Without a Positive Attitude…Why Bother?
By Richard F. Libin, President, APB, rlibin@apb.cc, www.apb.cc
Have you ever worked with a colleague or been helped by a salesperson who didn't bring a positive attitude or put forth the effort and performance you expected? The approach salespeople take define who they are and impact their ability to deliver 100% more than any other factor in sales. While everyone has their own style, attitude is one facet of a salesperson’s approach that should be non-negotiable. The formula never changes:
100% Attitude + 100% Effort + 100% Performance = 100% Results.
Attitude
Every day salespeople make a decision on how they plan to approach their work, their customers, their colleagues and every other factor of their day. Either they wake up and start moaning about going to work and the awful day ahead, or they embrace the day positively and with enthusiasm.  The attitude they choose becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.  The first step in keeping buyers and converting them to customers and eventually to long-term clientele is maintaining a positive attitude.  When salespeople focus on the negative – lower sales, higher overhead, problems with the economy, or even a “bad morning,” their attitudes and negatively impact performance.   
Consequently, customers never have the opportunity to engage with salespeople, they don’t enjoy their experience and they become shoppers who buy elsewhere. Sales decline and managers start to question the quality and skills of their salespeople. Salespeople complain management is not attracting true buyers only lookers. The truth? It all started with a negative attitude by one or more salespeople.
Negative attitudes are apparent to customers in salespeople’s body language and words.  For example, salespeople may be so focused on the sale that they push closing the deal at the expense of finding the right product for each customer.  Words like “No, Don’t, Won’t, or Can’t,” which are by products of negative attitudes, slip into salespeople’s vocabulary and only push customers away.
Performance
First, set goals.  Know what the objective is and what has to be done every day to achieve it.  Is it calling three clients?  Setting two appointments?  Writing five thank you notes?  Attending a networking event?  What has to be accomplished consistently every day, 100% of the time?  Performance is defined by Webster’s as “the execution of an action.”  Once goals are set, it is the responsibility of each individual to perform them fully, 100%.  If you commit to making three calls, make them.  Period.  If you don’t you only hurt yourself, your performance and ultimately your attitude.
Effort
Webster’s defines effort as “a conscious exertion of power; hard work; a serious attempt.”  Once goals are set, every salesperson must give 100% effort toward achieving them.  Turn off Facebook or Twitter, skip the personal calls, and focus on achieving the goals.  With 100% effort, achieving 100% performance is simple.
Results
Everything salespeople do impact their results.  Bringing a 100% positive Attitude, adding 100% Performance and 100% Effort will bring 100% Results.  If you’re having a “bad” day, stop and honestly check these three factors – attitude, performance and effort.   Then, make adjustments and go after the results.
Richard F. Libin has written two acclaimed books that help people of all walks of life improve their sales skills, because as he says, “everyone is a selling something. His most recent book, “Who Knew?” (www.who-knew.com), was published in January 2017, and his first book, “Who Stopped the Sale?” (www.whostoppedthesale.com),  is now in its second edition. As president of APB-Automotive Profit Builders, Inc., a firm with more than 48 years experience working with both sales and service professionals, he helps his clientele, through personnel development and technology, to build customer satisfaction and maximize gross profits in their businesses. Mr. Libin can be reached at rlibin@apb.cc or 508-626-9200 or www.apb.cc.