The Bigger They Come . . .

Are you easily intimidated? Do you conjure images of failure before making an attempt?

There was a co-worker many years ago that I learned many things from. Almost all of them were things NOT to do. He was an old guy, probably 28 or 29 to my 23 and he had an awesome territory. Easy geography, no more than a 2 hour drive to get to an account and a list of accounts that were good steady C accounts thru good steady A accounts as well as some prime potentials.

As part of my training, I would frequently get to travel with a "senior" salesman for a day every once in a while. It was fun and educational to meet customers and find out what their business was and how we fit in.

"Prince Frederick" and I headed out for calls in the furthest part of his territory, in a town I'd never been to. Leaving one account, we headed down a quiet, country road rounded a curve and into view came the largest building I had ever seen! As we drove by the entrance gate I asked "Aren't we going in there?" Prince Frederick's reply was complex and he talked plenty about why he never went there. It all came down to lack of confidence in himself to make the call for an appointment or to just drive up and make a cold call.

Upon getting back to the office the next day it was discovered that our business amounted to a few thousand dollars a year. It bothered me that Prince wasn't making an effort and that the branch manager was letting him get away with it. A couple of years went by and a new sales manager took over and assigned a new salesman. His impact was immediate as he made the calls and dedicated himself to top to bottom selling. Opportunities came daily and sales grew rapidly. I wish I could say it was me but alas it wasn't. Sometimes with a little work these big accounts will fall nicely into place.

Are you rationalizing not visiting accounts? Are you a winner at mom & pop establishments but a whiner concerning accounts where there are more people to contact than you have in your family? Have you done your math and looked at the return on investment of time spent at the various accounts?

You have what it takes or you wouldn't have your job! Step up and back your own fears into the toilet where they belong.