Self-development is a critical component. Here is the transcript of an interview I recently gave that outlines the importance of self-development.

“Let’s start with what seems to be an obvious question…why is self-development so important?”

Business is more competitive and challenging than ever which means we need to continually improve our skills if we want to maintain a competitive edge. Also, because business is changing, what worked well last year, last month or even last week, may not be as effective now. That means upgrading your skills is critical to your long-term success.

“What are some of the mistakes sales people make when it comes to self-development?”

The most common mistake that I see is that many sales people think that they don’t need to update or upgrade their skills because they attended a program or training workshop sometime in the past.

I have also talked to many companies who say they’re not interested in a training program because they “did one” a few years ago. Sadly, these companies often consistently lose market share to their competitors who DO invest in the development of their sales people.

Another mistake is that people rely on their employer to either foot the bill or initiate something. If you’re not willing to invest in your future you won’t reach your full potential. I’ve noticed that self-employed or independent sales professionals are more likely to invest in their personal development more so than employees of a company.

“What do recommend for readers of this article?”

I recommend doing a quick self-evaluation to determine what specific areas they need to improve. Then, decide what you’re going to do to improve. This could mean attending a training workshop, a tele-seminar, or perhaps a conference to hear different speakers. If you get just one good idea that helps you improve your results, then it’s worth the investment.

“I think we’ve all heard about the importance of maintaining a positive attitude. Why is this so important for sales people?”

Sales is a great career but it’s also a challenging one. The attitude we display is contagious and our customers and prospects pick up on it. But, even more important, is the fact that a positive attitude helps us get through the difficult times and occasional slumps we encounter from time-to-time.

“What can we do to maintain a positive outlook?”

There are a few things.

First, we have to choose to be positive. No one can tell us how to behave and we can always choose to be in a great mood or a negative one. Now I’m certainly not suggesting that this is easy because it’s not. However, when you put negative experiences into perspective and look at the big picture, you can often see why it’s more important to focus on the positive.

Here’s an example. I know two people who both lost major clients this past year. One person chose to focus on getting new clients and maintained the mindset that she would be able to replace that client with a better on-one that would generate even more revenue and profit. The second person fell into a slump and frantically worried about the lost revenue he lost. His sales are sliding downward while the first person is now experiencing an increase in sales.

Next, associate with other positive-minded, goal-oriented people. Too many people are quick to bring you down so it’s essential that the people around us are also positive and optimistic. I once worked with an individual who was very pessimistic and negative and I always felt drained of energy after talking to him. Eventually, I stopped associating with him because he made it difficult for me to stay positive.

I also recommend starting your day with something positive like reading or listening to motivational material instead of reading the newspaper or watching the news. Other things like exercise, yoga, meditation are also a great way to start your day. It’s like tending a garden. If you don’t remove the weeds they will eventually take over and choke the flowers. Starting your day with something that is inspiring will kick start our day and keep the weeds away.

“What final words of advice do you have for our readers?”

Improvements don’t happen overnight. I suggest that people work at incorporating one change or something new into their approach or routine every week. For example, this week readers could focus on associating only with positive people. Each change, even if it’s small, makes a difference and can improve our results.

It’s like physical fitness. You can’t go from a being a couch potato to competing in an Ironman competition in a week or two. It takes time to build your stamina and strengthen your body so it can handle the stress effectively.

Make small changes but make them consistently and you will notice great results.

Š 2007 Kelley Robertson, All rights reserved.

Every business experiences slower periods. For some, they sell more during the Christmas season while others move at a snail pace. Some sell more during the summer and others less. The key is being aware of your seasons and alternatives available to solve the challenge and change the results.

All businesses need down time, breathing room to re-evaluate where weâ??re going, and where weâ??ve been. Whatâ??s working and whatâ??s not? What changes need to occur and where we want to go in the future?

Have you planned your breathing room time into your calendar year?

As a coach and independent professional, I know by personal experience and through the feedback of my clients, that during the slow times, stress, fears, and challenges on how to pay the bills increases. Sometimes, stress increases without any money factors because weâ??re not used to having additional time on our hands, so our brain manifests things to fill the void. So, what are the alternatives? Good question. Letâ??s explore the possibilities…

You can use the “save for a rainy day” philosophy by moving a certain percentage from a regular account to a money market or savings account for those rainy time periods.

You can plan out, on a paper calendar your seasonal periods. Look at your Income Statement for the past few years and you will see a pattern appearing. If that history isnâ??t available, ask others in your field area. As a coach, Iâ??m in the personal development field. I would contact others in this field, like speakers, trainers, who have experience and history and interview them on the question.

After you review your historical financial information, keep in mind that future economic conditions will influence your seasonal plans. This requires a strategy on who and what you are going to use for economic indicator flags. This may require a financial planner, economist, or other professional on your support team. Reading the paper or watching the news is all well and good, however, it can also add to confusion. Too many cooks in the kitchen syndrome. Choose one or two cooks and ask the others to leave the kitchen.

Remember, there are different seasons all over the world. When its summer in the United States, there is a different season in Australia and Japan. If your marketing vicinity is global, you need to plan your seasons very carefully. Each requires different marketing strategies and procedures. When marketing in the U.S. reduces, marketing in other countries will most likely increase. Especially if you are in the bathing suit business.

If your business is strictly local, you can create additional products or services that will only be available during that season. This can maintain momentum. You can use the “limited availability” technique for these products.

You can use this time for vacation, organize, plan, create new products, and use your rainy day funds for support.

As well as, establish new joint ventures, expand personnel, test new product ideas, clean up backlogs in filing or emails, send out thank you gifts, upgrade your computer, or learn new software.

Keep in mind that leaving some of these to-dos might be detrimental to your revenue generation thinking. Allowing a build up of the items that support your success, as mentioned in the above two paragraphs, can create a desire to create your own self-fulfilling prophecy. You will intentionally create a slow period when a natural occurrence wouldnâ??t regularly happen. An indicator can be if sales donâ??t return after the slow cycle. Pay particular attention if it occurs.

Choose to do some planning today on your seasons for the money results you want tomorrow. Identify when and where your business and industry seasons are, explore all possible solutions, and work through a plan to fill the void. The results will almost be a given.

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