It’s challenging. It’s rewarding. It’s the most thrilling career on the planet.
B2B sales is like no other field — and it’s certainly not for the faint of heart.
One day you land a big whale account, and the next day you can’t seem to get past the gatekeeper.
You eat your kill. And if you don’t kill, you don’t eat.
Nobody forces you to perform. It’s either in your DNA to wake up and WIN, or you end up crawling back to that boring customer service job you once loathed.
Then there’s the shifting sands of the market. New technologies. New trends. New methods that keep you on your toes, requiring you to learn, adapt, evolve.
In sales, the only constant is change. In this way, sales is the perfect metaphor for life. It’s exactly what you make of it. No more and no less.
Want to have a stellar career and leave a lasting legacy? Then give it your all. But if you want to barely get by and never fulfill your potential, then feel free to coast. Nobody will stop you. After all, nobody feels threatened by an underperformer.
So depending on the type of person you are — or are willing to become — sales is one of the best things OR one of the worst things that will ever happen to you. If you’re reading this article, I’ll go out on a limb and say it’s one of the BEST things to ever happen to you.
Today I’m going to share 5 harsh truths about sales that everyone must consider before taking the leap into a B2B sales career. If you’re already a seasoned sales pro, then be sure to keep watch that none of these destroy your motivation and drive.
Thankfully, each of these hard truths has its parallel positives. I’m going to show you how to “flip the script” and turn each of these drawbacks into an advantage so that you can get motivated, stay motivated, and crush your sales goals moving into 2024 and beyond.
So let’s get to it.
1. Sales is Lonely
Sales just so happens to suit the lone wolf well. Actually, this is by design. Think about it: sales is the backbone of capitalism, and capitalism encourages competition. Where there’s fierce competition, there’s a winner and a loser. If you’re winning at sales, people are jealous of your success and will talk and scheme behind your back. If you’re losing at sales, you are the outcast. People want nothing to do with you. So if you’re in this field for friends, I suggest crawling back to that customer service job where the stakes are low and you can fill your day with meaningless chit-chat and gossip. (I know that’s not you.)
Flip the Script: Win at all costs and emerge as a leader on your sales team (whether officially or unofficially). Leaders galvanize and inspire people. They attract others to themselves, which is the perfect antidote to loneliness. Learn leadership skills and you’ll never be lonely in sales.
2. Sales is Filled With Rejection
You’ll experience rejection every single day in sales… that is, if you’re doing it right. Sales is all about putting yourself out there, cold calling perfect strangers, asking a big ask (time is money!), and hoping they say yes. Most often they say no. So in sales, you have to have thick skin. Again I’ll say that sales is not for the faint of heart. No snowflakes allowed.
Flip the Script: Reframe rejection in your mind. Instead of seeing it as undesirable, learn to love it. Like really love it. Learn to see every “No” as a necessary waypoint on the journey to “YES.” Think of it like this: If you want to drive to your mother’s house for Christmas, you can’t get there unless you pass every mile marker on the highway.
3. Sales Requires You to Constantly Evolve
I see this all the time in sales — people cling to their comfort zone. They don’t want to learn new things or stretch themselves. But the truth is, the fast-paced field of sales is constantly changing. And if you want to thrive in sales, you have to leave the safe harbor and brave the open seas, as it were. But this is the hardest thing for 99% of the population (it’s no coincidence that there’s a 1%!). They get stuck in their ways, and they take the path of least resistance. I’m talking about doom-scrolling throughout the day, doing “busy work” instead of generating pipeline with sales activities, going home and watching Netflix instead of reading and learning, eating unhealthy, getting poor sleep… and I could go on and on. Instead of evolving, people are devolving! Don’t let this be your story.
Flip the Script: Start small. Choose one small thing to learn today. Then do it again tomorrow. And slowly grow this over time. Growing and evolving is a muscle that you must strengthen, so consistency is key. I also recommend reading books on sales and taking sales courses to sharpen your skills and learn new skills. Finally, a healthy reframing is in order here, too. You might see the need to always evolve as overwhelming. You need to reframe it in your mind as an honor and a privilege. You most likely live in America, the greatest country in the world, and have a good-paying career and unlimited potential for upward mobility. What an honor. What a privilege. 75% of the global population would kill for the opportunity to evolve and experience upward mobility.
4. Sales is a Marathon
Lace up your running shoes. If you want to win at sales, you have to be in it for the long haul. It takes patience and persistence to fill your pipeline and keep it filled. So if you’re looking to make a quick buck, sales isn’t for you. The sales cycle is only getting longer — and clocking in around 2-3 months on average these days. That means it takes an average of 2-3 months for a prospect to move from first cold call, down the sales funnel to closed-won. And oftentimes this takes 5-6 months or even longer. Sales is not a sprint, it’s a full-on endurance race.
Flip the Script: Start to focus on sales activities (output) instead of closed deals (outcome). You aren’t in control of deals closed. But you are in control of how many cold calls you make today, and tomorrow, and the next day, etc. While it’s good to aim for a goal, don’t fix your eyes on that goal. I know, it’s counterintuitive. You must fix your eyes on the activities that you can control and that will ultimately lead you to achieving your goal. Put in the work and the sales will follow.
5. You Are Your Only Advocate
You have to drive your own career. Nobody else is going to do this for you. Even if you have the best sales manager in the world, it’s up to YOU to advocate for yourself. I’m talking about everything from negotiating comp plans and setting yourself up for promotions, to making sure you’re being treated right on a day-to-day basis. If you’re putting in work, you should expect to work under favorable policies and fair treatment. And if you’re working under a dictator of a manager, you have to get out. Remember, you’re the captain of your own career. Don’t put your ship in someone else’s hands. If you do, you’ll end up dashed upon the jagged rocks.
Flip the Script: Become your own ideal leader. This might sound strange, but it works. Give yourself an alter-ego who has your best interest in mind (personally and professionally). Now check in with this leader every week. Soberly ask him or her questions like “Where am I at?” “Where am I going?” “Am I making progress toward my goals?” “Where do I need to pivot?” “What new skills am I gaining?” “How can I optimize my environment,” etc. Answer these as honestly as possible, and most importantly, ensure you’re getting what you need and moving in the direction of your dreams.
Final Words
Some will say “sales is not for everyone.” I disagree. I think that everyone can learn to be great at sales. Sales is all about mindset and pushing through adversity and resistance. Yes, there are some hard truths to consider. But thankfully we can always flip the script and turn them into competitive advantages.
Is it easy work? Not always. But nothing worth doing ever comes easy. So even though sales is lonely, filled with rejection, and requires you to constantly grow and evolve, isn’t that what you want in life? After all, the hero’s journey is always fraught with challenges and obstacles they must overcome to win the ultimate prize. It’s what makes life worth living!
And I’ll leave you with that. Your time has come to transform into the best salesperson and human you can be. It’s time you fulfill your potential in business and in life. You’ve got this.
Until next time…
Johnny-Lee Reinoso