repays that value with something more, and this process continues forever.  So what you have here is a spiral of constant back-and-forth value-building and great stuff. It’s amazing! This is what awesome relationships are built on.

You may be thinking “hmmm why don’t I experience these massive value spirals?”

Don’t Think About Yourself

The answer is because you’re likely not thinking completely selflessly and wondering what you can do to provide value for another person or party.   Instead, you’re thinking about yourself. This is also an inherent natural trait of being human.  We’re survivalists! So we’re trained to think of ourselves and our families first. But if we’re able to go against the grain on this, and first think of others, we’re actually helping ourselves out more than if we just focused on ourselves from the beginning.  Weird, huh?

Does this mean that providing value is in itself selfish?  Well, that’s kind of like saying Mother Theresa was selfish because all that made her feel good and all that she loved to do was help people who were poor and sick.  She received great reward for doing her work, but I don’t think that makes her selfish.  It just makes her smart.

So be selfish, smart or whatever you want to call it.  Just provide value and you’ll be amazed at the massive value that comes back at you.

So, what are the 3 Tips for Putting Yourself in a Massive Value-Creating Mindset?

1. Keep A Notebook By Your Bed

In the morning, upon rising, write down how you’re going to provide value that day. Be specific. Who are you providing value for & how are you going to do it? Aim for at least 3 achievements of value-providing each day. At the end of the day write down your achievements and grade yourself. Go to bed thinking about the value you’re going to provide the next day. Sound silly? It works! Few things are more important in regards to success than planning, planning, and more planning.

2. Pick One Person in Your Life as Your Value-magnet

For this person, you’re going to expect nothing in return.  All you’re going to do is try to selflessly help them.   It doesn’t matter what you do as long as it’s helpful. Send them hand-written letters, refer them to potential friends or clients, buy them lunch/dinner/drinks, and expect nothing in return.

Do this as a test and over a period of 3 months record what happens. What comes back to you because of this? Note: Do NOT use a value-sucker as your value-magnet, because they’re worthless.  Instead, use someone you like…a business contact, a family member, a friend that you’d like to get to know better.  You’ll be amazed by the effects of this test on your life!

3. Continually Reinforce Value-providing Mindset

Do not go a single morning without listening to an audio piece, reading from a book, or watching a video that motivates you to be the most valuable person you can be. Let’s be honest.  We all can wake-up on the wrong side of the bed, and we cannot be at the top of our game all the time.   We’re weak, survival-focusing creatures.  The only way we can become strong, change habits, and live a different, more fulfilled life is by changing our habits or instincts.  This cannot be done naturally! No way…I don’t care how strong you are – it’s impossible.  The strongest and most successful people are those who realize their weaknesses and to guard against them by creating a framework and system through which they’re forced to operate.  Know that you’re weak but desire to be strong.  Use whatever you can to motivate yourself and make a habit of it.


Best in health,

Sean & Andy

Founders, HUMAN Healthy Vending

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How To Sell Your Value

You have decided to start your own business.

You are taking your first steps towards financial freedom, flexibility, and personal fulfillment.

You want to become a value-provider to everyone you come in contact with.

So even though you are confident in your product and yourself, why does it feel strange?  Why does it feel like you don’t know what the next step is?  In order to provide value for others, you need to sell your product. So, why does it still feel strange trying to “sell” to others?

If it feels strange, weird, unfamiliar, etc. it’s because we don’t learn how to “sell” in school.  In school, unlike the real world, there isn’t much incentive to “sell” your work.  Instead, we are told as we progress through the education system to follow formulas for success.  “Make sure your assignment looks like this”, or “Take these classes and you will become this”.  These skills are great to learn if you plan on being a tenured University professor, but the reality is very few of us will become professors.

The majority of us will take a job in some sort of business, working 9-5 or 8-6, trying to sell a product for someone else.  A small minority of us will start our own business, and hire people to work 9-5 or 8-6 to sell our product.  I underlined sell in the last two sentences because it is the key word in business.

Whether you like it or not, every company and every person in the world is trying to sell something.  Whether you are selling cars, snuggies, self-help, or charity – everyone is selling something.  There is just one problem.

We are never taught how to sell!

Some like to think of the ability to sell as something innate, and that certain people are born with uncanny abilities to sell.  “Oh, he is great salesman, always has been”, they will say.  I am here to tell you this not the truth.  Nobody has always been a good salesperson, that’s impossible.

There are no “natural” salespeople; there are only people who have acquired an understanding of sales, and embraced it at an earlier age.

You may ask, how can I become good at sales?

First, you must realize that sales is not a skill, it is a process.

And not only that, you must understand that every sales process is always exactly the same.

Think about every purchase you have ever made.  Why did you make these purchases?  What compelled you to buy these products?  Was there something unique and special about each product you have ever bought?

Maybe, but probably not.  More than likely you bought these products for a combination of three reasons:

Reason #1: You Loved the Product or Idea. Or at Least You Really Liked It, and It Met One of Your Needs

The first step to selling any product is to have something that someone loves (or at the very least really likes).  If you have something that people love instantly you are one step ahead of the game.  If you are selling puppies, most of your work is done for you because everyone likes puppies.  If you are selling vitamins or tofu, on the other hand, you are going to have to give people a reason to love your product.

Reason #2: You Liked the Person Selling to You and Knew They Cared

Have you found that it is easier to sell to your Grandparents, than it is it to sell to perfect strangers?  That is because they know you, they love you, and they trust you.  When you approach a stranger you would like to do business with, they must first decide if they like you, and whether or not they trust you.  Both of these elements are equally valued. They may like you or your salesperson immediately, but if they don’t know if they can trust you, chances are you won’t be doing business together.

Reason #3: You Trusted the Company and Knew They Would be With You for the Long Haul

Why do corporations like Apple and Nordstrom spend millions of dollars building customer service networks to assist you if their product breaks, or to exchange their product if you don’t like it any more?  Because they understand people buy from companies that are honest, and companies that will stand by them in the long run.  Apple sells millions of iPods, iPads, and computers, and they realize that people continue to buy these expensive products because they know if they have any trouble with the product, it will be fixed quickly and easily.

More or less, these are the three reasons why you buy products.  No matter what the product is, if you have the money AND believe all three of these elements to be true with all your heart, you will buy the product.

This is the secret to sales!  Before you can unlock your value-providing potential, you need to understand these simple elements, and figure out how to convey each of them to your customers.

Unlocking these three elements is the key to the success of master salespeople around the world.  That is why I said earlier, “There are no “natural” salespeople; there are only people who have acquired an understanding of sales, and embraced it at an earlier age.”

If you realize that every sales process is always defined by these three elements, and you focus all your sales efforts on improving  your customer’s feeling towards each element, you will never struggle for success or to provide value to others.  And if you have been following along, you know that providing value IS success.

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Healthy Vending “Operator of the Month”

Tina and Eric Woodall

This marks the first-ever Operator of The Month section of the Crush It Report.  Every month from now on we will feature operators who embody the values and hard-work we encourage at HUMAN.  Tina and Eric have 16 machines in North Carolina and have been working tremendously hard to get their business optimized. It is starting to pay off as they are learning valuable lessons while on their way to becoming healthy vending veteran operators!

Tina and Eric

1. What was the main driving factor and motivation behind you deciding to launch your own HUMAN healthy vending machine business?

We were actively looking for business opportunities that were in the health and nutrition business.  We feel strongly about helping find everyday solutions to help fight obesity, the number one preventable health crisis in this country.

The h.u.m.a.n. business model fit our secondary goals of owning a business that can be scaled into a larger business that can eventually be run passively if we choose.

2. What do you like the BEST about being a HUMAN Operator?

The snacks and drinks!  But seriously we’ve never enjoyed going to our garage so much.

The great thing about being a HUMAN operator is that we immediately started generating cash.  Even though our daily number of vends fell short of our initial estimates at some locations, our deposits were more than our weekly expenses.  Also, the more we learn and operate the business the more opportunities we see to earn more in the future.

3. What is the best piece of advice you can give to operators who are just starting out, and/or future HUMAN Operators?

If you are considering it, just do it.  There won’t be a better time to get into the market.  In my area, there is another healthy vending operator who got his business filed at almost the exact same time as me and is starting to put out some press releases.  Getting to market first to obtain a proven track record will make getting the best locations easier as healthy vending becomes more mainstream.

Secondly, evaluate how you plan on running the business and be realistic as to how it will impact your home and personal life, and possibly your career if you are starting part-time.

The first month is A LOT of work.  Unless you’ve owned or worked in a vending business before, every task you have to do is brand new.  Take the time to do it right and you’ll improve and become more efficient every day.

Also, create an organized and somewhat enjoyable place to store your product.  Spend time reading labels and sampling items that sell and those that don’t.  You start seeing the product in a different way when you combine that with knowledge of what locations sell what.

4. What are the top 3 best-selling healthy snacks & drinks at your machines? What are your personal favorites?

The best selling drinks are basic spring waters, Vitamin Water and Vitamin Water Zero.  The more popular specialized drinks would be Muscle Milk and Speed Stack.

The Pop Chips, Pirate’s Booty and Back to Nature Chocolate Chip Cookies sell well everywhere.

Personal favorites:  Kombucha, Honest Tea, and Verve

5. What does it mean to you to “Crush It” and how do you exemplify “Crushing It” in your every day life.

Well, I don’t think we’re crushing it yet, but we’re super excited about the potential of this business and unlimited opportunities!  Every day we look at the challenges ahead like eating an elephant, one bite at a time and you’ll finish it.

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Send Tips, Comments, Suggestions, or Jokes to crushitreport@healthyvending.com

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• The Crush It Report -- Volume I
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