| Let's be honest, the goal of selling is to increase | | | | doing all the work? Possibly if this team had the |
| revenue. Yet, for those in sales management the | | | | opportunity to assess their individual talents and |
| focus more often that not is what they, as the | | | | how those talents fit within the team members' |
| salespersons, are doing wrong instead of what | | | | overall decision making styles, you might have |
| they are doing right. | | | | seen first hand that these complaining |
| This is for the most part pretty natural or typical | | | | salespersons were right on. Such a performance |
| behavior because of years of negative | | | | appraisal assessment may have revealed that |
| conditioning. We have evolved from "Don't | | | | your team had a majority of thinkers and feelers |
| children" to "Can't adults." These behaviors have | | | | with far fewer doers. This imbalance might have |
| us always looking to our weaknesses instead of | | | | created a lot of headaches for you not to |
| our strengths. Then we transfer these individual | | | | mention sleepless nights. Just imagine what could |
| behaviors to the dynamics of the group. Bottom | | | | happen if you created awareness among team |
| line is the sales team becomes even more | | | | members as to their decision making styles not |
| dysfunctional. | | | | to mention their talents? |
| What are those in sales management supposed | | | | To switch from a negative, reactive attitude to a |
| to do? The first step is knowing what each | | | | positive, proactive one is truly not easy. With our |
| member within the team does well. Of course, | | | | brains always being ready to flight or fight based |
| from my experience within my business coaching | | | | upon past bad experiences, staying focused on |
| training practice, I can honestly say that the | | | | what is being done right is much harder than |
| overwhelmingly majority of clients do not know | | | | focusing on what is being done wrong. Yet, such |
| their talents for their current roles. A talent in | | | | action can be done. The only challenge for you in |
| selling such as being able to handle rejection can | | | | sales management is to set a course of action to |
| be quickly turned into a non-talent or a weakness | | | | determine the talents of your sales folks. Then |
| when the role changes to being a sales manager. | | | | use that data in a proactive way to come from a |
| This bleeding over can affect the overall team's | | | | position of strength instead one of weakness. |
| performance. | | | | P.S. Sales Coaching Tip: Do not confuse talents |
| Have you ever managed a sales team where a | | | | with sales skills. |
| couple of folks were constantly complaining about | | | | |