In 1993, a bank in Abbotsford, Canada, hired a twenty-three-year-old stockbroker named Trent Dyrsmid. Abbotsford was a relatively small suburb, tucked away in the shadow of nearby Vancouver, where most of the big business deals were being made. Given the location, and the fact that Dyrsmid was a rookie, nobody expected too much of him. But he made brisk progress thanks to a simple daily habit.
The Paper Clip Strategy
Dyrsmid began each morning with two jars on his desk. One was filled with 120 paper clips. The other was empty. As soon as he settled in each day, he would make a sales call. Immediately after, he would move one paper clip from the full jar to the empty jar and the process would begin again. “Every morning I would start with 120 paper clips in one jar and I would keep dialing the phone until I had moved them all to the second jar,” he told me.
Within eighteen months, Dyrsmid was bringing in $5 million to the firm. By age twenty-four, he was making $75,000 per year—the equivalent of $125,000 today. Not long after, he landed a six-figure job with another company.
Creating Your Own Paper Clip Strategy
There are all sorts of ways to use the paper clip strategy for your own goals.
1. Hoping to do 100 pushups each day? Start with 10 paper clips and move one over each time you drop down and do a set of 10 throughout the day.
2. Need to send 25 sales emails every day? Start with 25 paper clips and toss one to the other side each time you press Send.
3. Want to drink 8 glasses of water each day? Start with 8 paper clips and slide one over each time you finish a glass.
4. Not sure if you’re taking your medication three times per day? Set 3 paper clips out and flip one into the bin each time you swallow your pills.
Best of all, the entire strategy will cost you less than $10.
1. Grab a box of standard paper clips (here is a cheap set).
2. Get two standard paper clip holders (here you go).
3. Pick your habit and start moving those bad boys from one side to the other.
Trent Dyrsmid decided that success in his field came down to one core task: making more sales calls. He discovered that mastering the fundamentals is what makes the difference.
The same is true for your goals. There is no secret sauce. There is no magic bullet. Good habits are the magic bullet.