"Without hard work and discipline it is difficult to be a top professional"
Jahangir Kahn
There is no free ride to success. There is no easy button to press. Without hard work, dedication, an extreme tolerance for frustration and setbacks you can never become a sales champion.
If you really want it, then you must be willing to back it up by taking action. I am concerned that far too many in sales lack a basic understanding of what’s really necessary to become a sales professional.
THE ATHLETIC LOCKER ROOM
Interview a professional athlete, and they will share with you they had an athletic dream; a dream of making it big.
What professional basketball player didn't want to be like Mike?
While every professional basketball player craves the success that a Michael Jordan had, many aren't willing to do what is necessary to get there.
The success strategy is quite simple, it's not very glamorous and all in your mind. It’s a four-letter word called WORK!
“If you do the work you get rewarded. There are no shortcuts in life.”
Michael Jordan
The top 1% of professional athletes have a million- dollar success strategy. This is nothing more than a willingness to consistently pay their physical dues and bust their ass by pushing themselves outside their comfort zone.
Your sales success strategy is nothing more than tons of sweat, fatigue, frustration and YES hard work!
Success, It's hard work!
The one percent consistently push themselves to go the extra mile, run a little harder, sweat a little more, train a little longer, and work in a few more repetitions.
The elites, the one percent of professional athletes, eat being great for breakfast.
They are willing to bust their ass and to do whatever it takes. Are you willing to do whatever it takes?
Forget about what everyone else is doing or not doing, focus on yourself. If you really want to stand out, then make it happen with your work ethic. This is what top professional athletes do best.
Can the same be said for the average sales rep? What are you willing to work on?
ELITE ATHLETES MINDSET
What separates elite athletes from the rest? I believe an elite athlete has a ‘next level’ mindset.
Elite athletes constantly challenge themselves. Are you?
Elite athletes push themselves during practice. They pay attention to the little things on a consistent basis and continually focus on positive work habits. Can this be said about you?
Could you become more consistent in sales if you changed your mindset?
Change your mindset, change the outcomes.
What would happen to your sales results with an improvement in your preparation, practice, how you mentally prepare, how you respond to mistakes, or how you respond to failure?
Confident Athletes are proactive when it comes to confidence!
Have you developed a confident mindset?
ARE YOU PUTTING IN THE HARD WORK?
You have to be willing to get off of your comfy couch. You must get outside of your physical, mental and emotional comfort zones. You must be willing to push the envelope, to get comfortable being uncomfortable.
Success is simple but yet difficult. I get it every once in a while, you'll work your butts off.
Occasionally, you will get motivated to step the pace up and sweat just a little bit more especially when your sales funnel is running on empty.
Many of you are consistently inconsistent and will turn your head and mentally say, "No thank you."
"Success isn't always about greatness. It's about consistency. Consistent hard work leads to success. Greatness will come."
Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson
What do you think separates the best in sales from the rest of the pack? Do they have more talent? Not necessarily! Are they more gifted than others? On some occasions, yes. Do they want and smell sales success more than you? Ah Hah! Here lies the key.
You see, the very successful professionals work harder, and on a more consistent basis; because they want it more than you do.
If you truly desire to become successful, then your biggest obstacle is the very person you see when you look in the mirror!
If you want it badly enough and are willing to go after it on a daily basis, week in and week out, month in and month out; then you must buckle-down by elevating your training and performance.
ARE YOU PUTTING IN THE PRACTICE?
If you fail to put in the work, you will never find true success.
You’ve heard about Malcolm Gladwell and his 10,000-hour rule. He studied and discovered the most successful people are the ones who have put in the hard work. They dive into their craft and study. And they worked and worked some more.
You can’t expect success to come to you just because you want it to. You must be willing to work hard.
You must move your mindset from I'm just a sales rep to I'm a sales professional.
Hard work requires:
- A commitment to yourself
- A commitment to a stronger work ethic
- A commitment to a plan
OVERCOME THE MENTAL HANG-UP
You must learn how to overcome the hard work and perseverance handicap that you have developed by being a member of "I have earned my stripes therefore I don't have to do it" society.
Get back into the real sales world and stop the "my **** doesn't stink attitude". In other words, pull your head out and redevelop your goals, your personal mission and why you are doing what you are doing?
Motivate yourself by staying focused on your WHY. Why are you doing all of this in the first place?
You must develop an emotionally compelling reason to go against the status quo as you watch the other aloof sales reps on your team, seek instant gratification by cutting corners.
Are you living a sales lie?
The secret to success is mental. The secret to success is in your hands, not in your mouth.
The secret to success will separate you from the wolf pack and your competitors.
The secret to success is quite simple to understand yet so difficult to consistently use.
Do you have what it takes to take your career to the next level? Can you honestly put your actions where your mouth is? Are you willing to walk the walk?
JUST DO THE HARD WORK!
Why do many give up? No hope? No perceived chance for victory or real reward inside their company? Not enough patience to keep on going? No sense of personal fulfillment? Lack of the right talent or skill set? Poor relationships leading to discouragement? The questions and list can go on...
You must embrace hard work and develop a strong work ethic. This means you must set aside your ego, fear and a "know it all attitude". Embrace the two things you have going against you - time and patience.
Allow this quote to sink in...
"I have nothing in common with lazy people who blame others for their lack of success. Great things come from hard work and perseverance. No excuses."
Kobe Bryant
I understand, I get where you all are coming from. Every day, I walk in your shoes. I am fully committed to helping your sales team integrate social aspects and heartfelt strategies into your current sales process to grow new business. I want you to get results. This is why I am passionate about doing this the right way, the genuine way, the authentic way! It's about understanding value before visibility.
Selling From the Heart is making a difference! I poured my heart into every page of this book and I think you're going to love it. You can find it on Amazon in paperback, kindle and in audio. You can click on the book image below and this will take you to Amazon.
In a world full of empty suits, I'm passionate about helping sales reps succeed by getting valuable before they get visible. I help sales teams understand the true value they bring to the market.
I appreciate getting the opportunity to share my stories. Integrating the use of social and sharing my story on LinkedIn was my “game-changer” in the highly competitive office technology world. With great pride I transform, challenge, coach and inspire sales teams to grow new business by helping them share their story and how they communicate it out by integrating the use of social inside the sales process. You can follow me on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and on my podcast by clicking on Selling from the Heart.
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