Walk into Starbucks, Panera or any other coffee establishment, and you’ll find people working on their laptops, checking email, making a call and basically doing what they could from their “home office.”
The “home office,” whether it be the back bedroom, the basement, the loft over the garage or simply the front seat of your car, can become a lonely place.
The first time I was told my office would be closing and I would be working from home, I can’t say I was thrilled. Thirty years ago, that move hit me as a demotion. There’s no doubt I was on the front-end of a trend. Fast forward to today and it seems there are more salespeople working from home than there are working in an office.
Regardless of your position, you’re as likely to work from home as from an office, and you suddenly find yourself competing with the toys the kids left out the night before and the laundry that begs to be done. Balancing the home with the home office is just that — a balancing act that never seems to end. No wonder there is so much “home office” work being done over a Grande Caramel Frappuccino with an extra shot of caramel.
People crave interaction. The only question is the level of interaction. For some it’s the constant conversation, whereas for others, all they need to know is that others value them. This is why I say sales is not a solo activity but a team sport.
Who’s on your sales team? Bigger question is whose sales team are you on? Each day we have to make it our job to be reaching out to others on our team and dialoging with them. The sales manager who believes in the idea their people want to be left alone and never bugged is simply not doing their job. The salesperson who says they want to work in total solitude is never going to reach their full potential.
Could you imagine sitting a person in the corner and telling them their job is to design a self-driving automobile without any input from others? Would that person be successful? No! We know even Elon Musk couldn’t pull off that task, yet in the same vein that’s what we expect salespeople who work alone to be able to do.
Your job is to create and be part of a sales team. That means dialogue, support, accountability, learning, sharing and helping. If you’re not part of a sales team that does that, then it’s your job to create one by reaching out to others. Ask them to be part of a team.
If you are on a team and you don’t see this happening regularly, then you need to find a different team. Sales managers reading this, pay attention. This is your #1 job. It’s not to deliver the quarterly number, and it’s not to ensure reports are done on time. If you create the right team, then all of those other activities will be taken care of.
Sales leadership begins by being part of a team. Sales is not a solo activity. Sales is a team sport.
A coach can help you excel in your sales career! Invest in yourself by checking out my coaching program today!
Copyright 2018, Mark Hunter “The Sales Hunter.” Sales Motivation Blog. Mark Hunter is the author of High-Profit Prospecting: Powerful Strategies to Find the Best Leads and Drive Breakthrough Sales Results
