Incidents or glitches occur almost on a daily basis. Friends and I laugh as we share ‘what went wrong today’!
It's the friendship and the laughing attitude that keeps us moving forward. But on occasion, nasty remarks or seemingly impossible tasks have us doing some serious soul searching for what might come next.
Motivated persistence will get you to the next plateau.
My Story
One particular question came through a LinkedIn feed that had me taking the time to answer with detail included. The organizer asked, “What was your all time worst incident as a sales coach or trainer, and how did you handle it?” My incident got me angry enough to begin asking what I needed to do next.
Networking Event
The very first sizeable networking event that I ever attended was the worst and the best experience of all. I learned what not to say upon being asked about my livelihood as an entrepreneur. The initial responses were horrific. To be certain my message was off, I consistently replied the same way, “I’m a sales trainer”.
The women ran away as quickly as possible apparently believing I’m not to be trusted. And the men shrieked with laughter in disbelief that a woman had the gall to attempt this. They had no idea and never asked for my experience. I had been a top sales producer throughout my career.
Negative and Positive Thought
By the time I got home, I was devastated and thought about quitting. But that thought didn’t last long. Remembering my friends, I asked what to do. One suggested I write a book to establish credibility. The phone wasn’t ringing, so I did what any sales oriented person would do. I set goals for the number of pages to be written daily and weekly with a backup plan to write one evening in case my mind went blank.
Motivated Pursuit
My motivation was to write about the worst challenges encountered in the corporate sales arena and how readers may overcome similar incidents. On the one hand, it was to prove that I did know something about sales. In addition to establishing credibility, the information provided instruction for readers to achieve the same.
Breaking Records
Sales stories from the field and of managed sales teams flooded my mind, and the words poured forth. Four months later, the book was complete. No one could believe that I finished in such a short time. They assumed the worst.
To most everyone’s surprise, the book broke many records to include:
Your Story
Think about all those times you felt you were stopped in your tracks and uncertain how to proceed.
The idea is to learn from all incidents. Instead of mentally beating yourself up, create an entirely new approach. Focus on the ideas that appeal to you most. Get the help and education you need to make it a success. Motivated pursuit is half the battle, and with a well-executed plan, you will achieve new heights.