can keep your head...

Clelns MAKES us \Jloor in to the depths of our soul and ask, "Am I ever going to get another order?" or wake in a sweat (hot or cold-sometimes it feels like both) at 3:00 a.m. asking the more profound question, "Do I have what it takes?"

Even (especially?) the successful man's upward career line is jagged . None of us will exit unscathed. Great salespeople reinvent themselves several times in a career.

" If you can make one heap of all your winnings

And risk it all on one turn of pitch-and-toss

And lose, and start again at your beginnings

And never breathe a word about your loss;

If you can fttrce your heart and nerve and sinew

To serve you long after they are gone,

And so hold on when there is nothing in you

Except the Will which says to them: 'Hold on!"' educated in England. The Jungle Book and

Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936) was a Nobel Prize-winning author born in Bombay and Among his better known works are the poems "Gunga Din" and "If."

"If is where I turn for inspiration. It is more prayer than poem. I encourage you to read it. Below are some verses and how they apply to sales.

" lf you can keep your head when all about you Are losing theirs and blaming it on you."

Focus. There are many non-essential-to-sales things pulling at our attention. Focus on staying in front of customers. Stay away from the Internet and the water cooler, angry co-workers and bosses-stay in front of customers.

"If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you But make allowances for their doubting, too."

You'll never sell that guy. You'll never make it in the sales game. There will always be more people telling us why we can't than why we can. Always. Listen to Kipling-listen to yourself-and have enough class not to stick it in their face when you do succeed.

" If you can dream- and not make dreams your master

If you can think*and not make thoughts your aim."

Give me a moderately smart man of action over the super-intelligent salesperson every time. Thinking, dreaming and strategizing are important, but action is sales.

" If you can look at Triumph and Disaster And treat the two imposters just the same."

Watch pro sellers. They don't over-celebrate or overbum-out when things are great or miserable. They just churn out sales work every day.

"Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools ."

I've never met an entrepreneur or true salesperson who didn't have a little gambler in them. We cannot win big unless we play big. We will never be champions if we are afraid to fail or will not pick ourselves up after failure. The best salespeople receive more no's per month than the average salesperson hears in a yearl

" lf you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue

Or walk with kings-nor lose the common touch"

Communication is our skill set. As salespeople we need to communicate with the truck driver, the receptionist, the buyer, and the owner. We may deal with bankers in the morning and an on-line plant manager in the afternoon. We must project confidence without arrogance - a delicate life-long pursuit of the professional salesperson.

" lf neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;

If all men count with you but none too much,"

It is fine to love our customers, but too many salespeople fall in love with their customers! Wasting time on customers who "used to be" great is a common problem. I talk to grown men who pine after an erstwhile great customer instead of getting on the phone or on the road to find new ones! It is emotionally difficult to let go or reduce contact with a past-great-customer we really like, but we must keep ourselves in front of new people who can and will buy from us.

To inspire others, we must be inspired. Look for inspiration in family, spirituality, friends and co-workers. But if you wake up at 3:00 a.m. and could use a prayer, try "If."

James Olsen Reality Sales Training (so3) 544-3572

james@

reality- salestraining.com