Sales Training: A Sales Champion Harnesses the Power of Questions

I read a fascinating story about a little girl named Markita Andrews. When Markita was eight years old, her father abandoned her and her mother. Markita's mother worked as a waitress to support them. One day, she said to Markita, "I'll work hard to make enough money to send you to college. You'll go to college and when you graduate, you'll make enough money to take you and me around the world. Okay?" That thought ran around Markita's mind. How would she ever be able to afford a trip like that?

When Markita was 13 years old, she read in a Girl Scout magazine that the one who sold the most cookies would win a trip for two around the world. Here was her answer. She had to go for it. She could smell that trip like you can smell those good cookies. Markita's aunt gave her some invaluable advice, which included asking people to invest in her cookies not just to buy cookies. Markita started telling people her dream of earning a trip around the world for herself and her mother. She then would close with, "Would you like to invest in one dozen or two dozen boxes of cookies?"

Markita sold 3,526 boxes of cookies that year and you know what? She and her mother went on a trip around the world. What was it that has taken Markita to the top? How was she able to sell so many cookies? Well, there are many factors to her success but I believe one of the key ingredients was the questions she asked her self. I imagine she asked herself good questions like, "How can I win that trip? How can I succeed? What is going to go great today?"

You see, God created the greatest computer right between your ears. If you ask your brain a question, it will search and search and search until it finds an answer. The problem is that many people ask themselves lousy questions. They get up in the morning and the first thing they ask is, "I wonder what is going to go wrong today?" And before they know it, their brains give them a whole list of things that could go wrong today.

We don't want to be like that. We need to use to the best of our abilities the computer in our heads. We need to ask ourselves good questions. Get up in the morning and ask yourself, "What is going to go great today?" or "What will I enjoy today?" When you ask those questions, your brain finds answers to them as well, which will motivate you in the direction of success. How we feel and where we are headed in life is in direct relationship with the consistent questions we ask ourselves.

The next time you are in a bad mood try to stop and catch yourself. What kind of questions have you been asking yourself? I can almost guarantee that you have been asking yourself some pretty lousy questions. Let's change that pattern right now. I encourage you to take some time and really answer the following questions. Roll them around in your head. Spend some time with them and then write down your answers. When we change our questions, then we change our answers, that in turn changes our focus, which then leads to our success.

1. What are you excited about today in your sales career?

2. What can you learn today?

3. Think of a challenge you are having right now in your sales career. How can you make it better or even solve it?

4. How can you serve your prospects and clients today?

5. How can you make a difference?

I would now like to invite you to browse our great audio and DVD programs featuring Success experts such as Zig Ziglar, Brian Tracy, Denis Waitley, Jim Rohn, and myself Mark Bowser. You can get them at my website Sales Training Success. From Mark Bowser of Corporate Training Success. Thanks for reading today.