Being a salesman is the perfect balance of positive and negative thinking. You must maintain a positive veneer when you talk to customers and when you meet with customers. Nobody wants to write a check to a jerk. So you need to be able to build relationships as well as maintain them. But negative thinking can be quite helpful.
It’s all about predicting objections. What reason will they give me not to buy my product or service? Why would they choose a competitor over me? What problems exist with my product/services?
By thinking about objections in advance you can prepare yourself with answers. Instead of being surprised by a question, you can easily respond with confidence. Answering objections puts people’s minds at ease. You build trust and trust, more often than not, will get sales.
Negative thinkers are constantly searching for leads. They know that leads don’t always fall into your lap. You have to go out and get them. If they’re business is seasonal or cyclical, they know to save while the going’s good so when a downturn happens they can survive. They constantly are trying to increase their sales.
Now, I’m not a big fan of salespeople. Some can be downright sleazy and dishonest. But if you are in business, sales are the lifeblood of the company. Without sales…you’re not in business.
