Your sales journey commences.

You approach a large bridge, and you didn’t know about its existence. This bridge is about 2km long, and you are by foot. You see me walking back, and I tell you that this bridge does not cross the water. You would probably smile at me and determined to check for yourself. I guess if you do this, it is very likely you are in sales or just naive.

This metaphor is often an opportunity in disguise. In sales, not every bridge is open to the public. We have to find a way to cross the bridge or accept ‘reality.’

What are the options?

Salesperson waits

If you choose to be patient, you can win, but never big. After the bridge opens, you can cross the bridge, but you won’t be alone. ‘Kudos’ for your perseverance but you are the ‘stand-in-line’ kind of salesperson. Often this means a lot of competition and pressure on pricing.

Salesperson walks back

You accept reality, and you walk back. You decided that it will take you too long to wait and it’s not appealing enough to swim across. You don’t want to get wet.

Salesperson goes for it

The most creative thinker is going to swim or ‘fly’ with a balloon across the water – or find another way to cross the bridge. The salesperson knows that if he makes it to the other side, he will only have a few competitors.

What would I do?

I always want to cross the water, with or without the bridge. That doesn’t mean I will still attempt to pass it – it’s a mindset and the willingness to swim across. The opportunistic mindset just gives you more options than any other mentality. Only if you can see all the possibilities, you can make a decision. Either, go for it, wait or walk back.

In my early days, I would put my ‘pink goggles’ on and would try to swim again and again. I would score one out of hundred, but I would still feel great. Focusing on this one victory instead of the 99 useless attempts. Was this naive? Yes and no. The mindset was great, but the behavior was unproductive. In general: If your gut feeling says, “it doesn’t make sense, then it doesn’t make sense.”

My advice

Stay young and inexperienced. The experienced mindset is a fixed mindset that will limit your possibilities. If you stop asking because you think you know the answer. That’s not naive; it’s ignorant or lazy. Keep the opportunistic mindset and remember, Social selling is a journey.