Sales and Success

“Do nothing, and nothing happens. Life is about decisions. You either make them or they’re made for you, but you can’t avoid them.”

― Mhairi McFarlane, You Had Me At Hello

I had gone for dinner with a good friend who had had heard me talk endlessly about the need to do something different, I moaned. I complained about my job. I knew I could do better and she was tired of listening. She finally told me it was time “to piss or get off the pot”  Make a list of the pros and cons. Figure out a plan and get started. Best advice ever.

So it was then I remembered, that I had met the publisher of a major community newspaper and he had said quite casually that I should come stop by for a talk as he was looking for bright motivated people like myself for his newspaper.

He was added to the pros side of the list and a call was made. So now with my list in hand, the pros far outnumbering the cons, I gathered up my courage and decided to jump into a new venture. I would leave my safe job in banking (and I will have you know that when we were growing up, a job in a bank was a big deal- It meant you had status and security) and I would move into sales.

A sales position that was strictly commission based. I negotiated and it was agreed I would be paid a small monthly minimum (to cover rent) and we were in business. I promised I would give the whole thing a try for one-year minimum and go from there.  I arrived all excited the first day not knowing a thing about ad sales and having no one to teach me. I read, looked at old files, cleaned the office, made lists and then I started skittering down the path of despair.

What had I done? Month #3 and I had not made a single sale. I did not know how to sell. I was clueless.  I cannot recall how I heard about the motivational sales trainer and speaker Bob Proctor, but I signed up for a series of his meetings and my eyes were opened.

Bob  waxed poetic about the freedom to make your own income. He made it sound easy and I was charmed. I believed. That first evening he told us to “set a goal of how many sales we wanted to achieve and not stop until it was done.” It was that simple.

So I went back to the office the next morning and I began calling. I had my sales number in mind and I did not stop until Friday evening at 5pm –right down to the wire and then I hit my target. I had sold nothing all these months and suddenly I was selling. I was pumped.

Bob’s words had come true, “When you really want something, and you couple that with an understanding of your nature, of your spiritual being, and the law that govern you, you will keep going, regardless of what’s happened. Nothing will stop you.”  I went back to the sales seminar and kept giving myself bigger goals and I always hit my targets because I was focussed and I knew it worked.

There is no secret. Make a plan. Stick to it. Adjust where necessary. Then say yes to the plan and work the plan. You will succeed. Sandra Whiting
“Thoughts become things. If you see it in your mind, you will hold it in your hand.”
― Bob Proctor, You Were Born Rich