Too Smart to Succeed

November 30, 2010 By 3 Comments

At least these guys asked questions

Whatever industry you’re in, you probably see the same cast of characters at every conference and seminar. They show up because their company paid for the conference and they’re happy to tell you all the great things they’re doing. They’ll tell you how smart they are and all the things they know. What they won’t tell you is they’ll be unemployed in three years. Why? Because instead of listening to the expert on stage or the incredible ideas floating around the conference floor, they believe they know all they need to know. The way they’ve always done things is good enough for the future; their knowledge is static.

Those same people have a shelf full of books that they may even, God forbid, read from time to time. If they did read them, they didn’t take any actionable ideas from them.

These geniuses already know the answers. They’re too smart to succeed and, therefore, their life never improves.

One Moore Thing: When you go to a seminar or conference, listen to the speaker. Listen to the conversations. Take notes. Then look over those notes and decide on three things that you will do over the next three weeks. Implement one new idea/action/thought each week and see the difference it makes in your performance.

Filed Under: Customer Service, Motivation, Sales, Training/Education

Learn to Win

November 29, 2010 By 3 Comments

Winners Never Quit

Remember that big deal you lost early last year? How about that long-time client that went to your competitor? The New Year’s resolution that you didn’t keep? Let’s be honest… those are losses. Too many losses over a period of time makes you feel like… well… a loser. And feeling like a loser makes you act like a loser. Before long, you expect to lose. You put less energy into presentations and less time into building your proposal. Eventually you stop approaching prospects because you’re going to lose anyway, so what’s the use?

Just like any action that’s repeated over and over, losing becomes a habit. The big question is, how do you get out of the habit of losing? How do you learn to win again?

One Moore Thing: In sales, there are always things that are beyond your immediate control. Instead of focusing on the big picture, focus on things you can control… namely yourself. Track your activities (number of calls, appointments set, response time to messages, etc.) and make sure you complete the items on your list. If you complete them, you win. Eventually the wins will stack up in your favor and losing will be a thing of the past.

Filed Under: Attitude, Customer Service, Motivation, Sales, Training/Education

Watch Your Back

November 22, 2010 By 1 Comment

Still selling buggies?

Last week I spoke to the Global Sales Leadership Society at Michigan State University. I speak to this group a few times each year and I always walk away amazed at the depth of their questions, their grasp on the world of sales, and the amount of real world experience they possess at such a young age. And they’re hungry. They want your job. They want your opportunity. They want your commission.

Contrast that to veteran salespeople: the vast majority that I speak to are content with their level of knowledge and dedicate almost no time to enhancing their skills. They’re more than happy with their their industry, product-line and their current base of customers. They don’t want to change anything they’re doing… but they want more commission dollars for deteriorating margins.

If you think you can coast through the rest of your sales career without a challenge from a new generation of salespeople, you’re in for a big surprise. Not only are they as hungry as you once were, but they’re armed with more tools and education than we were at that age.

One Moore Thing: Enhance your skills. Do it now before it’s too late. Pay for it yourself if you have to, but make it happen now.

Filed Under: Customer Service, Sales, Training/Education

Should You Pay For Education?

November 19, 2010 By 2 Comments

When you went to school as a kid, your parents paid for it through either taxes or tuition. Then you probably decided to go to college because it was important to further your education so you didn’t get up every morning expecting to take on the world as a Walmart greeter.

All that led to you getting your job. The next step is getting promoted or doing your job more effectively. So you need more training or education, right? You’d think so, but less than 5% of employees actively invest in training for their jobs. For some reason, even though people paid for their own schooling prior to getting a job in the real world, they expect their employers to bear the full brunt of furthering their education. If they’ll do it, that’s great, but with the economy in its current state, many organizations are reducing training budgets. To be clear, I don’t think that’s a good long-term strategy, but it is a reality that you probably can’t control.

Doctors, teachers, and computer engineers are required to take classes each year to learn about the newest processes, techniques, and technologies. Why shouldn’t you?

One Moore Thing: Dedicate 3–5% of your salary to continuing education no matter your profession. You’ll notice that the more you make, the more you invest in yourself… that’s the idea.

Filed Under: Customer Service, Motivation, Relationships, Sales, Training/Education

Freedom At What Price?

November 12, 2010 By 3 Comments

There’s a Cost For Freedom.

When asked about the most positive aspect of sales, most people say “freedom”. It’s not uncommon for the masses to think salespeople spend their days coming in late, playing golf, and having drinks at happy hour. They even get access to the luxury box for football games. Those employees assume salespeople have ultimate freedom.

You know what? They’re right. Salespeople have freedom that’s unsurpassed in any other job.

What those people don’t understand is freedom comes with a cost. Eleanor Roosevelt said “with freedom comes responsibility.” In sales, that responsibility really means personal responsibility. Personal responsibility is the cost for freedom. If all you do is sit on your ass waiting for the phone to ring, you’re going to quickly become two things: lonely and broke. And almost as quickly, you’ll become unemployed.

No job in the world provides more freedom than sales. Anyone who’s had success in sales will tell you that freedom comes with an inordinate amount of responsibility. You don’t answer to your boss; you answer to your customer and yourself.

Yes, we have freedom. But at what price?

One Moore Idea: Hold yourself accountable for your actions. Start keeping a sales notebook that dissects every interaction with a client. If a sale doesn’t go your way, analyze the notes and ask what you could have done differently. If a sale does go your way, see what common elements were shared with other successes and commit to repeating those actions.

Filed Under: Attitude, Customer Service, Motivation, Prospecting, Relationships, Sales, Training/Education
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