It may not seem immediately obvious at first but the quality of your ‘home base’ or your ‘foundations’ can radically affect the degree of success you have.

Let’s look at the options you have:

Working from an office

You may have a local office to work out of…. And have a local team of fellow salespeople to work with. This can be a great asset particularly if you have access to more seasoned colleagues who can advise or guide you. This was my experience when I worked for NCR Systemedia in the UK. The team was mutually supportive, and the experienced sales manager gave onsite guidance to us all.

However, the presence of a sales or office manager may constrict your flexibility to schedule your time and may impose on you other limitations.

Working from your own home

However, with some organizations you may need to work out of your home. In part 1I indicated that the mindset of being a successful sales professional is often challenged by the social demands of your family life.

Therefore, it is essential to implement a rigorous policy of separating home and work life.

For me that meant that I ‘dedicated’ a spare bedroom to be my office so that my wife and kids knew that when I was in there I was ‘at work’ and not to be disturbed, although my family life was the thickness of a door away.

Failure to maintain this distinction leads to a blurring of the edges… and neither your work nor your family get 100% of you…. and ultimately that doesn’t work for anyone. (Believe me I know!!)

Successful salesmen always remember …. When they not working their territory, they are not earning.

Also, that if they are not calling on their customer base then their competitors certainly are, eroding their current ….and future income.

This means that the essential requirement of those who truly wish to be successful in Sales is to have an attitude that is driving and assertive.

Welcome to the Rat Race

Professional Sales is a dynamic and fast paced world, so you, personally, need to be the equivalent of the “Energizer Bunny” and using rechargeable batteries!

I will say, yet again, that it is the gaining and losing of orders which perhaps most accentuates the emotional roller coaster of this industry.

Understand too that the demands that will be made of you will not really be fully understood by anyone who is not in the same field of work as you are….

So, putting it bluntly…’significant relationships’ can and do suffer …. meaning long term top salespeople are invariably those ….who are single.

Let’s summarize the personal demands expected of you.

There’s no doubt that those who are involved in Sales are an absolutely vital part of our economy and there are indeed great rewards available to those who participate.

Equally there’s no doubt that these rewards will be well and truly earned through long hours and often a solitary if not a lonely life.

Neither will you succeed in this Industry if you are not a ‘self-starter’, a natural optimist; someone who can face disappointments and setbacks faced on a regular basis and ‘bounce back’ against them again and again and again!!

You just have to be someone who is prepared to work very hard!

However, if you can bring these attributes to bear on your sales career you will be part of an elite section of society – a professional salesperson!

If you take heed to what has been said in this blog you may feel ready to join the ranks of professional sales..

But to ensure greater success there is yet more for you to learn… and some of it is in Part 3