Do Not Allow Fear Paralyze You

“The fear of failure is often worse than failure itself.” -- Shiv Khera

This is not an isolated case in history when fear has motivated people to perform great feats. There are several others. Take the case of the ancient Benin Empire. Although there are Benin folk-tales that give credit to the legendary giant “Aidenomon” as the man who single-handedly dug the Benin moat, logical reasoning discredits these tales. Till date, the tales are still being told to children as we were told when we too were little children. We learnt that this giant “was so big that no house was large enough to contain him” hence he lived in Oba market in today’s King’s Square, Benin City. We learnt that the giant “used one hand to uproot palm trees and used whole palm trees as brooms and chewing sticks.” The folktales said, that when he slept, “the breath from his nostrils was so powerful that it uprooted trees in its wake.” And that “he used one hoe held in one hand, standing on one spot and with one stroke, dug the entire moat.” As we grew older, it started dawning on us that these tales were exactly what they were folk tales. They could not possibly have presented the whole truth if you take into account the size and enormity of the Benin moat.

However, a close study of Benin history will reveal to you that the moat was dug through massive communal effort. The moat is simply a marvel if you take into account that it was dug manually without the benefit of giant earth-moving equipment as you find these days. The moat provided complete security for the ancient Binis. It shielded them from attacks by slave-raiders and other warriors. The Benin moat is another clear evidence of the near super-human effort that fear can motivate people to put up when they choose to. The Great Wall of China is also another typical example of how far people can go to insure themselves from fear. Tourists marvel today while on this wall how the ancient Chinese managed to build it through direct application of human labor and efforts. The ancient Chinese simply allowed the fear of conquest and domination to motivate them to achieve the great feat. The wall provided them security and freedom from conquest. They therefore spared no efforts at building it. Human achievement has no limits when it comes to survival because “self-preservation is a cardinal rule of nature.”

You Need Good Communication Skills to Sell

“Everybody lives by selling something.” --- Robert Louis Stevenson

Anyone who can’t express themselves can not by any stretch of imagination be good Salespersons. Salespersons are generally good talkers. I recently read an advert where the advertiser, was looking for someone “who can sell refrigerators to Eskimos.” This advertiser was obviously looking for good persuaders as Salespersons. You must be a good and effective communicator before you can succeed in persuading anyone. Both written and verbal communication is very important. I have heard it said that “it is not what you say that matters but what they hear.” Communication is not about talking to yourself but talking to someone else. You must be able to size-up your customer accurately to know how you can deliver your message. If you go around speaking “Queen’s English” to someone who has never been to school, you will sooner than later find out that you are wasting your time and the person’s time, particularly the person’s time. If you can’t get the message across effectively, you are not communicating. I once had a hobby that kept me amused no end. I used to collect pieces of communications I came across that appeared to convey meanings different from what the communicators meant. I will share just a few of them here with you.

“Don’t let overwork kill your wife. Let electricity do it.”___ Advert for a new electrical gadget.

“All flights have been cancelled for managerial reasons.”___ Sign at airline booking desk.

“The Doctor arrived too late to save my husband. He recovered by himself.”__Elated house-wife to a neighbor.

 “Pregnant women are allowed here without their babies.”___ Sign at the door of an Irish pub.

“We are the ones who dig the shit. They just sit there and eat it.”___ Complain from a frustrated laborer.

“Women are not allowed to entertain men in the rooms. They can do it in the restaurant.”___ Sign in a hotel lobby.

The person whose message conveys what he or she intends to say is the person who is communicating. These messages do not meet this test. It is your duty to learn and use effective communication if you want to be a good Salesperson.