Selling often means influencing human behavior in your interest. We all have tendencies. One basic tendency is an innate sense to hear an unspoken lack of confidence. To effectively influence, we must also believe. When we lack confidence in our deal position, our potential customer may feel that we lack confidence in any aspect of the deal, our proposal, our ability to deliver, ourselves… Often what the customer is hearing from us is our own internal negative voice in over-drive telling everything that isn’t right, what might go wrong, all these negative messages. One key to success in sales is understanding our negative self-talk and how we can redirect it. It can give us positive messages like I am a winner, our proposal is well prepared, I am ready – confident.

Sales training spends billions each year on word play, role play, messaging, steps, process, structure, and management. All that investment is so easily wasted when the Energy or that Voice inside leaves the first points of contact with negative internal messages. Our momentary confidence drops can leave us behind the curve when our positive energy could put us ahead of the pack. It is innately that simple. Believe and be positive is the first best step. This is the most basic personality block that disrupts a successful sales effort, campaign – career.

There is a story of a boy who falls over a cliff and lands on a ledge below. He calls out for help.

Hello – and hears back – Hello
Who is that – and hears back – Who is that
You’re Stupid – and hears back – You’re Stupid
You’re a loser – and hears back – You’re a loser

Then the boy’s father arrives and climbs down to rescue him. After the boy sobs with relief, he asks about the voice. Dad explains, well that is called an Echo, but really is a lot like life. It is a voice that gives back what we send out. Try it this way and Dad shouts out

You’re the Best – and the voice returns – You’re the Best
You’re a Winner – and the voice returns – You’re a Winner

The initial phase of a Selling relationship is a lot like this. The depth of the relationship is influenced heavily by our own expectations, what we anticipate to achieve in the relationship as the words that are exchanged.

Making our ECHO positive, making it a winning voice is the most positive first step in a success sales effort.