I was recently reading an article in Success Magazine by best selling author Robert Stuberg, where he defines the 12 personality characteristics that define successful salespeople.  After reading it I am compelled to add it to my blog as a blueprint to follow in my journey as an entrepreneur and salesman. And I hope you find value in it too.

#1 Establish a high level of self-confidence and self-esteem.

Your self-confidence depends on your self-esteem.  And there’s a direct positive correlation between how much you like yourself and how well you do everything else.  The higher your self-esteem, the lower your fear of rejection will be.  The more you like yourself, the more effective you are in getting along with others.  And people have more confidence in you when they feel you like are care about them.

#2 Develop your power of commitment and perseverance.

One of the best ways of building self-esteem is backing your sales effort wit the willpower of commitment and perseverance.  The primary reason for sales failure is not sticking with it long enough and hard enough to get the winning experience to maintain self-esteem.  They’re willing to take no for an answer.

Selling is a business of percentages.  Successful salespeople know success is directly related to the number of calls they make, and that 80% of sales are made after the fifth visit to a prospect.  It’s terribly important to make and absolute commitment to succeed in your sales career.  This is a 100%, no-compromises, take no-prisoners dedication to become the best in your field.  You’ve made an ironclad contract with yourself.  And once you’ve done that, failure is not an option.

#3 Have a positive self-concept.

Customers will accept your image of yourself, so act in every way like a top sales professional.  When successful salespeople see themselves in a role that’s helpful to customers, it’s what the customer also sees.  Position yourself mentally as a successful consultant to your customers, someone who is on call as a problem solver and adviser.

#4 Refine your ability to set goals and pursue them.

Every successful salesperson is goal-oriented.  Goals must be concrete and achievable, even if at first they seem a bit beyond your reach.  Set your goals in the way suggested by the French philosopher Teilhard de Chardin: “Our duty as men (and women) is to proceed as if limits to our ability do not exist.  We are collaborators in creation.”

The key to effective goal-setting, of course, is writing goals down and reviewing them frequently.  Go over then every day, if needed, to keep you on course and on your timetable.  Be ready to make adjustments as necessary.  Goals are also a marvelous tool for organizing your time effectively.  Develop the nightly practice of setting goals for what you plan to accomplish the next day.

#5 Be courageous.

Probably the greatest single deterrent people experience in achieving success in sales is fear.  Primarily it is fear of the consequences of acting.  It is fear of failure.

While the fears we encounter in our careers seldom concern physical safety, the consequences can be almost as debilitating if such fears aren’t faced squarely, challenged and managed.  In the simplest sense courage is managing your fears and taking action to overcome them.

#6 Operate with personal integrity.

I consider personal integrity the magnetic north on our moral compass.  It’s a constant reference point that assures a true course in life.  No appraisal of your business conduct will hold you in higher regard than being considered a person of integrity by your customers and colleagues.

I will be adding the final 6 personality characteristics that define successful salespeople.  Selling, after all, is a people business.