“Hardened me” may be strong words – we’re certainly not making any comparisons to Stoneman. But if you were to ask my mom, she would have told you that the last 30 years in sales has definitely toughened me up. And that is not entirely good news . . . to her.
Some people need to be toughened up. Some need life experiences. Some could use a dose of reality. Others need to come back down to this earth. That’s all fine. What we are talking about here is the way the business of selling has made you see things differently – not through rose-colored glasses at all. On the contrary – through reality-colored glasses.
Walking around life with a dose of reality on your shoulder will never be one of your biggest problems – promise! There’s nothing wrong with being real. We aren’t talking about having a chip on your shoulder, either. We’re talking about being real.
So, let’s take a look at things through mom’s eyes. Here are 4 Ways My Mother Thought Sales Career Has Hardened Me.
Let’s see if you can relate:
- He’s so skeptical
She’s right. Spend 30 years listening to people tell you one thing & then do the other thing & you would be skeptical too. Or, you wouldn’t. You’d be a push-over that believes everything he hears. How far would that get you in sales? Never forget what a client back in the mid 2000’s told me. At the time Charlie was a 20-year retired military guy (Army). First job out of the military was in sales. He was struggling at the time. His biggest problem? Civilians. I remember it like it was yesterday. He said, “Tear, you know what bothers me the most about civilians now? They lie. Back when I was in the Army, if people lied, people got hurt. Charlie learned not to trust every civilian he ran into. Can you relate?
- He’s so impatient
Two for two! A top 3 trait for successful salespeople is their own impatience. Having deals move through the pipeline successfully must be a natural feeling. Any monkey-wrench in the plan & all heck breaks loose. Stay impatient! Can you relate?
- He’s so competitive
Forget top 3! Competitiveness is a top 2 trait for successful salespeople. Don’t you love a person who hates to lose? Me too! Stay competitive. Can you relate?
- He’s so direct
Sure, directness can be a turn-off. Not talking about that. Direct to the point of not being wishy-washy. To the point. Committal. On task. All good traits for sales pros. Can you relate?
If you can relate that’s good. Mom still loves you. You’re making her proud every single day.
