Team Alpha 375

Trust Your Instincts
By: Dan Jourdan
When I was a boy, everything was closed on Sunday. And as a kid, I loved the slowed down pace that this created - not necessarily for the family time that it was meant to promote (and did, by the way) but because, at age thirteen, my dad would take me to the empty Alexander's department store parking lot and let me learn how to drive the car.

He just put me in the driver's seat, gave me a pat on the back, and said "go." We had a stick shift car. I had two million questions to ask. How much gas do I give it? What if I am on a hill? How do I know when to shift? His answer was very unsatisfying. He would always say, "You just know."

You may have had a similar experience when you had your first sales job. The old "pat on the back training" is more common than you think; and it's not always a bad idea. Here's what I mean:

Remember when you were first learning to drive? You had to concentrate on everything. You needed to look in the mirror; press on the clutch; put the car in gear; remove your right foot from the brake quickly and place it on the gas pedal; press ever so slightly while you slowly release pressure from your left foot on the clutch; and pray that you don't stall out the car. And that's just to drive straight! You also had to pay attention to the other cars around you.

But now, after years of driving, you find yourself at your destination without even remembering how you got there. And you can do it all while talking business on the phone and drinking coffee too. You have achieved mastery - the ability to do the right things instinctually in any given situation. You no longer think about how to drive, you just drive.

How did that happen?

It happened because you were forced to practice, ask questions, adapt and overcome, and practice some more. You were forced to learn every day on the job and eventually, without even realizing it, you became a master driver.

Sales are all about your skills of building rapport and maintaining relationships with people. These are learned skills that need constant work and practice. You need to be constantly reading, studying, and communicating with customers and prospects - so much that you will experience every sales condition time and time again. Then one day, when you least expect it, a situation will arise that you have never been in before, and you will let your instincts take over and win.

You will be a Master Salesperson. And you will "just know."