Confidence is one of the most under-appreciated, underrated skill sets of great sales professionals. The sales process requires you to have enough confidence for yourself and for your customer.

You have to understand something about objections: it’s not personal. Buyers reject concepts. It’s not about you. But buyers who share objections are still there.

As a leader, mentor, or coach, it’s inevitable that at some point we’ll be called upon or need to help a struggling team member. Your sales manager skills here can make a world of difference and get them back on track – sooner, rather than later.

“Tell me what you’re looking for” is worse than mediocre. It’s rude! It forces the customer to take the lead in the sales process, just like the patient in our little story above.

What if there was something valuable to learn from that new salesperson? Maybe there can be a career spark if we look hard enough at the newbie. Veterans face the reality of career slumps from time to time. I’ve been there, you’ve been there, we know what it’s like.

As sales professionals, we are knowledgeable on topics like discovery, objections, and closing but when we aren’t doing these behaviors on a regular basis, the actual execution falls short and our results suffer.

I believe you should have your own sales voice in the process. That being said, there are a few concepts that should be expressed in every presentation. The key to the following phrases is not in the words but in the intention behind the words.

I think it’s very important for us to constantly expand our horizons. I titled this as the best sales books ever written but what I’d like to do is share with you the five most influential books when it comes to personal success that I have ever read.

Performance review meeting preparation that will show your manager you invested time for the meeting and you’re willing to be an active participant going forward. You leave the meeting feeling empowered and like you’ve been heard.

Are we to believe that the stream of emails, memos, and reports ever subsides? Getting “caught up” is a fool’s errand, my friends. What’s worse is that you will burn your mental energy on non-priority tasks.