I knew the movie trailer would freak my son out. Piranha 3D! Blood thirsty fish attack hotties just trying to have a little fun.
He's 8, so that 30 second spot was all it took to make him believe killer fish were in every body of water. "They're only in the Amazon you dork," his older sister said, but the boy couldn't be swayed. Piranha were lurking everywhere. "Piranha" are lurking in your sales waters, too.
What could be your sales piranha? I don't know, you tell me. What do you believe so strongly that you make it true? It could be that your territory sucks, or that sales always take a long time, or that you just can't break into a certain company. The worst thing about sales piranhas is that they tend to multiply with age.
Yep, the old war horses create lots of piranhas. I once heard a grizzled salesman tell a new kid that Florida was "tapped out." What did the new sales kid do? Sell the shit out of Florida. Others have said at certain verticals were dead, and a new kid came in and kicked ass.
What's different about the new kids? Ignorance. Ignorance, to the fake piranhas that others have made real in their minds. Before my son saw that stupid commercial he would jump in a lake or river and go nuts. Now, he always asks if there are killer fish within, and I have to assure him it's all pretend. Still, he doesn't believe me until he puts on a mask and checks for himself.
To make make more sales, you need to put on a mask and check under the water. You do that by actively attacking your piranhas. Think Florida is "tapped out?" Go after it. Think a vertical is dead? Prove yourself wrong. Otherwise a new kid is going to show up and really eat you alive. Besides, you dork, piranhas are only in the Amazon.
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