Good Life habits of Effective Reps

10) They stay balanced.
Salespeople experience more highs and lows in a single week than most professionals do in an entire month. Some days, you feel invincible. Other days, you wonder if you even belong in sales.
The successful reps have learned to manage their emotions and stay somewhere in the middle. When things are going really well, and almost all of their deals are closing, they remind themselves not to get too cocky. When business dies down, they tell themselves not to become demoralized: Sales will pick up soon if they keep chugging.

11) They take breaks.
In sales, activity is often correlated with results. The more emails you send, the more meetings you book. The more meetings you book, the more demos you set. The more demos you set the more deals you close.
Following this line of thought, many salespeople end up working 10-hour days every weekday and even putting in time on the weekends.
If you're regularly burning the candle at both ends, you'll eventually burn out. And plus, how much are you actually getting done between 6:30 and 8:30 at night? That time would be better spent reading, talking to your friends or family, watching TV or playing video games, cooking, walking your dog -- basically, anything that gives your brain a break.

12) They get eight hours of sleep every night.
Think you can get away with five or six hours of sleep? Think again. According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, most adults need seven to eight hours of sleep per night. If you get less, you’ll suffer from a laundry list of ailments, including:

• Irritability
• Decreased motivation
• Anxiety
• Symptoms of depression
• Reduced energy
• Fatigue
• Restlessness
• Poor decision making
• Increased errors
• Forgetfulness

To be at your best on sales calls, prioritize your sleep.

Motivation Habits of Effective Reps

13) They believe in what they’re selling.
It’s easier to be passionate about -- and sell -- a product when you genuinely believe in it. The most effective salespeople actually use their product and believe in its value.
If you feel “meh” about what you’re selling, find happy testimonials from customers. Examples of how your product has improved people’s lives -- in ways both large and small -- will reinforce your motivation (and give you valuable social proof when you’re meeting with prospects!)

14) They’re strongly motivated.
It doesn’t matter what drives a salesperson -- they simply need to be motivated. Every top salesperson has a burning reason for showing up to work every day and giving it their all.
Maybe they want to buy a house and must make at least 110% of quota every month. Maybe they’re super competitive and always want to be at the top of the leaderboard. Maybe they need to prove to themselves they can do well in sales.
Ask yourself, “What’s my #1 reason for wanting to be successful?” If you can’t immediately come up with an answer, you need to find that motivator.

15) They view their customer’s success as their own.
Salespeople don’t stop working as soon as the prospect signs on the dotted line. Instead, top reps touch base frequently with their customers to seek feedback and provide tactical suggestions.

Life Habits of Effective Reps

16) They constantly build personal relationships.
One of the best salespeople I know, is a relationship builder and he connects with people everywhere he goes -- not in the surface-level, LinkedIn way, or the “let’s exchange business cards” way, but in a genuine, human way that makes you want to talk to him again.
As a salesperson, relationships are your capital. You don’t need Don Draper levels of charisma; on the contrary, a desire to help goes a lot further than a magnetic personality.

17) They prepare ahead of time.
An effective salesperson prepares before a call. That means they do research on their prospect and gather all the information before a big customer meeting.
Top reps don't wing it. They go in with a plan and a contingency plan. This way, they anticipate challenges or questions and prepare an effective response to avoid losing the sale.

18) They’re always selling.
To over perform, you can’t stop being a salesperson as soon as you leave the office. Successful reps are always looking for potential customers -- at parties, networking events, dinners, and so on.
Of course, you have to read the room. Should you deliver a five-minute speech about the importance of life insurance at your Cousin Jack’s memorial? Definitely not! But if you’re talking to your new friend Greta, and she mentions she’s in the market for life insurance, give her some handy pointers and let her know you’d be happy to talk more in depth.

Focus Point

83. Be a lean, mean, "fighting machine!"

Be a sales warrior when you walk into that office, pick up that phone or make that presentation. Don’t let anything else distract you or take away from your mission to be the best sales professional that you can be.

Believe me, I have heard it all when it comes to excuses for poor results. Often, the excuses relate to baggage that the individual is still carrying around because of preexisting problems such as a previous relationship or a continuing credit or financial problem.

When we decide to become sales professionals, we need to shed any baggage from the past that is hurting our current performance. We simply can’t afford to let an old hang-up hold us back. Some might have problems with trusting, because of past events. Others might have lingering financial concerns; we might even be maxed out on our credit cards and in danger of being evicted.

If this is the case, get your financial affairs in order before you undertake a career that compensates you based primarily on your performance. If you’re just starting out as a salesperson and your income will be based mostly upon your sales commissions, you need to have a substantial cushion in place before you start selling. Often, there is a substantial lead-time to your first few sales and you need to be prepared for that initial learning curve.

That’s where the "lean and mean" stuff comes into play. In the early stages, watch carefully what’s going out of your account, so you’ll be able to hang in there for the long haul! Don’t commit to that $60K luxury car quite yet until you know if you have what it takes to finish this marathon!