Stop Thinking "Sales" & "Selling".

Here’s an edgy seed I plant with both new and seasoned salespeople:

Stop thinking “sales” and “selling”.

Their mere mention triggers wide-ranging Pavlovian responses - few of which are helpful or reflective of a craft that should be a form of service.

How you sell is how you serve.

We are either:

Initiating new relationships

or

Servicing existing relationships

We’ve all formed new relationships. Some even became good friends.

When we formed those relationships we weren’t executing a secret agenda to make them happen.

We were curious and genuine - we learned about the other person and shared about us.

The relationship moved forward as a mutual choice.

Am I saying that we shouldn’t be invested in the process and follow a disciplined regimen to encourage progress?

Absolutely not.

And make no mistake, your conversations still matter more than anything else.

But you can make the leap and toss out the superficial bag of tricks you’ve convinced yourself are necessary in order to “sell”.

This mindset shift frees people to be more open and authentic.

The result is more relationships that are deeper and have more long-term value.

Imagine that.