July 23, 2024

Do you remember your first sales call??

I was a 34-year-old rookie salesperson. I had no idea what I was doing, but to say I was motivated would be selling me short. I was hungry and determined to do a great job.?

On my first day of sales, I found myself in a little town in the mountains of eastern Kentucky. Dressed in my out-of-style suit and brand-new tie, I had my first encounter with a customer. He met me in the breakroom of his office and politely listened to my well-honed but nervous pitch. I was giving it all I had. Three months of training, role-playing, and envisioning what it was like to meet with a real customer had been waiting for this moment!

When my embarrassed manager touched me on the arm, I realized I had backed my customer, who was a head shorter than me, into the corner, and I was poking him in the chest with my marketing brochure. It was a disaster—and no, he never became a customer. Moments like this are why my manager referred to me as "ignorance on fire."?

I was a pushy, overly assertive, bordering on aggressive, hard-closing sales rep. That is not a model for success, and I quickly learned the hard way that it was a terrible way to sell.?

Today, as I work with salespeople, I often see the opposite. Yes, being a pushy, aggressive, over-the-top salesperson is bad—very bad. But I see a lot of sales professionals who are completely unassertive. They are more concerned with gaining their customers' approval than with the task at hand. They are afraid to ask questions and project equal business stature. They are more concerned with being liked than being respected.?

As I think about this, it's understandable. Nobody wants to be the salesperson that I was. We picture an annoying, pushy peddler, and we want to be anything but that. As a result, we go too far the other way.?

Ask yourself where you fall on the assertiveness scale if you are in sales. Aggressive and pushy are recipes for failure, but so?is not being assertive at all.?

Aim for properly assertive.?

With that, here are some things that I ran across this week.?

Careful Cutting -?There are different ways to achieve the desired results in business. In some cases, revenue growth is the goal. Others cut?expenses. Both have risks.

This article?offers some advice on cost-reduction strategies that are often mistakes. It reminds leaders to consider second—and third—order consequences before initiating cost-reduction measures.?

Stealing Our Own Joy -?Our training company recently moved offices. After five years of driving the same path daily, I've noticed myself on autopilot more than once.?

My new office is a little further down the street, and I pass by my former right turn. Once, I was in the parking lot of my old office before I realized that "I don't work here anymore."?This week, I nearly made the same mistake again.?

It reminded me of how much of our lives are thoughtlessly lived—just acting out patterns and scripts unconsciously—and?how some of them are harmful to our happiness.?

Coaching with a People-First Philosophy -?Donnie Ecker is an up-and-coming hitting coach in Major League Baseball. Coming up through the college ranks, he has developed a great reputation for using data and analytics in his work with hitters. That said, he credits his success to developing relationships and helping people grow.?

Whether you have a sports interest or not,?here is a terrific article?on coaching and leadership. I love the line, "Leadership = Moving People."?

It's a good read.?

Identifying Your Why -?Your "Why" is always positive and striving towards something greater. That's one of several?good takeaways I found in?this video?from Simon Sinek.?

A quote to leave you with

Have a great week!