Top Sales Professionals Make No Excuses
Top sales professionals in every industry possess the one thing that the salespeople who struggle just to make quota don’t, self-discipline.
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Top Sales Professionals Make No Excuses
I just finished reading an amazing book by Brian Tracy titled No Excuses. In No Excuses Tracy focuses on the reason why a few people succeed while many others fail. The reason is not what you might think. Success has little to do with education, money, background, or family. Studies of successful people demonstrate time and again that they simply have the self-discipline to do the things unsuccessful people are unwilling to do. It doesn’t mean that they like doing these things anymore than other people – just that instead of procrastinating or making excuses they take action.
Pay in Advance for Success
It is the same for sales. Top sales professionals in every industry possess the one thing that the salespeople who struggle just to make quota don’t. Top sales professionals have the self-discipline to do the hard things in sales. Do these top performers enjoy cold calling, prospecting or the other activities required for success in sales – of course not. They don’t enjoy these activities anymore than the salespeople who are failing. Like any red blooded sales pro they enjoy closing the sale. However, top sales professionals know that to get the close they have to pay in advance with these activities. The salespeople on the bottom know this too but, instead of taking action, they make excuses.
Independence Day
This week, here in the United States, we celebrated our most important national holiday – Independence Day. It is a day on which many here reflect on the blessing to have been born in a country where anything is possible and anyone, no matter the economic background, culture, race, or religion, has the opportunity to succeed.
Is it America a perfect? Of course not! We are a country wedded in paradox.
Though each person has equal opportunity to succeed, we don’t all start at the same place with the same resources. Though we celebrate those who pull themselves up by their own bootstraps we willingly provide hand outs to others who claim that they are victims of the system. And even though we proclaim a level playing field there still is racism, prejudice, poverty, and exclusion. In other words, even in America where opportunity abounds – life is not fair.
The brutal reality is bad things happen to good people. Bad people sometimes win. There is defeat, failure, and roadblocks. There are poor people and rich people. Some people have to work harder than others to get ahead. Some people give, some people take. And while some accept and make the best of where they are in life others become victims and wait for someone or something to come to their rescue. These poor losers spend their days making excuses instead of taking action to take advantage of the opportunities they have been given.
No matter where you live and who you are there will always external forces beyond your control. There will always be someone or something standing in your way. There will always be something to complain about. There will always be a reason to procrastinate and wait for “someday.” And there will always be a reason to hold your hand out and wait for someone else to save you.
However, if you allow these excuses to control your actions and thoughts you become a slave – slave to the government, slave to the company, slave to the boss, slave to your quota, slave to your heritage, slave to the whims and opinions of others, and a slave to procrastination.
What is interesting about Independence Day is that July 4th is not the day America achieved its independence; rather it is the day America declared its independence and took action to achieve it.
Stop Making Excuses
What if you declared: “Starting today I will not depend on, wait on, or hope for luck, the lottery, the boss, fate, or the government to help me change my life. I will take responsibility for my own life. I will set my own course. I will make my own success. I will take action. I will persist. I will find lessons in setbacks. I will look forward not backward. I will turn my haters into motivators. I will be empowered by my circumstances not impeded by them. I will do the things others are unwilling to do. I will make no more excuses! This is my Independence Day!”
True freedom is accepting and believing that you and you alone must be responsible for your life. This is how you break the bonds of slavery. This is how you attain success. This is when you stop making excuses and achieve REAL independence.
If you are ready to take your career and life to the next level I highly recommend reading Brian Tracy’s new book No Excuses.
This is Jeb Blount, the Sales Guy. If you have a sales question please send it to salesguy@quickanddirtytips.comcreate new email.
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