I never wanted to be in sales. I only went into this field because I had an idea to start a company. The SCORE consultant I met with told me my plan wouldn’t succeed unless I learned how to sell.
Ugh! It was the last thing I wanted to hear. But I listened…and got myself a sales job at Xerox. It was brutal, hard work. Turnover was high. Lots of reps left, feeling like total losers.
Here’s why I survived — and even thrived — in this challenging profession: I was terrified of failing. Fear is a powerful motivator.
I had no backup plan. If I failed, I refused to return to teaching (my previous career). If I failed, I couldn’t start my company. I couldn’t fail.
I gave myself one year to figure it out. Just. One. Year.
Twelve months to sales success
I threw myself into learning sales. With a deadline, you do that. I took advantage of all possible learning opportunities.
I read every book on sales I could get my hands on. I even convinced my boss to start a library so I wouldn’t have to fund it myself.
I took a serious look at my colleagues and realized they weren’t geniuses. If they could do it, I certainly could.
When I was struggling, I kept reminding myself that I just hadn’t figured it out yet. YET. That’s an important word.
Whatever it took to succeed
I threw my pride out the door. Rather than trying to impress my boss with my smarts, I embraced my ignorance. I proactively asked for help. I wanted to know what how to eliminate problems before they occurred.
I sought feedback on my selling skills. I hated it, but I did it anyway. I listened, made changes and got better.