A Fairy Tale Ending

The clock keeps ticking and amazingly enough we are in the dog days of summer. This means the third quarter is winding down and the ever-important fourth quarter is about to begin—your last and best shot at hitting your numbers for the year. So maybe this is the time to hone up on your most important sales skill, daring to be yourself.

In this age of wrinkle creams, weight loss schemes and plastic surgery, there is something that has quite possibly gotten lost in the shuffle, our authenticity. It is easy for us to forget the self who makes little kids laugh hysterically at the twisting of a funny face, a spouse who feels safe in the face of adversity because of a certain twinkle that sparks when we smile or the friend who finds comfort in a nostalgic story. Interestingly enough none of these qualities require money, designer clothes or botox to be beautiful.

Don’t get me wrong, good fiscal health makes life easier, but I have spent a great deal of time watching and assisting sales people sell. In my experience, it is the salespeople who are “comfortable in their own skin,” the ones who show genuine interest in the life of the client, the one who remembers personal and professional details and has built the relationship beyond just a sales call that closes deals.

In an article titled: “Dare To Be Yourself,” from the May 2008 issue of Psychology Today, self-awareness (the knowledge of and trust in one’s own motives, emotions, preferences, and abilities) was the number one component to authenticity of self.

Perhaps then, the best sales tip for all of us to take into the fourth quarter is a mirror. It might not be easy translating that goofy smile that made your six-year-old crack up this morning into fourth quarter sales, but if nothing else, you will have had a bit of fun trying.