#humancentricseller

The last couple of weeks have been an eye-opener for me. I felt as if every emotion possible had been put in a tumbledryer and then churned around at high speed and I was taking them out one by one with my eyes closed, not knowing what would pop out next. Sadness, excitement, shame, indignation, relief, gratitude and grief in a fast changing kaleidoscope of feelings. And, in the first week, a growing level of exhaustion. This #opentowork thing is draining!

As many people told me to take a break as told me to get straight back into it. As many people asked me what I wanted to do as told me what I should do. All well intentioned, all coming from the same place of wanting to help but all with sufficiently different perspectives which need time to process.

I don’t profess to be an expert in this, or anything really, but as I progress in this journey, I am more and more convinced that #authenticity is the key to all this. I am in the process of stripping everything back to the "Basic Me", and it is becoming easier. John Legend sang about “perfect imperfections”. That resonates with me. I haven’t removed the layers to find a perfect gem, but more a fractured crystal that diffuses light into some amazing, zany patterns.

In the context of the world I operate in – Enterprise Software Sales – I have often been told to be harder, to be firmer, to be more aggressive. I have been asked if I am a “hunter” or a “farmer”. I have been told to choose, to specialize, to focus, to conform to a sterile view of what complex solution selling "should be" and I realise now that it came at a cost. With a bit of time, I have come to realise that my human approach works just fine, thank you. I have succeeded more than some, less than others but I have, for the most part, retained my integrity and also relationships with those around me. With my customers, my partners, my management, my colleagues, even my competition when I think about it!

So no, I am not a hunter, nor am I a farmer. I am not a hard-nose, coin-operated salesperson. I am not pushy but I am also not a push-over. I am an Enterprise Software Seller. I am a problem solver. I am a #humancentricseller