We've all heard it said of someone before, whether they were talking about themselves or someone they know. "He could sell ice to an eskimo!", suggesting they are the ultimate salesperson. That no matter the obstacles, they can make the sale. On the surface this sounds great, right? In your organization, you need top performers. You need those that can close the deal. Closing the deal is what brings in the revenue. But let's step back and take a look at what sales really is all about.
Sales is the process of leading a buyer to making a buying decision that is for their benefit.
Sales is first and foremost a process, not an event. But beyond that, it is about what's good for the customer, not what's good for the salesperson or the company. The second part of that definition of sales is the last three words - "for their benefit". Take a look at that common phrase we started with. If you're selling ice to an eskimo, or in other words getting someone to buy something they have no use for, then you're not a salesperson - you're a con artist. Sales is not about manipulation or convincing someone to buy something they don't want or need. It's about identifying the person's or organization's needs, helping them to also see that need, and leading them to a decision that will help them fulfill that need. It's about creating solutions for the customer, not about notching another order at someone else's expense.
Sure, you can probably get away with the former version of "sales" for a while. You might even do very well. You may be taking that approach right now and think I'm full of it. But eventually your funnel of business will run dry, because now you're looking for the next "victim" as you leave a trail of destruction behind you, instead of building something long-term by providing a service that people will remember, repeat and refer. The short cut version is short lived. The longer, building brick-by-brick version is the sustainable path. People appreciate and remember someone who helps them through the entire sales process and isn't just looking for a signature on the order form.
Invest in yourself to increase your knowledge and your ability to negotiate and persuade others to make a decision that is the right choice for them. Sales is a skill, and you can learn and improve upon it daily. Take the longer - but also longer-term - path of providing value and being a salesperson of integrity. You won't regret it, and you will reap huge rewards in not only your business, but in the relationships you create along the way.
--If you haven't read Zig Ziglar's "Secrets of Closing the Sale", it's a must ready for anyone in sales of any kind and has a ton of examples and techniques for honing your skills as a salesperson with this same perspective of serving first, identifying needs and leading to a decision that's good for the buyer. See the "Success Resources" tab and pick up a copy today. $10 is nothing to invest with all the wealth of knowledge in that book--
Showing posts with label Zig Ziglar. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Zig Ziglar. Show all posts
Abundance
Abundance mindset. This is another critical mind shift you need to make that will significantly increase your results, because it completely changes your perspective, as well as your interactions and attitude when dealing with people.
Let's start with looking at the opposite of abundance - scarcity. Scarcity says "there's not enough to go around". It implies that, for you to get something, someone else has to give something up, or at the very least that it's taking from a pool of limited supply that won't leave as much for someone else. It says someone has to be the loser and someone has to be the winner; that someone else has to miss out. You see what the problem is with this mindset? Especially if you're working from an ethical standpoint, if you really believe that this is true, then you're going to have a very hard time convincing yourself to get a win on your end if you believe someone else, even if it's not someone directly involved at the moment, has to be on the losing end of it. How can you negotiate a win for you when you feel like someone else is getting a less than desirable result on their end?
On the other hand, abundance says "there's more than enough to go around for everyone to be able to benefit". This mindset believes you can always create win-win-win solutions; that there doesn't have to be a loser. This means negotiating deal doesn't have to mean you getting what you want and the other person getting the raw end of the deal. It means there's always a solution that will result in both sides getting what they want, if you take the time to figure out that solution. Sure there will be some give and take on both sides, some negotiation, but that doesn't mean one side or the other loses. That's just part of making a deal. An expert negotiator will find a way to make everyone happy, and if they're really good the other side wont eve know it's a win-win. All they'll know is that they got what they wanted, even though it may be exactly what the other person wanted as well. In your thinking on negotiation, shift from thinking about being on opposite sides of the table, fighting against each other for different outcomes, to being on the same side of the table, working together to find a solution that works for everyone.
Scarcity is a fear mentality. Often those that are of a scarcity mindset are afraid to lose what they have. They're afraid that if they share their resources, they'll lose out, so they hoard their money and their knowledge and try to keep it from other people, thinking that keeping that to themselves will prevent others from gaining that expertise. They think this gives them an "edge", because they have something someone else does not. Here's the problem. First, pretty much anything you want to find out these days is free access to anyone. If someone wants to know something or find a resource, all they need to do is "google it" and there are literally thousands upon thousands of resources available to learn whatever it is you want to learn. You're not hiding anything from anyone or keeping anything to yourself; it's already out there! Second, how in the world to you think you're going to achieve any results when you're trying to hide what you know or are trying to do under a rock? Having a scarcity mindset and being afraid of someone else doing what you're going to do means you'll always be afraid to talk about it, and how can you get the word out to the world about your business or your goals if you don't tell people about it? Even better, how can you expect to have healthy business relationships (let alone find anyone to work with you in the first place) if you're not willing to openly share and work together. A lot of times a scarcity mindset is also rooted in a self-esteem issue. They're afraid that if someone else knows, they will be edged out because they're not up for the competition or don't believe they can stand up in a crowd. They're not confident in their own abilities, so the answer is to make sure no one else has the opportunity. Here's the real answer to that - GET BETTER. If you're not improving yourself, your declining, especially in today's rapidly changing world. If you're putting in the work to improve yourself and always growing in your knowledge and abilities, you will always have opportunity. If you're lazy and stop learning...well, that's another story.
Here's another example of an abundance mindset. I am involved with a group of real estate investors that meets on a regular basis to discuss everything from the current market to investment strategy to marketing to specific deal or business issues. Here's the thing - we all invest in the same market. We're competitors, yet we're collaborating together to learn from each other and become better at our craft. It goes beyond that even. We all genuinely want each and every person in that group to succeed. How can competitors share what they're doing in their business, and feel free to give honest feedback to another investor? Someone that very well could come across the same potential deal as they do? Abundance mindset. Not only that, but it actually provides opportunity to work together, whether it's just talking through an idea to get a deal together, or fully partnering to take something down that would be too much or too difficult for one of us. Without the abundance mindset and openness, those opportunities would be lost. Sure we push each other and there is a level of competitiveness, but it's far from the cutthroat "it me or you" scarcity mindset.
Zig Ziglar said it best when he said "You can have anything you want in life if you just help enough other people get what they want." This is exactly what the abundance mindset is all about. Helping other people as a priority, doing what you can to share your knowledge and recourse to help them succeed, and ultimately you will reap the benefits of success on your end as well.
Check your mindset. Be someone of abundance. Believe there is a way to work together to create solutions. Don't hide your resources or your knowledge. Share it with others who need it and I promise you'll see the rewards.
Let's start with looking at the opposite of abundance - scarcity. Scarcity says "there's not enough to go around". It implies that, for you to get something, someone else has to give something up, or at the very least that it's taking from a pool of limited supply that won't leave as much for someone else. It says someone has to be the loser and someone has to be the winner; that someone else has to miss out. You see what the problem is with this mindset? Especially if you're working from an ethical standpoint, if you really believe that this is true, then you're going to have a very hard time convincing yourself to get a win on your end if you believe someone else, even if it's not someone directly involved at the moment, has to be on the losing end of it. How can you negotiate a win for you when you feel like someone else is getting a less than desirable result on their end?
On the other hand, abundance says "there's more than enough to go around for everyone to be able to benefit". This mindset believes you can always create win-win-win solutions; that there doesn't have to be a loser. This means negotiating deal doesn't have to mean you getting what you want and the other person getting the raw end of the deal. It means there's always a solution that will result in both sides getting what they want, if you take the time to figure out that solution. Sure there will be some give and take on both sides, some negotiation, but that doesn't mean one side or the other loses. That's just part of making a deal. An expert negotiator will find a way to make everyone happy, and if they're really good the other side wont eve know it's a win-win. All they'll know is that they got what they wanted, even though it may be exactly what the other person wanted as well. In your thinking on negotiation, shift from thinking about being on opposite sides of the table, fighting against each other for different outcomes, to being on the same side of the table, working together to find a solution that works for everyone.
Scarcity is a fear mentality. Often those that are of a scarcity mindset are afraid to lose what they have. They're afraid that if they share their resources, they'll lose out, so they hoard their money and their knowledge and try to keep it from other people, thinking that keeping that to themselves will prevent others from gaining that expertise. They think this gives them an "edge", because they have something someone else does not. Here's the problem. First, pretty much anything you want to find out these days is free access to anyone. If someone wants to know something or find a resource, all they need to do is "google it" and there are literally thousands upon thousands of resources available to learn whatever it is you want to learn. You're not hiding anything from anyone or keeping anything to yourself; it's already out there! Second, how in the world to you think you're going to achieve any results when you're trying to hide what you know or are trying to do under a rock? Having a scarcity mindset and being afraid of someone else doing what you're going to do means you'll always be afraid to talk about it, and how can you get the word out to the world about your business or your goals if you don't tell people about it? Even better, how can you expect to have healthy business relationships (let alone find anyone to work with you in the first place) if you're not willing to openly share and work together. A lot of times a scarcity mindset is also rooted in a self-esteem issue. They're afraid that if someone else knows, they will be edged out because they're not up for the competition or don't believe they can stand up in a crowd. They're not confident in their own abilities, so the answer is to make sure no one else has the opportunity. Here's the real answer to that - GET BETTER. If you're not improving yourself, your declining, especially in today's rapidly changing world. If you're putting in the work to improve yourself and always growing in your knowledge and abilities, you will always have opportunity. If you're lazy and stop learning...well, that's another story.
Here's another example of an abundance mindset. I am involved with a group of real estate investors that meets on a regular basis to discuss everything from the current market to investment strategy to marketing to specific deal or business issues. Here's the thing - we all invest in the same market. We're competitors, yet we're collaborating together to learn from each other and become better at our craft. It goes beyond that even. We all genuinely want each and every person in that group to succeed. How can competitors share what they're doing in their business, and feel free to give honest feedback to another investor? Someone that very well could come across the same potential deal as they do? Abundance mindset. Not only that, but it actually provides opportunity to work together, whether it's just talking through an idea to get a deal together, or fully partnering to take something down that would be too much or too difficult for one of us. Without the abundance mindset and openness, those opportunities would be lost. Sure we push each other and there is a level of competitiveness, but it's far from the cutthroat "it me or you" scarcity mindset.
Zig Ziglar said it best when he said "You can have anything you want in life if you just help enough other people get what they want." This is exactly what the abundance mindset is all about. Helping other people as a priority, doing what you can to share your knowledge and recourse to help them succeed, and ultimately you will reap the benefits of success on your end as well.
Check your mindset. Be someone of abundance. Believe there is a way to work together to create solutions. Don't hide your resources or your knowledge. Share it with others who need it and I promise you'll see the rewards.
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