Rajan came to take classes after a long time – after about two months. There is a depth in him which I like. And, he comes up with very appropriate examples to drive home points. Yesterday marked the half-way mark of the Training Programme. There are just two and a half months more left.
Rajan first asked the participants to share about their learning during the last two months and a half. Everyone spoke, but hardly anyone said anything earth shattering.
I got a jolt when Rajan asked about the learning and take-aways. It brought to my awareness that I have not really read up much or watched the videos to assimilate the learning. And frankly, I have not thought very seriously about training as a profession. Um…. I thought about it, but I was not feeling very confident.
The shock when Rajan asked everyone about their actual plans about taking up a career in Training was palpable. He asked us whether we had thought about the name of the company, the logo the works….. He said that just about 20% participants of every batch succeed and shine in their career in selling.
Wow, I thought the training was getting real. So much of money and time has been spent and it felt very bad inside that I have not done much about using the lessons in furthering my life agenda.
During this week, I have to think about:
Whether I am going to start a training company on my own
What is going to be its name.
What is going to be its logo.
Then he said that it is important for everyone to choose a niche on which they will specialize in. It makes sense, especially at the beginning not to put my hands into too many things. Clarity of focus is very essential.
Then Rajan spoke about Sale (not marketing) which is the most essential part of making a business out of Training. By not talking about marketing, Rajan was conveying to everyone that they should be ready to get their hands dirty.
He spoke about some creative ways of selling. Like a few sales people who managed to sell combs to Buddhist monks. Or about Rajan’s own experience of breaking into college campuses in Coimbatore. He convinced a famous jewelry chain to invest a small portion of their advertisement expenses on training young college students. Rajan got fat fees for the training, the company got wide publicity apart from unexpected footfalls to their shops.
There was a group discussion about the qualities necessary in a Salesman. Following this, Rajan discussed the 5 major attributes a sales man should possess in order to shine in his career. They are:
- Positive Attitude
- Likable
- Excellent communication
- Genuineness
- Achiever