I put in the hours. Make sure you are available to put in the hours. I get up early and I put in a full day’s work. I work hard to achieve success.
Craig Hazlett grew up in Edmonton, Alberta before joining the Navy and moving to Victoria, BC as a young adult. After finishing his service in the Canadian military, Craig studied Architectural Building Technology.
He went on to work for design firms in Victoria and it was here that Craig found his knack for sales. With his outgoing, friendly personality and huge energy, sales was a natural fit. Throughout his career, Craig has strived to better himself by studying marketing at University of British Columbia. His drive and hard work have paid off. With each company, Craig works for he consistently makes top numbers. While working for ADT Craig was in club excellence winning awards seven consecutive years for top sales. He currently is the top producer in Canada as a sales consultant at Alsco Canada. What sets Craig apart is his genuine care to find solutions to help clients make an informed decision with the products and services being provided.
Craig lives in Victoria, BC with his wife and two young daughters. He is a family man who likes travelling with his family and spends his summers often camping with his family and friends. An avid golfer, Craig holds a membership at Cordova Bay Golf Club.
As a father, Craig is focused on providing a better future for the next generation and is passionate about being involved to provide accessible green energy to Canadian households.
Where did the idea for your upcoming business come from?
I have been in sales for 25 years. The idea to move into solar energy is an opportunity to move into an area that I strongly believe in. It is very satisfying to be able to help people save money and help the environment as well. I am excited for this new venture!
What does your typical day look like and how do you make it productive?
Right now we are focusing on determining who is our customer and solidifying our relationships with the customers and builders. Building our reputation and respect is very important as we grow our business. We are making the solar energy available to everyone, is affordable, and is something that will begin to save money right away.
How do you bring ideas to life?
Through research, we have discovered the newest technologies to bring to our customers. In Canada, hydro-bills are very high and we are offering an alternative to this cost. Solar power is also extremely reliable and environmentally friendly. It also has many applications, which will benefit the consumer.
What’s one trend that really excites you?
Working with builders is an exciting opportunity. To have solar energy incorporated into the home when the home buyer purchases it is a great money saving system and a feature that many consumers want. Sometimes their bill is so low that they even get a refund! By including the solar energy in the home, the home buyer does not have an up-front cost and can begin saving immediately.
What is one habit of yours that makes you more productive as an entrepreneur?
My work ethic coupled with the 25 years of sales experience provide me with a solid base to grow on. My drive for success has yielded several broken sales records in my previous positions.
What was the worst job you ever had and what did you learn from it?
I think we have all had bad jobs at some point in our lives. I learned that I do not want to do that job! I did not enjoy selling people things they do not need or extra things just to make a quota or a paycheck. I like what I am doing now because it offers such a rewarding feeling. Just to hear ‘Thank you, this is wonderful’ is so fulfilling. This is a product that people want and need. That makes it easy to promote and enjoy my work!
If you were to start again, what would you do differently?
I would pay people even higher wages. Once we paid people more, we had loyal and very productive employees. This leads to low turnover and increased sales because people were happy. And, we have the best people working for us.
As an entrepreneur, what is the one thing you do over and over and recommend everyone else do?
I put in the hours. Make sure you are available to put in the hours. I get up early and I put in a full day’s work. I work hard to achieve success.
What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business? Please explain how.
I look at everyone as a potential customer. It is important to remember that everyone is different, so you want to develop a relationship and be able to meet their needs. You would approach a single consumer’s needs a little differently than a builder, for example.
What is one failure you had as an entrepreneur, and how did you overcome it?
I owned Hazcom, which was funded by ADT. My survival depended on ADT paying me for the accounts that I established. The problem is that when they changed their payout system it affected my business dramatically. The payout was reduced and this was a real problem. Because of that experience, I have learned that I would not want to be dependent on a larger company. As a result, I sold off everything, paid off anything I needed to and closed up my business. I was able to exit without any issues or loose ends.
What is one business idea that you’re willing to give away to our readers?
I think that if you really like what you do, the money will follow. You will be happier and more successful if you follow your passion and not just the paycheck. I enjoy providing a product that helps people save money and uses renewable energy. This is a win for the consumer, as well as the environment.
What is the best $100 you recently spent? What and why?
I bought my three-year-old a piano for Christmas. She will be surprised! We went to the museum and they had a piano which she played with for 20 minutes. We could not get her to go! So we got her one and the lessons will follow.
What software and web services do you use? What do you love about them?
I use Microsoft Office, which I happen to like. I really recommend a program that I used called Sales Now. It allows you to track your customers and their purchases and information, as well as has follow-up reminders. It works very well for me.
What is the one book that you recommend our community should read and why?
First Things First and 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey. They help me to reach my maximum effectiveness and efficiency. They also show you where to put your time and how to find your customers. These are great reads, a must for business owners!
What people have influenced your thinking and might be of interest to others?
The geneticist Davis Suzuki because he focuses on the environment. His work really influenced me to go into renewable energy.
Connect:
www.craighazlett.com
Craig Hazlett on LinkedIn:
Craig Hazlett on LinkedIn:
Mario Schulzke is the Founder of ideamensch, which he started a decade ago to learn from entrepreneurs and give them a platform for their ideas.