Paradigm, Purpose, Action…Brownies

Excerpted from “Be Bold and Win the Sale”

“Your belief determines your action and your action determines your results, but first you have to believe.”
~Mark Victor Hansen
 
My daughter, Emily, has sales blood running through her veins. This was apparent from an early age, and as a sales trainer, I have always been thrilled to see her in action.

Several years ago, my wife and I attended a fundraising dinner for her high school choir. (Like her dad, Emily too was a choir dweeb!) Emily was given the task of moving from table to table in order to sell a plate of her homemade brownies. She had informed me that her brownies were delicious, and that she intended to sell the small batch for 20 dollars. I told her that she was crazy, that she would never sell the brownies for such a high price.

That was all the motivation she needed.

She quickly identified her “mark,” a well-dressed gentleman who looked, shall we say, like he could easily part with 20 dollars. (Sales rule number 1: sell to people who can afford to buy!) The table was adjacent to ours, so I had the benefit of listening in on her conversation.

Emily: “How delicious do these brownies look?”

Man: “They really do look good.

Emily: “I made them myself, this afternoon. I hope you don’t mind, but I added dark chocolate chips into the batch. That makes them more chocolaty and gooier.”

Man: “You did a nice job.”

Emily: “You can take care of your whole table right here and they can all enjoy fresh-baked chocolate chip brownies. And you’ll be supporting our choir trip. All for only 20 dollars!”

Man: “That sounds a little steep for a plate of brownies, doesn’t it?”

Emily: (with a ribbing smile) “Seriously? You can’t afford 20 bucks? You’ll be the hero of the entire table. And you’ll be contributing to a good cause. For just 20 dollars. That’s chump change to you!”

Emily: (to the rest of the table) “Who thinks he should just pony up the 20 bucks and stop complaining about it?”

And with that, the gentlemen surrendered. Emily completed the transaction and then walked back past me. As she passed, she leaned down and said, “Do not underestimate your daughter!”

Was it Emily’s technique that made her successful? To some extent, but her technique was based on something far more powerful: her paradigm. Emily believed in herself and in her mission. Her belief gave her the boldness she needed for this situation. It is that belief that sales professionals so often lack.

Think of the top-performing salespeople you have ever met. Are they successful because of their actions, because of their purpose, or because of their paradigm? All three, actually, but in a specific order. They do the things that top performers do (actions) because they want to be as successful as possible (purpose), because they see themselves as the best of the best (paradigm).

Paradigm  -> Purpose  -> Action = Change the world!


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About the Author: Jeff Shore

Jeff Shore is the Founder and CEO of Shore Consulting, Inc. a company specializing in psychology-based sales training programs. Using these modern, game-changing techniques, Jeff Shore’s clients delivered over 145,000 new homes generating $54 billion in revenue last year.