Hello all! I really enjoyed this sales article by Jim Meisenheimer and thought you might, too:
How to Get Really Motivated to Start Selling More
First, recognize that self-motivation is an inside job.
The word motivate means to inspire, stimulate, propel, start, prompt, instigate, provoke, actuate, drive, excite, and to trigger.
Don't wait for someone else to motivate you; here are 11 ways you can motivate yourself to achieve bigger and better things.
The focus is on you!
1. Buy an inspirational book of quotations and keep it in your car. Everyday read and reflect on three quotations. Look, if money's tight go online using this search phrase: inspirational sales quotes.
And remember, words of inspiration usually inspire us. For example:
Sales are contingent upon the attitude of the salesman, not the attitude of the prospect. W. Clement Stone
Fall down seven times. Stand up eight. Japanese proverb
Don’t sell life insurance. Sell what life insurance can do. Ben Feldman
Forget about the business outlook, be on the outlook for business. Paul J. Meyer
Confidence and enthusiasm are the greatest sales producers in any kind of economy.
O.B. Smith
You can't read these sales quotations and not immediately feel more exuberant.
2. Establish lifetime, yearly, monthly, weekly, and even daily goals. Goals are the easiest and quickest way to catapult yourself to action and success.
A goal is a goal if it's in writing, if it's specific, and if it has a deadline.
Goals are the fuel in the furnace of achievement. Brian Tracy
3. Now this one is different and yet extremely effective. Try listening to motivational CDs. But here's the twist. Record your favorite quotes, anecdotes and personal success stories into a digital recorder. Create your own CD.
Nothing is more motivating to most salespeople than the sound of their own voice.
You are what you think about all day long. Dr. Robert Schuller
4. Get motivated to make better telephone calls by investing in Art Sobczak's new book titled, "Smart Calling: Eliminate The Fear, Failure, And Rejection From Cold Calling."
Chapter 7 describes how to be smart with your voicemail. In chapter 10 Art talks about creating interest with your smart call opening statements.
If you're using the telephone to increase your sales, this book belongs in your personal library.
For every sale you miss because you're too enthusiastic, you will miss a hundred because you're not enthusiastic enough. Zig Ziglar
5. Set aside 15 minutes every day to read sales books and sales articles to sharpen your selling skills. When you think about it, this is gourmet food for your brain. Don't skip a day!
Use this link to see the books I'm recommending for you.
http://www.startsellingmore.com/readinglist.html
The time for action is now. It's never too late to do something. Antoine de Saint-Exupery If your sales prospect says something that stops you in your tracks, be sure you write this down and give it some thought so you can deal with it more effectively the next time you hear it. Writing in your notebook will encourage positive thinking. When you write in your composition notebook, don’t emphasize the things that went wrong. Focus on the positive aspects of your day. A good reason for doing this is your self-worth increases proportionately with your net worth. I distinctly remember sharing a taxi with a fellow regional sales manager from the Savannah Airport to Hilton Head for a manager's meeting. This manager opens his briefcase and starts studying some numbers. I asked him, "What are you doing?" He says, "I'm reviewing my Net Worth Statement." Remember, I was a young regional sales manager. I didn't really know anything about Net Worth. His comments got me thinking. And I hope this gets you thinking! A nickel ain't worth a dime anymore. Yogi Berra Nothing is more motivating than having your spouse and kids asking you for an update on your sales quota. Always do your best. What you plant now, you will harvest later. Og Mandino 9. Tell your family when you reach a new monthly sales record milestone, you'll take them out to celebrate. Your family sees how hard you work everyday. Why not celebrate your successes with them? Keep raising the bar if you want to start selling more. Celebrate what you want to see more of. Thomas J. Peters I can't think of a better way to start every selling day. Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life. Berthold Auerbach 11. To jumpstart your sales performance, prepare your own laminated cue cards. Create cue cards for making appointments, for your 12 best sales questions, for handling the price objection, and for asking for the order. Each cue card should be prepared word-for-word. Do this and watch your selling results skyrocket. If I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I’d spend six sharpening my axe. Abraham Lincoln Self-motivation may be an inside job, but now you have the inside track on how to do it! You're either motivated or you're not - it's up to YOU!
6. Buy a composition notebook for your car. Record your observations, successes and failures. If you say something during a sales call and get a positive reaction write it down or else it's lost forever.
7. To get motivated about improving your personal financial situation, establish a personal net worth goal and put it on an Excel spreadsheet. Update your spreadsheet monthly.
8. This is guaranteed to get you motivated. Tell your family when you achieve 110% or more of your annual sales quota, you'll take them anywhere they want to go on vacation. And give them monthly updates on your progress.
10. Select one song that really gets you pumped and motivated and play it every morning as you back out of your driveway.
