Selling with Purpose
I‘m convinced that every one of us is involved in some form of sales. Whether you are a parent selling your kids on the benefits of going to bed on time; a sales person selling a product or service; a leader selling a vision to your employees; a fundraiser raising money for charity; a teacher selling your passion for education to your students; a politician selling your ideas to voters or a doctor selling the importance of healthy habits to your patients, we are all in the sales business.
And anyone who has sold an idea, vision, product, or service knows that selling can often be very tiring, draining, frustrating, and challenging.
Rejection often causes self doubt. Failure frequently induces fear. Repetition regularly leads to boredom and Energy Vampires often make you want to give up.
I know these challenges well.
When The Energy Bus was rejected by the first 30 publishers I wanted to give up. When my first few talks 10 years ago didn’t generate an enthusiastic response I thought about quitting. When naysayers wrote negative reviews on Amazon about my books it made me want to stop writing. When there were only four subscribers to this newsletter (my brother, my mother, my best friend from college, and my wife) I wondered if I was wasting my time.
Looking back I realize I was able to persevere because my purpose was greater than my challenges. I wasn’t driven to just sell something. I was driven by a bigger purpose to make a difference.
I have found that a bigger purpose is the antidote to all the fears, rejection and challenges we face on our journey.
When you sell with purpose you don’t allow rejection to stop you. You don’t allow failure to define you. You don’t allow the mundane to drain you. And you don’t allow fear to prevent you from making a difference.
For example, I’ve met a number of people who told me they have a message to share but are too scared to speak in public. I’ve told these people that if you have something important to say that will help others then your desire to make a difference must be greater than your fear of speaking. I’m happy to report that many of these people are now selling with purpose and sharing their messages with others!
I’ve also spoken to a number of sales people over the years who have a fear of closing the sale... so they don’t. I’ve told these people that if you truly feel that you and your product or service can make a difference then you actually have an obligation to close the sale. In fact, if you truly believe your product or service can make a difference and you don’t try to close the sale then you are actually doing a disservice to your customer. After all, if they don’t do business with you, they can’t benefit from you. A lot of people have resonated with this message and it has helped them to sell with purpose, overcome their fear and challenges and benefit more people.
So how you do you make selling with purpose a reality?
You identify ways your product, service, ideas, and vision can benefit others and make it your mission to share these benefits with others.
You focus less on what you do and more on why you do it and allow this why to inspire and energize you to make a difference.
You don’t chase success. Rather you decide to make a difference and success finds you.
You realize that each day you can focus on the mundane or you can make the mundane meaningful. When you make the mundane meaningful you won’t get tired or burned-out.
Lastly, you don’t focus on your numbers. Measure your numbers but don’t focus on them. Instead focus on your purpose because your numbers are just a by-product of how well you are living, sharing and selling your purpose.
As I write this, my wife is selling my 11 year old son on the importance of studying and doing his homework. It’s something she’s been doing every day for a month. I can hear the stress in her voice. It hasn’t been an easy process. Yet, I know she isn’t just selling. She’s selling with purpose. She knows the habits he creates today will become the man he is tomorrow. She’s driven to make a difference. She’s inspired to raise a champion. I know there are times when she wants to give up but she doesn’t. Her purpose keeps her going. Her purpose keeps her focused on what matters most.
I believe selling with purpose will do the same for you.
-Jon |
Comment:
Educators, we now have a 
