Being Yourself: Q&A for Salespeople

by Dave Kahle

Q. Is “being yourself” a sales strategy?

A. If you are naturally an attractive, sensitive, empathetic human being who everyone loves to be with, if you have a great measure of sensitivity and perceptiveness coupled with outstanding intelligence and unshakable integrity, then the answer is “Yes, of course, be yourself.”  If you are anything less than perfect, though, maybe you ought to carefully consider it.

         Let’s unpack this seemingly simple little question.

First, what does “being yourself” mean?  Does it mean to accept your current level of sales skills, no matter how finely or poorly developed?

     If you have a negative attitude, does it mean that you let that attitude affect all of your actions, regardless of the consequences?

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     If you have personality traits that are detrimental to your success as a salesperson, say you are naturally timid, for example, do you do nothing about it?  Attempting to buff off some of the sharp points of your personality would mean that you couldn’t just “be yourself,” because “yourself” in its current state isn’t good enough.

     Finally, does it mean to never question the mindsets, paradigms, and core beliefs that form the cornerstone of your character?

People are complex, with layers to their personalities.  I have often used the diagram below to illustrate it.

     When it comes to what it means to “be yourself,” I can make a good case that it means your values, beliefs, and ... CLICK HERE TO READ FULL ARTICLE.