"Sales Tips, Making the Numbers":

You will be paid for everything you do. You just don’t know when.


Some days it seems as if we couldn’t even close a door, let alone close a
sale. Fortunately, we know that our day will come if we just keep doing
the things that we know will produce results. Not getting results
instantly or on a regular or predictable schedule is what builds sales
character. We would just as soon have less character building and more
results, but that is not how our world turns. Our challenge is to keep our
performance level high when our returns are low. We live in a profession
characterized by highs and lows. When we hit one, we can see clearly why
we were able to write the business. When we miss one, there are too many
uncontrollable factors and unknown elements in the mix to make analysis
meaningful. Obvious errors are painful, but we are not perfect, and we can
only take the strengths and talents we have been given and take another
shot. Deferred income, long selling cycles, major account conversions,
capital equipment sales—all require hard work every working day. That’s
why we make more calls, follow up and follow through, and end each day
knowing that we did just about everything we could and, as always, we will
get fully compensated when the time is right. Few have the fortitude and
strength required in our line of work