Don’t mourn the loss of a deal. Let go and move on.

Then look to find a hidden opportunity. Here a scenario that may be unpleasantly familiar, a big deal slips away and the sales person goes into mourning the loss. It’s on their mind all the time. They think about what a great opportunity that could have been, and even how they would have spent that money. Meanwhile, they lose focus and operate with a clouded mind, as a result lose more deals. Then having lost all confidence, they go into a downward spiral and start to come off as pushy and desperate. We all know what that leads to. And it all goes back to a deal they lost a year ago. The best thing you can do is to clear your mind and focus on the opportunities in front of you. Some of my biggest deals came as a result of losing a smaller one. It can be a great motivator, and combined with the short deadlines it often creates, we are forced to grow. The results are frequently nothing short of amazing.

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As it pertains to Sales: The one with the most behavior flexibility has the most influence. I had a chance to control my equation by changing my behavior, but I chose to be at its mercy by staying on the train.

This used to happen to me in sales as well and I see others also make this mistake on a regular basis. You are giving a sales presentation or a pitch and it’s clearly not going well. You realize this and continue doing what you are doing anyway, because it feels uncomfortable to do something new. Doing something different, outside of the box or something opposite to what’s not working altogether is often the best way to have a breakthrough with a tough prospect or customer. Like Bruce Lee said “Be like water”. Think of it as a great opportunity to learn for next time. You will be surprised with what happens when you let go of sticking to a plan that isn’t working, and just try something different. A good technique when debating whether to go for it or not is to just say the following to yourself: “F*ck it!” and go for it. This alone took me miles.

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I did it, so you don’t have to.

I open my eyes, it is 4:58am and my alarm should have rang over an hour ago. Today is my second day at my new job and I am scheduled to accompany my CEO on his trip to Boston. Our train is leaving at 6:20am. I have been excited about this trip since I first found out about it last week and it’s a BIG deal to me – a great opportunity to both learn a lot and spend some time getting acquainted with my new boss. I made sure to prepare and get to bed early.

I jump out of bed, adrenalin running through my body and I scream: “How (insert your favorite profanity here) did this happen!?”. I check the alarm, 3:45am as I set it last night. I take a moment to collect myself; there is still plenty of time. I tell myself: “I will make it!”. I just need to be on my 1^st train by 5:15am, no problem. Much to the surprise of my girlfriend I’m fully dressed and look like a million bucks 6 minutes later.

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Every day, I hear from someone who calls themselves a “software salesman” or an “insurance saleswoman,” and I wonder why they pigeonhole themselves this way.

And then it strikes me: They are product peddlers as opposed to salespeople.

What do I mean by this? Well, a gifted salesperson can sell anything to anyone. Not because they have great products but instead because they are supremely confident about themselves and know they can charm and intrigue virtually everyone they come in contact with.

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