The incomparable Zig Ziglar offers one final lesson

Kansas City Business Journal by Harvey Mackay, Contributing Writer
Date: Friday, December 21, 2012, 5:00am CST

When I was cutting my teeth in the sales game right after college, I made sure to read or listen to everything I could get my hands on from a handful of sales and motivational legends: Napoleon Hill, Earl Nightingale, Dale Carnegie, Norman Vincent Peale, Jim Rohn and Zig Ziglar.

Like many people around the world, I was saddened to hear about the recent death of my friend Zig. He was one of a kind. I was fortunate to share the stage with him several times — and I will be forever grateful.
His inimitable style was contagious. If you were lucky enough to have heard him speak, you understand how he stayed at the top of his game for more than 40 years. As he was fond of saying: “People often say motivation doesn’t last. Neither does bathing — that’s why we recommend it daily.”

Zig was simply one of the greatest motivators and sales trainers of all time. He made everyone better with his extremely positive attitude. Who can forget his classic line, “I’m so optimistic I’d go after Moby Dick in a rowboat and take the tartar sauce with me.”

He espoused the theory that everyone can develop an enthusiasm for life. He told a story about a woman who was the top salesperson in her company of 1,200 salespeople. She broke every single record in the industry. Zig asked her, “How did you do it?” She said, “God didn’t make me with an off switch.”

Another big subject for Zig was balancing work and family, which was so important to him. One of his pearls of wisdom on this subject: “Many marriages would be better if the husband and wife clearly understood that they are on the same side.”

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