There is a simple formula to being successful in sales, and in everything else for that matter. It’s not a complicated formula.
Sales Success Formula
HW(2)+K+S+L=S (hard work x 2 + Knowledge + Skills + Luck = Success)
SURPRISE! The key to success is hard work.
The biggest part of this formula is hard work. It’s not what we know, or the skills we have, or how lucky we are that has the biggest impact on how much success we have, it’s how hard we work.
I learned this lesson in my first real job. I was sales rep at the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce. The job was simple — sell Chamber memberships to local businesses. I only worked there one year. When I got the job I didn’t know nearly as much as the other people on the team. I didn’t have the sales skills they had, as I never sold before. I wasn’t lucky enough to get a “special” territory or a big “blue-bird.” I just worked harder than everyone. I made more cold calls. I went on more meetings. I prospected harder. I built more relationships. I was a grinder. I just out worked everyone else. At the end of my first year and only year with the Chamber, hard work made me the number one rep. I set numerous sales records including biggest month.
Their are lots of books on sales, and sales skills. Thousands of blogs tell us how to sell better, how to improve our numbers, and how to become better sales people. We take training and classes to improve our skills. We read trade mags, blogs, 10k’s and industry reports to extend our knowledge base. We meet with customers and embed ourselves in our clients world to have more information (knowledge) to get the upper-hand. All this is good and plays a role in our succes. But at the end of the day, if you’re going to focus on one thing, OUT WORK EVERYONE! There is no book, or seminar, or class, or program to learn how to work harder. You just do it.
There is a formula to success. It has multiple parts. Only one is weighted more than the rest. It’s the easiest to do. It requires no special skills or talent. It’s not allocated by nature unequally. Some aren’t born with a proclivity for it, while others aren’t. Hard work is a simple choice, one with great return.
The sales success formula – HW(2)+K+S+L=S
Notice the 2 next to hard work. It’s the only part of the equation with an accelerator. You can’t make luck. Don’t wait for that. You can focus on knowledge and skills but they don’t have an accelerator. Start with hard work. It’s the best place to focus.
