How to Succeed in Sales 100 Percent of the Time

Fifteen plus years ago, I trained a sales rep from Texas. For the life of me I cannot remember the rep’s name, but I remember his boss’ description of him: “Bill, this kid wears me out. He is a ball of energy. Just get him moving in the right direction.”

A year later, I received an e-mail from the boss telling me that his rep had his first $100K month. Not bad for a quick printer.

Some time later, I got a call from a company president out in California. He’d hired a kid from a mall kiosk after watching him successfully engage shopper after shopper from his Sprint cell phone booth. I came to call him a Tasmanian Devil as I watched him build a hugely successful book of business.

Then there was the rep who was described as, and I quote, “A bull in a china shop.” It was the same story: All talk. Extreme passion. Zero sales skills. Eighteen months later, I was at an awards dinner watching this china-shop bull receive recognition for being number one in new business volume amongst a sales force of more than 650 reps. (Oh, and the volume was north of $1.1 million!)

None of these reps had any business being successful in sales. They had no natural sales ability. They weren’t smooth. They weren’t great listeners. They weren’t problem-solvers. But they did have one innate characteristic: Drive. Each of these sales reps had a pit-bull mentality. They’d get their teeth into a prospect and not let go until they got an appointment.

I’ve been a sales coach and trainer in this industry for over 20 years. If there is one common denominator amongst the successful, it’s diligence. The diligent succeed 100 percent of the time. There is nothing like it, and there is no substitute. It’s the first thing I look for in a rep, and it’s what I demand from myself.

There is much about the job of sales that can be taught. I can teach you to manage your time. I can tell you where to look for prospects and what to say to them. Effective us of voice mail? Yup. Beating Objections? Check. What I cannot teach you is how to be a bull in a china shop. You can, however, reach within and summon it. Drive is a choice. Diligence is a decision.

Success in sales is eminent for those who have the drive and diligence to achieve it. You can will sales success. If your sales aren’t what you want them to be, start your search for the culprit...

In the mirror!

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