How do you define the word “reflection"?
At the moment, I'm sitting outside on a sunny day overlooking the Pacific Ocean on the Oregon coast. The venue is called Lighthouse Beach because the Cape Arago Lighthouse is the prime visual attraction. Or is it?
Actually, the ocean waves are pounding against the beach and the rocks are creating majestic waterspray vistas. You gotta be here. You gotta see it.
I spent my first 10 minutes in awe of the sight.
After that, I began to gather thoughts. Thoughts of other beautiful places I've been. Thoughts of undone things I gotta do. Goals and dreams. And, of course, just reveling in the moment.
As a writer, this place would be a fantasy venue. As a thinker, there could be no better place to conjure up all sorts of new thoughts.
In the big picture of things, I am one grain of sand on the beach of life. Yet I'm here today basking in its glory. I’m grateful.
The ocean's relentless waves roll in whether I am here are not. Today is a rather calm day, but I've seen a violent ocean here with wind, rain, waves crashing against rocks – almost like the ocean is a cauldron with a million-degree fire.
“So what?” you're probably saying. “You're on the beach watching the waves and I'm here in my office working my ass off or making cold calls or sweating on a sales appointment or following up with some guy who won't return my call or, worse, being beaten by price.”
Those are your issues, but in the heat of your mess, we have something in common. It's time for reflection. Not the one you see in the mirror in the morning. I'm talking about a way bigger reflection about time, accomplishment, achievement and fulfillment. Life reflection.
When I was cold-calling in New York City, often making sales, but more often getting my head handed to me, waves crashing on the beach never entered my mind. I was caught in the spiral of the process, failing to reflect on it and see what else could have been done or how much smarter I could have been. How many more chances should I have taken?
What do you reflect on right now? How are those reflections affecting your actions? Your achievements? Your success? Reflections are not just about sales; they're an important part of life. Your life.
Beyond sales, reflections are about people and moments and books that have affected you. The lessons you have learned along the way. Things completed and things left undone. Your bucket list and the next thing to cross off. And, of course, your present situation and how you got there.
While it's a little easier for me to reflect right now, at some point your life reflection will begin as well. I don't know the day, but I promise you it will happen. And when it does, it will mark a new era. A big-picture era that no longer focuses on quota. It will allow you to take a hard look at life. When that transition begins, your sales will double.
You'll no longer fret about the subject line in an email. Instead, you’ll be taking actions to build your personal reputation, your personal brand and your stature in your marketplace.
The transition will help you evolve from salesperson to sales leader. Not manager, leader. You'll lead your own charge, your own way, your own plan to build your reputation through the leadership you create with customers.
The way people speak about you.
The way they refer to you.
The way they refer other people to you.
The way that they reward you, not just with sales, but with referrals and accolades.
And hopefully those accolades will show up in your social media profiles or on their blog or their website, and most certainly on Google.
For some of you right now, this makes no sense. Why? Simple. You haven't begun the reflection process. Save this piece. Your day will come. And when you get what you want, you'd better be ready.
During this coastal visit, I'm writing about the Unbreakable Law of Selling, a forthcoming book that will help hundreds of thousands of people understand sales better, execute their sales better and make more sales to more people. The inspiration I feel right now will directly impact those words.
Today I have clarity – ultimate clarity and understanding of what it took to make my sales (the reflection), and what it will take for you to increase your sales to a point where you can begin to reflect and bask in your own sunlight, on your own beach, with your own waves pounding against the shore.
Pick a time, pick a place and go.
Gitomer is the author of "The Sales Bible" and "The Little Red Book of Selling." President of Charlotte-based Buy Gitomer, he gives seminars, runs annual sales meetings, and conducts Internet training programs on selling and customer service at trainone.com. He can be reached at salesman@gitomer.com
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