Zero Resistance Selling Is Not Just For Sales Professionals
Last week, I picked up and started reading Zero Resistance Selling by Maxwell Maltz. Interestingly, it was published posthumously and is not really his work directly, but, rather a compilation of his work from Psycho-Cybernetics along with input from 5 entrepreneur types who are experts in sales and business development.
Jen Blackert, Attraction Marketing Coach and author, suggested this book in one of her recent e-zines. Since I believe Jen knows what she’s talking about, I decided to check it out. Just like these things usually go, it happens that this treasure was already sitting, collecting dust, on my shelf! It’s said that when the student is ready, the teacher will appear. I think that it’s the same way with books. (I could also say the same of Jen, of course!)
So, I picked up Zero Resistance Selling and dug in. Good stuff! It’s not just about selling – it’s about Creative Visualization, Ego, Self-Image, Power of Thought… and Attitude. If you’ve read Rhonda Byrne’s The Secret or watched her film like just about everybody has, then you’ll be familiar with the message. Maltz isn’t saying anything new, really.* But, put into this context, it really becomes INSPIRING… and not just to the professional salesperson.
While I’m not a professional salesperson in the traditional sense – I don’t sell widgets for a living – selling is connected to my work in two ways. First, I “sell” to clients when I attract their business, and they “buy” into my willingness and ability to help them with their needs. That takes knowledge and expertise, but it also takes persuasive ability, even if applied unconsciously. Secondly, when I coach job seekers in the job search process, it all comes down to their ability to “sell” the hiring manager on the concept that they’re right for the job.
The stories and suggestions in Zero Resistance Selling are applicable to any circumstance when you’re persuading others to see the value of what you’re offering. Whether you are in a job search, pitching an idea to the boss, or trying to convince your spouse that it’s time to buy a new car, you need selling skills. Think about it. Imagine that you’re a scriptwriter or a producer. You’ve got to “sell” the idea of getting your movie made to a studio. Imagine being in charge of the IT department, and you’re about to go into the board meeting. Today is the day you get to “sell” your project idea to spend money to upgrade the computer system. Pretend you are a manager who wants to hire a certain person who’s been highly recommended to you. You need to figure out how to “sell” that person on working for you and your company. Okay, now imagine you’re on the other side of the equation. You are hunting for a job and have attracted a great interview opportunity. You are definitely walking into a sales process because you have to “sell” the potential employer on the idea of hiring you. The interview is your sales presentation. It certainly contains the following components of a sales call: The small talk to break the ice, the pitch (especially when they ask, “So, John, tell me about yourself”), the discussion of needs (all good salespeople probe for problems their product/service will fix), the discussion of qualifications to meet the needs, the possible objections, price (salary) negotiation and the closing of the deal.
Check out Maltz’ Zero Resistance Selling, and while you’re reading, use your imagination to make slight adjustments to the verbiage so it fits your situation. You’ll see immediate ways to be successful using Visualization, Power of Thought and Attitude, not just in selling but in life overall. I’ll close with parts of a passage from the book containing good common sense about our reactions to people who make objections to what we’re “selling”. As you’ll see, it’s not just about selling. It’s a really a solid mini-discourse on dealing with frustration and anger.
“Your first – and worst – option is to respond with anger, frustration and resentment. Or the second option is to respond…with stubborn, dumb persistence. Third, you could respond by being a victim and blame the [clients] or circumstances beyond your control. Or, finally fourth, my choice: you can be inspired and motivated to seek new opportunities, to correct your course, and to rise above frustration. You make this choice. No one makes it for you.
“If you respond with anger, frustration and resentment, you turn off your Success Mechanism and turn on your Failure Mechanism…
“But more immediately, anger clouds the mind, so that accurate, analytical thought is impossible. Imagine being put inside one of those giant mazes that are in some royal gardens in Europe. You must use your wits to find your way out. You must remain calm, try this path; if you meet a dead-end, you must reverse, correct, and move in another direction. It may take you hours of patient movement to find the exit. Or you may do it in minutes. But if you lose your temper and get angry at the maze, and give yourself up to anger, it can only take longer to escape. Time can only be lost to standing there in the maze screaming at it or ripping and flailing at its walls with your hands. It could care less. It will not budge. You can only escape by looking for the exit, not by being angry.”
*(Another truly inspiring book on sales success resulting from adjusting attitude and self-image, is Frank Bettger’s, How I Raised Myself from Failure to Success in Selling. First published in 1947, Bettger, a personal friend of Dale Carnegie, tells his story of turning from professional baseball player into successful salesman.)
