Going to the Sales Gym – Step 10: Get Yourself a Sales Fitness Trainer

In this series of sales articles we’ve talked about all of the different ways that your sales health is similar to your actual health. The purpose in creating this type of analogy in your mind is to not only think about your sales differently, but to take it a little more seriously. We, as salespeople, tend to brush off some of the important exercises and activities needed for success and stay in a routine of mediocracy for as long as we can get away with it. Applying new sales techniques and methods can be hard and, unless we are pressed by external forces, we are not very likely to engage change. Many people go to the gym because they have encountered, or are trying to avoid, a serious health issue. Sometimes our sales face similar health issues as well. Perhaps we lost a big client recently or there was a significant change in the market that will affect our sales. Maybe we have a new boss who is shaking things up around the office and changing the comp plan. Or maybe you took a sales position at a new company and they both do and expect things that you are not used to. Salespeople like to figure things out on their own and are usually too proud to ask for help. Then stress and pressure show up right on time and we are back to our old (and bad) behaviours that caused our poor sales health to begin with. There has to be a better way.  If you are going to go to the sales gym to build your muscles, having your own personal sales trainer and coach will greatly accelerate and maximize your results. Every great salesperson has had a mentor and you should too. You can hire a professional like Scorecard or seek someone whose results and habits you admire. A good coach will understand your needs and meet you at your needs and not try to force you into a process that is not a good fit. There is a large variety of great sales methods, but that doesn’t mean that each one is a good match for you. You have to find someone and/or something that plays to your strengths and challenges your weaknesses.  Sales coaching is an investment for sure, but we invest for a reason. We invest because we expect to be paid back in results that yield profits that otherwise would not have been achieved. Many people will not invest in themselves not because they are cynical or frugal, but they are uncertain or don’t think they are worth it. When it comes to building your sales muscles, you know it will pay you back. Why wouldn’t you invest in becoming your best? Sales is your craft and you need to become physically fit and avoid becoming a sales wimp.  I have stated a few times in this series that I am not qualified to discuss actual health and fitness as it applies to your body, but I can tell the difference between a situp and a pushup. I can just as easily tell who has had sales training and coaching to build their sales muscles and who is just making up as they go along. Maybe you don’t see it, but your customers and your prospects do. Strive to be better because you can and you should. Get the help that you need from a sales coach that can help you with your:

  • Fitness plan (Sales plan)
  • Stretching (Role Playing)
  • Core (Learning)
  • Lower Body (Sales process)
  • Cardio (marketing)
  • & Upper Body (Prospecting)

These things take time, patience, practice and (most importantly) discipline. Everyone has the ability to grow their sales muscles but keep in mind that although the process is easy, the work can be hard. Put the hard work in today and you will be glad you did when you start showing off that flashy new sales body of yours.

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