Last month, I poked the bear on how you evaluate your sales/revenue machine. Having spent more years than I can count in the security sales arena, I’m here to share some street smarts, not theoretical “yada, yada, yada.”
What I learned on the streets, working as a territory manager, then a national account salesman, then a sales manager, coupled with the last 27 years as a security business consultant, is what I am sharing with you in this column.
Hire salespeople with a rare quality: grit. This term also serves as the title of a book by Angela Duckworth. Go buy it; you won’t be disappointed.
Her book, Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance, explores the paradox of why highly qualified, competitive and motivated people, who had great grades, and who had recommendations from congresspeople, failed to make it through their first summer in the “Beast Barracks” at West Point Academy.
In the military, having grit can be the difference between life and death — literally!
The True Meaning of ‘Grit’
If you are new to the term, grit is the ability to walk through disappointment, adversity and fatigue, all without losing focus on a long-range goal.
This rare quality is a great indicator of how a future salesperson or sales manager will perform. It is, in a word, perseverance. How do you identify this rare motivating quality in a person?
Ask the right questions during the interview process to gain insight into how “gritty” the person really is, based on their words and answers. Here are some good questions to ask. I share them with my consulting clients.
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Share with me a challenging, long-range goal you set for yourself and how you overcame adversity in the journey.
You are looking for big goals that took time to accomplish. (Think military service or education over multiple years.)
Dig into the details of the adversity that person faced by using follow-up questions like, “Could you expand on that a bit more?”
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From your point of view, what makes salespeople successful when they encounter objections, face resistance and hear the word “no”?
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What was the toughest sale that you’ve made, which took a long time to close?
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Share with me a long-range goal that you decided to no longer pursue. Tell me more about what you could have done differently if you could turn the clock back.
Those who blame others for failing to reach their goals typically have a low grit score. That’s a red flag!
Look for those who worked at a job while pursuing an education goal for a long period of time. I call it “doing doubles,” and it’s successful when it’s done without loss of focus on the goal.
The Grit Factor
The grit factor applies to and is important for all your associates, but especially your leadership team. If you are the owner, it’s key to establish challenging growth goals, support efforts to achieve them and work through failures with a positive attitude.
The key company culture element of grit separates great companies from good companies. So, how can you accomplish the lofty goal of instilling the grit factor?
Well, it involves a bit of coaching to motivate your team and prevent them from cratering when things look dark. Encourage them to rewind and ask themselves what they could have done differently. Listen carefully to what they share.
A high grit factor among your talented team will save you time. They will work through difficulties and figure things out on their own. This is especially valuable during times of economic or technical adversity. Grit will separate the followers from the future department leaders.
Here’s your key takeaway: Ask questions that will help you determine a person’s grit factor!
