I'm sure you all have heard the well-worn cliche "attitude is everything" ! Well, it may not be everything but it's pretty high up on the ladder of items that can greatly affect your success. And closely related to your attitude is your energy level. Given that correlation; let's talk about things that drain your energy and how recognition of that fact could have an effect on your attitude.
The amount of energy that you bring to your daily life depends on a huge amount of variables - everything from what you eat, how much sound sleep you get, your lifestyle, etc. But the cold fact is that you have a portion of that energy to give to your career. How much you have to give and how much you give is in your hands. In addition, your internal dialogue ( that conversation you have with yourself all the time at warp speed ) can have a profound effect on your energy level. Here what I want you to think about - what you say to yourself, what you think about situations, people, objectives, frustrations, challenges, etc. and what you feel about all of these things greatly affect your attitude and thereby your performance. A really simple example of what I'm trying to convey is another old axiom about worry ! The phrasing varies but the gist is that most of what humans worry about never happens. So, how much energy was lost to worry and fret that could have been put to better use making a cold call or completing another sales campaign step.
I realize I'm jumping around with some heavy thoughts but I'm trying to stimulate your awareness to recognize the relationship between your energy level and your attitude. Your attitude is what you and everyone else sees (internal customers and external customers) that affects their judgements of you.
You must have a consistently high energy level to have a great and positive attitude. And a great attitude will enhance your success. It will diminish stress and open doors to make you a happier person - let alone a more successful salesperson. People want to deal with people who are UP, POSITIVE and see something good about almost everything ( before they recognize the bad).
Believe me ! It is not easy to be UP & POSITIVE everyday but it starts with avoiding thoughts, situations, etc that drain your energy and serve no purpose in the long run. Do all that you can to become a high energy - positive professional salesperson !!!!
Onward Sales Professionals !
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Thanks for taking the time to read this week's Perspective. Good Luck and Good Selling !
Sunday, November 15, 2009
POST MORTEMS - DO YOU DO THEM ?
Sales Professionals here me loud and clear - do you do post mortems on almost every call - especially face to face calls but even on phone calls or voice mails ? If you don't - you should. Post mortems can have a profound effect on your success. They are probably the best way to measure your improvement and instill the need for constant improvement / continuing education.
I do post mortems for several of my clients and they are always amazed at what they learn and what they hadn't thought of before.
Here's what to do ! Find some time as soon as possible after the interaction you want to analyze and write down exactly what was said by everyone involved (including you). As the customer or potential customer said something / replied to a question / asked a question - what did you say ? What questions did you ask ? Did you give them time to answer ? What could you have said differently ?
Did you offer all your features and benefits - did you get acknowledgement on each benefit ? Did you talk more than the customer ? Define your trial closes - more than one ? When you left the appointment / conversation - do you know exactly where you stand and the next move ? Do you have the ORDER ?
It is your responsibility as a sales professional to accomplish all of that listed above and more. But, none of us are perfect - nor do we remember to do everything correct each time we are in a position to affect a sale. How do you get better ? By critiquing everything you do and challenge yourself to grow and learn from each occasion. An even better consideration is to find another sales profession who likes you and is willing to offer their expertise and run the whole scenario by them. Ask them what they would have done / said / replied had they been in your shoes. It can be very helpful to make this effort often.
Will your ego allow you to be critiqued by yourself ? By others ? This is a great way to learn more about what you can do differently than what you do now. You know what they say about people who do the same thing and expect different results ( as we are reviewing this year's results and next year's goals) !
Onward Sales Professionals !
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Thanks for taking the time to read this week's Perspective. Good Luck and Good Selling !
Challenge yourself to grow ! Challenge yourself to more accountable to yourself and the people who rely on you to make it happen. There isn't one of us who could not be more productive, more focused, more goal oriented, and more open to change - doing things different than what we have ever done before.
Look around for success stories - they are all over the place. Get inspired ! Kick yourself in the butt !
I do post mortems for several of my clients and they are always amazed at what they learn and what they hadn't thought of before.
Here's what to do ! Find some time as soon as possible after the interaction you want to analyze and write down exactly what was said by everyone involved (including you). As the customer or potential customer said something / replied to a question / asked a question - what did you say ? What questions did you ask ? Did you give them time to answer ? What could you have said differently ?
Did you offer all your features and benefits - did you get acknowledgement on each benefit ? Did you talk more than the customer ? Define your trial closes - more than one ? When you left the appointment / conversation - do you know exactly where you stand and the next move ? Do you have the ORDER ?
It is your responsibility as a sales professional to accomplish all of that listed above and more. But, none of us are perfect - nor do we remember to do everything correct each time we are in a position to affect a sale. How do you get better ? By critiquing everything you do and challenge yourself to grow and learn from each occasion. An even better consideration is to find another sales profession who likes you and is willing to offer their expertise and run the whole scenario by them. Ask them what they would have done / said / replied had they been in your shoes. It can be very helpful to make this effort often.
Will your ego allow you to be critiqued by yourself ? By others ? This is a great way to learn more about what you can do differently than what you do now. You know what they say about people who do the same thing and expect different results ( as we are reviewing this year's results and next year's goals) !
Onward Sales Professionals !
.
Thanks for taking the time to read this week's Perspective. Good Luck and Good Selling !
Challenge yourself to grow ! Challenge yourself to more accountable to yourself and the people who rely on you to make it happen. There isn't one of us who could not be more productive, more focused, more goal oriented, and more open to change - doing things different than what we have ever done before.
Look around for success stories - they are all over the place. Get inspired ! Kick yourself in the butt !
Sunday, November 1, 2009
WHO WILL YOU ALLOW YOURSELF TO LEARN FROM ?
This is an old but worthwhile topic. Most of my clients and many followers have discussed it with me before. Here's the essence of my perspective. For anybody - but especially sales professionals - it's not what you know but what you have yet to learn !
It's pretty much a given for a successful salesperson that you need a strong ego and a firm believe that what you are doing ( your way ) is contributing significantly to your success. I respect your skills and your experience but no one knows everything there is to know about professional sales. So please challenge yourself to grow by resourcing yourself. Whether you read, listen to tapes, go to classes, or just network with sales professionals from other industries and organizations; challenge yourself to get outside the box. Try different ways of marketing yourself and your products / services. There are 80 gazillion sources and coaches to aid your success. Step up to the plate and admit that you might not know everything there is to know. Be open to change !
Be willing to listen to other ideas. Try listing your strengths and shortcomings - maybe even get someone else's ( OR A COUPLE OF PEOPLE ) opinion about those items and look at yourself through another's eyes. Set goals that exceed your comfort level and entice you to look at your strategies to get there. Don't accept the same techniques that got you to your current level. Growing and learning is exciting and fun let alone what it might do for your income and success level.
Onward Sales Professionals !
.
Thanks for taking the time to read this week's Perspective. Good Luck and Good Selling !
It's pretty much a given for a successful salesperson that you need a strong ego and a firm believe that what you are doing ( your way ) is contributing significantly to your success. I respect your skills and your experience but no one knows everything there is to know about professional sales. So please challenge yourself to grow by resourcing yourself. Whether you read, listen to tapes, go to classes, or just network with sales professionals from other industries and organizations; challenge yourself to get outside the box. Try different ways of marketing yourself and your products / services. There are 80 gazillion sources and coaches to aid your success. Step up to the plate and admit that you might not know everything there is to know. Be open to change !
Be willing to listen to other ideas. Try listing your strengths and shortcomings - maybe even get someone else's ( OR A COUPLE OF PEOPLE ) opinion about those items and look at yourself through another's eyes. Set goals that exceed your comfort level and entice you to look at your strategies to get there. Don't accept the same techniques that got you to your current level. Growing and learning is exciting and fun let alone what it might do for your income and success level.
Onward Sales Professionals !
.
Thanks for taking the time to read this week's Perspective. Good Luck and Good Selling !
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS - SUGGESTIONS ?
Relationships ? How do you start them, keep them, build them, and generally benefit from them ? Any seasoned salesperson will tell you that relationships greatly influence buying decisions - even in trying economic times like we have now.
Here's some hard and cold facts about relationships and how to assist them for your benefit -
A. Relationships are built on what you know about each other - think about your personal relationships - they are built on your history and what you know about each other. Business relationships are very similar but maybe not as intense.
B. Consider doing a personal profile which is built on one page with three paragraphs - (1) your history-where you were born, educated, family, etc., (2) your career path - what you have done professionally to get where you are today and (3) your desire to be everything your customers want you to be and more ! Your sharing of this information will jump start the potential relationship. You can share your profile on every call and / or put it in every presentation packet.
C. Become a better listener in face to face or phone meetings. Learn to ask more questions that get the customer or potential customer to share more of their feelings and insights (not necessarily personal stuff) but their job duties, company directions, and any opinions that they are willing to share. Getting them to share information they normally don't share or get asked will go towards creating a bond that could ultimately justify their buying decisions in your favor.
Try it - you may like it !
Here's some hard and cold facts about relationships and how to assist them for your benefit -
A. Relationships are built on what you know about each other - think about your personal relationships - they are built on your history and what you know about each other. Business relationships are very similar but maybe not as intense.
B. Consider doing a personal profile which is built on one page with three paragraphs - (1) your history-where you were born, educated, family, etc., (2) your career path - what you have done professionally to get where you are today and (3) your desire to be everything your customers want you to be and more ! Your sharing of this information will jump start the potential relationship. You can share your profile on every call and / or put it in every presentation packet.
C. Become a better listener in face to face or phone meetings. Learn to ask more questions that get the customer or potential customer to share more of their feelings and insights (not necessarily personal stuff) but their job duties, company directions, and any opinions that they are willing to share. Getting them to share information they normally don't share or get asked will go towards creating a bond that could ultimately justify their buying decisions in your favor.
Try it - you may like it !
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