Most of so-called sales experts haven’t actually sold successfully and/or consistently over the years, if at all. If a “guru” tells you there’s an easy, stress-free, rejection-free way to sell, in which you don’t need to reach out to or call on anyone but instead people come running to you in droves and practically beg you to buy, turn 180° and move as fast as possible away from them. That said, what makes the great salespeople in the top 1 or 2%?

The truth is that sales at the highest levels is far from a 9-5 job. It’s not a stress-free, comfortable existence. It requires you to work hard, talk to strangers, and face lots of rejection. It is not hanging out in the same comfortable groups where you’ve known everyone forever, spending countless hours on social media, hiding behind a bunch of cold, spam emails, or waiting for leads from marketing. It is being proactive and knocking on doors and ringing the phones… of strangers. It is answering your phone early in the morning, late at night, and on week- ends. The same goes for emails and texts. It’s going above and beyond and delivering more than expected.

What else does that top 1 to 2% look like? It’s doing the things that no one else wants to do, that you don’t want to do either, but that you get yourself to do because you know that’s the only way to the promised land. Biggest among the things that no one wants to do are making cold calls, continuing to follow up with people beyond one, two, or three tries, and role-playing sales situations with peers.

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