How important is truth in today’s world? As a salesperson, one of the biggest misconceptions of our profession is that we will say anything to make a sale. To the public, and sometimes to ourselves, it appears that the end objective is more important than telling the truth. That is just not true for the Conscious Salesperson. Our job is to find the benefits and value of our product or service for our prospects and tell them the truth.
When it comes to making a sale, what are your ethics? You can have average ethics and give the customer fair exchange for their money, no less, no more, which is how the average salesperson operates. A Conscious Salesperson wants to operate from maximum ethics, where you don’t just ask how to get more sales but how to give more and better service to your clients. When you offer exceptional service, you impress your clients with more than they expected. One of the best reasons to employ maximum ethical standards and behavior in sales is simply peace of mind.
As kids we were taught always to tell the truth and that honesty was the best policy. The bad news is that kids watch adults lie and get away with it all the time on television, in the movies and in real life. Kids notice that often, when you tell the truth, it can upset people and you might even get punished.
Since most people want to avoid conflict and confrontation we get in the habit of not telling the truth to avoid any upset it may cause. The truth gets told only when it is to our advantage to share it. Without realizing it, we sometimes don’t tell the truth just so we can fit in with society’s expectations. As salespeople, we have sometimes stretched the truth to make the sale.
This serious problem of inconsistent truth telling is blurring moral and ethical lines. When we lose our morals and ethics, which are our own personal truth, we actually lose the essence of ourselves. When we stop telling the truth, we lose integrity with ourselves. If you cannot trust yourself you cannot trust anyone. This sad state of affairs will never bring you peace of mind or happiness, much less success!
To truly become a great salesperson you have to stop worrying about what others will think of you if you speak your truth in an appropriate manner. If you really want to live an authentic life and be proud of yourself and your sales profession, you must not let anyone tell you who you are or what your truth should be. It’s important for you to know your own truth and to speak your own truth. Become truly who you are and act only from what you truly believe. If you don’t believe in what you are selling, you will never be truly successful at selling it.
Yes, I know it’s easier to go with the flow than to stand your ground when problems occur. But after awhile, if you don’t stand your ground, you won’t even know what you believe or think.
Our society and the media feed us an enormous amount of “shoulds” every day. We are told what we should like and should not like, how to think and how to fit in so that the “majority” accepts us. As of today, wake up and realize that, though it might be difficult to speak your truth at first, you will have more respect for yourself if you do. And once you get in touch with your own personal truth, you will not allow others to walk on it.
It’s important to take back your power in life and understand that you do not have to conform to what everyone else is thinking or doing. You have the power and responsibility to decide what you believe, what your personal truth is and how to stand within that truth. Be proud to be an individual.
When I urge you to speak your truth please do not let that be an invitation to be offensive or difficult or to feel that you have to defend your own truth. As a Salesperson, always speak your truth with kindness and love. Who you are speaks loudly without words. Understand that you may not agree with others always and that each individual has her own personal truth. No one has to agree with yours or join you in that truth.
Do you know your own personal truth? Often in social situations I hear people give their opinion about certain subjects, yet I know it’s really not their opinion. I know they are repeating what they have heard from others and have not taken the time to know what they really think or feel about a subject. People tend to look at just one side of a subject and then parrot back in a conversation what they think other people want to hear and will find acceptable.
It takes a great deal of courage to examine your own beliefs. Do you really just want to follow the masses and believe what the media spoon-feeds you?
To begin to define your own truth, you might go into a quiet place, maybe out in nature. Get centered (quiet your mind) and ask yourself some soul-searching questions to help define what your truth is for you as an individual. This won’t keep you from being open-minded to new views on life but it will help you to know your personal truth, how to operate in the world in the way that is authentic for you.
Are you aware of it when you are not operating from your own personal truth or ethic?
I suggest that you write your observations about your personal truth investigation in a notebook or journal. Write about the topics in your life that you talk about but rarely have made a clear statement of how you actually feel.
When someone asks you how you feel on a subject, really think about it before you speak. Don’t just repeat what you have heard others say about the subject. If you don’t know how you feel about something, simply state, “I don’t know. I‘ll have to think about that.” Then do take the time to think about it and discover your truth about it. Remember that in business it’s more important to be respected than liked.
Needless to say when you are in sales, it is smart not to discuss subjects that are truly hot topics, those that hardly anyone agrees on, such as politics, sex and religion.
As a Conscious Salesperson, do your best to speak your truth with kindness and avoid defensiveness. You don’t have to defend yourself when you live from your authentic truth. Everyone has their own personal truth and no one has to agree with yours. You can not control others and you don’t want them controlling you.
Today is the day to get you in a proactive state of mind and start an improvement program on yourself. Just as you would start an exercise program, choose to do the behaviors that will assist you in the achievement of your personal and business goals. n
