The Need to Define Your Purpose in Sales If you are entering sales, then you need to know your purpose in going into sales. You cannot just sign up and expect to be successful. 1. You have to know what you want – this is the most basic question to ask yourself. You could say at the start that you want to be successful or you want money but what does that mean? The point is that you should be quite specific about what you are going after. If you are looking for higher profits for your business, just how high are we talking about? You could say ‘I would like to boost my net profits by 20%’ instead of just saying ‘I want bigger profits.’ 2. Maintain a clear purpose. You have to understand the reason that an action is being undertaken. Otherwise you will wind up muddled. 3. Be aware of and utilize intent. This concept of intent remains a very underrated component of success. Your actions should contain a great deal of intent (meaning your mind is focused with a firm resolve towards a purpose.) Once you have intent, will follows suit. This process requires you to tone your mind with mental exercises that involve a conscious intention to pursue a certain action. For example, you could set your goal, visualize it completed, then go after the goal. 4. Set a commitment. This means that you will have to dedicate yourself to a definite course of action. It means that your commitment is binding. You may not be aware of what you have to do yet if you are committed to reaping success, you will exert the effort to discover how. 5. You must be able to ‘know your story’. In other words, you have to be able to clearly define the way your product, service, or experience is advantageous to you, other people, as well as the world. Without this, you will find it hard to get the confidence of other people, regardless of what you are presenting (i.e. healthcare, software, cars, or financial services.) This is because you have to be convincing at articulating the value of your work. You can even opt to apply these methods in other areas of your life such as social, community, family or business. To check if it works, try taking a self test. First, select which context this will be used for (such as family, for instance.) Then, ask yourself these questions: 1. Are you aware of what you specifically want? 2. Can you identify the reason or purpose for pursuing this? 3. Do you have a clear intention of action? 4. Do you have a definite commitment to it? 5. Can you clearly define the advantages to yourself as well as to other people? If you find that your questions turn up something missing in that aspect of your life, or if you seem to be running around aimlessly, then perhaps you need someone to coach you. In the arena of sales, a good coach can lend his trained eyes and ears to guide you on your journey. He or she can define your direction, set the route, help you pursue intentional action, and even assist you in removing blocks in your path. To truly succeed in sales, it is important to have a clear purpose for what you want to gain so that you will receive the outcomes, values, and benefits of your goal. But you also have to be disciplined and tenacious so you will not get blown off course by the temptations, setbacks, and obstacles that get in your way. Another difficulty is that you might make a decision or decisions that distract you from your goal and prevent you from keeping up with the pace. It could be a lapse in judgment or an action that circumstance has forced upon you. You might occasionally wonder if the way you articulated your purpose is realistic, if you can actually achieve it. Be careful during these times not to self-destruct, thereby destroying your career and long-term goals. Your life mission is solely your prerogative. No one can dictate this to you but yourself. What you have to bear in mind is that thinking for the long term will help you survive the long course of a career in sales with conviction and drive to spare. Once you venture into sales, you will encounter a steady stream of challenges. At times like these, at the end of the day, what will keep you going is that drive within you, cultivated and nourished by yourself on a daily basis. Not some trite phrase that someone else has spouted through a tape or piece of paper, but the clearness of purpose that you developed at the start of your career. This means that you have to believe in that clarity of purpose wholeheartedly and with all your soul. Not only will it invigorate you but you will be rejuvenated by it continuously, allowing you to recharge daily and keep up reserves of strength during the toughest times. Remember, by knowing your purpose to be in sales, you will survive what can be a demanding, unforgiving and downright cruel profession.
Clement is the Chief Coach for BridgingPoints Sales Coaching Services which provides one to one personalized coaching to improve sales performance. Go to http://www.bridgingpoints.com to subscribe to Free newsletter that provides wealth of selling tips, ideas, methodologies, free mini course, etc.
