Too Cool.

"Success isn't a result of spontaneous combustion. You must set yourself on fire". ~ Arnold Glasgow.

The young salesman was sitting down with his mentor at one of those gut level meetings that the old man liked to call one on ones. When in fact they were more like the Spanish inquisition. Yep it was just like being strung out on a rack. Every question was direct and brutal. Every answer given drove a follow up question and a next action. The young man hated it at the time, but years later he cherished the lessons.

"Why do most salespeople miss out on sales?" the old man asked.
He didn't wait for an answer ~ "Because they're too cool" he said.

They're too cool to ask the really tough questions. Too cool to ask about timelines, budgets, or the approval process and they're definitely too cool to make cold calls or to ask for the order.  So they wait. They figure if they just wait then they won't have to hear no. ~ Rejection isn't cool.

They figure it's better not to see, hear, or say the stuff they'd rather not. Better to just wait. The cool salesperson doesn't want to seem too eager or enthusiastic. Too energetic or too accessible. They figure that they've got a reputation, an appearance to uphold. But you know what?

If you don't get the sale what kind of reputation do you have? 

The old mentor looked the young man straight in the eye and said ~

Don't Ever Be Too Cool.