Being a Salesperson Is like Playing Baseball

I am sure you have heard the slogan “baseball is life.” Avid fans such as myself, fully understand and appreciate its meaning: Baseball is life.

One does not develop into a professional baseball player overnight. Becoming a baseball pro requires the development of more skill, instinct, and knowledge than any other sport. A successful salesperson needs these same tools.

Being a successful salesperson first requires a long-term commitment to the profession. A baseball player who shows streaks of greatness on a few plays in little league is not guaranteed to become the American League MVP. Even if a salesperson has the raw skills to open doors to a possible sale or knows how to persuade people to buy a product, he or she may not be ready for the “big leagues” of sales.

Being successful in sales requires believing in oneself. You must believe that you can compete and win business, just like a ballplayer must believe that he will hit the ball when he comes up to bat. You must develop skills; this includes reading about other successful salespeople, taking sales courses, and studying and interning with successfully salespeople. You must develop knowledge, including knowledge of who the client is and how best to serve that client. Learning about a potential client ahead of time and preparing for the “game” will lead to better results.

The final key ingredient to a successful salesperson is instinct. This is what separates the experienced salesperson from the rookie. Barry Bonds is still playing at the top of his game. He is not as fast as he used to be, but his instinct about where the ball will go when it leaves his opponent’s bat is his strongest advantage. Instinct is honed after years of doing something. It comes from “being around a while.”

At 48 years of age, 20 of them spent in real estate, I don’t see as well as I used to and I may not be has hungry as I used be, but my skill, knowledge, and instinct have kept me at the top of my game for years. I am just hoping that with the San Francisco Giants’ playing its oldest outfield ever, these same attributes will bring the Giants to a 2005 World Series win.