Sales Motivation: Taking Risks Leads to Greater Sales Success

If you have a high level of sales motivation, you are much more willing to take risks. If you’re more willing to take risks, you’re more likely to achieve a higher level of sales success. Charlie “Tremendous” Jones was one of the most positive influential people I have ever met. Each time I would talk to him, no matter how bad his health, he was always incredibly optimistic. The last couple of years of his life, he could barely see, yet he would proudly say how clearly he could see me.

Charlie was always fond of saying that 10 years from now, the only difference in your life will be the books you’ve read and the people you’ve met. The more I reflect on this, the more I realize how true it is. I would even add one more caveat to it: 10 years from now, the difference in your life will also be about the risks you have taken. Too many people fail to take risks. For some reason, they feel risk is a bad thing. But what I’ve found is that the more risks you take, the more comfortable you are in taking risks. If we’re not willing to take risks, how can we ever begin to think our sales motivation will be as high as it can be?

I find the level of risk a person is willing to take is in direct proportion to their level of sales motivation. The more people are motivated, the more risk they’ll take; the less they’re motivated, the less risk they’ll take. Success doesn’t come to those who sit and wait — success comes to those who go forward. Yes, risk does not always equal success, but you’re much more likely to find success by trying. And trying means taking a risk rather than sitting back and doing nothing.

I’m asking myself how I can increase my level of risk taking. How I can find new ways to challenge my sales process to find an even higher level of success? The more I challenge my own level of risk, the more motivated I become. With the increase in sales motivation, I’m even more motivated to take on still more risk. How about you? How do you feel about risk? And are you going to take more in 2010? Your sales motivation may depend on it!