“Mirror, mirror on the wall, who in the land is fairest of all?”
“Queen, you are full fair, ’tis true, but Snow White is fairer than you.”
Snow White, Grimm’s Fairytale
The clock keeps ticking, and amazingly enough, we are in the dog days of the summer of 2010. This means the third quarter is winding down and the ever-important fourth quarter is about to begin, your last and best shot at hitting your numbers for the year. So maybe this is the time to bone up on your most important sales skill: daring to be yourself.
In this age of wrinkle creams, weight-loss schemes and plastic surgery, there is something that has quite possibly gotten lost in the shuffle—our authenticity. It is easy for us to forget the self that makes little kids laugh hysterically with a funny face, makes a spouse feels safe with a loving smile or makes a friend find comfort in a nostalgic story. Interestingly enough none of these qualities require money, designer clothes or botox to be beautiful.
Don’t get me wrong, good fiscal health makes life easier, but I have spent a great deal of time watching and assisting salespeople sell. In my experience, it is the salespeople who are comfortable in their own skin, the ones that show genuine interest in the life of the client, the ones that remember personal and professional details and have built the relationship beyond just a sales call that closes deals.
An article titled “Dare To Be Yourself,” from the May 2008 issue of Psychology Today, said self-awareness, the knowledge of and trust in one’s own motives, emotions, preferences and abilities, was the No. 1 component to authenticity of self. Perhaps then, the best sales tip for us all to take into the fourth quarter is a mirror. It might not be easy translating that goofy smile that made your 6-year-old crack up this morning into fourth quarter sales, but if nothing else, you will have a bit of fun trying.
