Everyone sells in an Organization

Did you know? Selling is the second oldest form of profession. The oldest is farming, but without the ability to sell farmers commerce cannot exist. A lot of people mistake selling with sales but that is not the case. The actual meaning of selling is about being persuasive with your communication skills.

The best definition I ever heard and it comes from a very renowned mentor, Tom Stoyan. Known as Canada’s Sales Coach, Tom says, “Selling is influencing the thinking of others.” He uses only seven words to express ages of thinking, and it doesn’t get any better or easier to understand than that.

In an organization at any given point in anyone’s career path, the skill of selling yourself is vital. Helping others to see the best qualities in yourself as you see them and communicating your ideas or goals so that you’re able to convince others that it is something worth investing into can be difficult but not impossible. You have to find a delicate balance between confidence in your ability to handle a particular situation and the humility to show others that you need their help in order for your goal to reach its true potential.

Now let me give you the example of Adolf Hitler. He began to unleash his propaganda upon all of Germany. He had previously used his persuasiveness to further himself in the Nazi Party and to gain supporters, but it was not until he was dictator that that his persuasive style was fully manifested. Adolf Hitler’s persuasive method was built upon the foundation of treating the German people as a group, rather than as individuals.

Similarly, in an organization everyone sells whether it’s the product or an idea. Another example, my boss in Tata motors at the time of internship wanted me to meet 200 truck drivers from the Small Commercial Vehicle section and get them to fill a 30-page survey. He could’ve simply asked me and I would’ve followed his instructions as I needed the internship certificate at that point of time to glorify my CV. He did make me do it but not by just assigning me the task. He did it by telling me how passionate he still is about meeting his customers, how customer feedback helped him grow in his life and career, talked about how his perception changed making him a better person by being humble and polite to the customer who come from a financially low background and how it helped him land this job. I totally agree with him today when I write this blog as it does help in meeting your customer face to face. Even when you grow in your career and become a CEO, CTO etc it will always be about selling since it involves the element of persuasion and convincing people to be on your side.

Unless you’re in business for yourself or looking for a job, the idea of marketing yourself may not sound like anything that concerns you. But it’s a skill everyone should master. Now, let me tell you some of the ways to sell yourself in the organization:

1) Be humble:

By being humble, you would come across as an employee who places less importance on himself and exhibits higher self-control in many situations as you would always know your limits.

2) Seek recognition:

By being a master of one trade, you will grow your reputation and have a good chance at promoting your informed opinions

3) Help others

Be a trusted advisor and help as many people as you can in the organization.

4) Social media sharing:

Spend some time on social media and share your expertise for free to build your followership.

5) Be yourself

This is the most important point of all. The person who knows how to best market yourself is you. Start now by setting yourself apart as a leader.

Ultimately, we all should share knowledge, motivate each other, share ideas and inspire one another from self-experience.

In the end we are here to learn from people we work and talk to.

Keep Inspiring!