Don't Blame the Hammer

When a carpenter doesn’t hit the nail on the head, they don’t blame the hammer. When we, as sales professionals, don’t “nail it,” we shouldn’t either...

Having worked with salespeople, and having been a sales professional for most of my adult life, one thing is almost always guaranteed. When we don’t succeed, we have a reason. We blame the CRM system, the competition, the paperwork, the pricing, the incentives, the pay structure, the product, the process, the internet, the customer, and the boss. The list is endless. For some salespeople, whining, blaming, and complaining are a hobby. If they spent as much time working on a solution to the issue, they’d be highly successful examples for the rest of the team.

When you are tempted to blame someone, or something other than yourself, take a look around. Is anyone in the organization successfully navigating these same circumstances? If so, the issue isn’t external. The most consistently successful sales professionals have learned to take personal responsibility, which allows them to focus on their internal behaviors and improve. Next time a deal falls apart for you, don’t find something to blame. Instead, use it as the catalyst to adapt, learn, grow, and continue moving forward. 

The moment you realize failure is the moment you should analyze your behavior with a reflective lens. Did you take shortcuts during the sales process? Were you able to relate on a human level with your client? Did you take the time to ask the right questions and understand their situation? Did you make the right recommendations? Were you focused on providing them with the best experience possible? 

When you accept responsibility for your success as well as your failure, you open yourself up to adaptation and growth. Only if you are willing to give external factors credit for your success, can you blame external factors for your failure. Have you ever heard a salesperson say, “I’m only as successful as I am because our pricing is so good.” I would bet you haven’t. Before you give all the credit away, consider this question: If external factors are responsible for your failure, aren’t they also responsible for your success? If this is the case, why do we need you?

- Hans