On selling

Selling isn’t prestigious. Other professions get more respect. Doctors, lawyers, accountants, teachers.

Imagine a stereotypical salesperson.

See?

But selling isn’t about convincing someone to buy something they don’t want or need. Or it shouldn’t be.

Selling is solving problems. It’s influencing. Selling is making a case your idea, product, or service will advance the goals and priorities of whoever is sitting across the table. And it’s not just about customers. We sell ideas every day to our colleagues, our families, and our neighbors.

If we have a winning idea, something that will improve lives, we’re doing the world a disservice by not selling it.

The most technically expert doctors, lawyers, accountants, and teachers can make a broader impact if they know how to sell. In many cases, it’s the only way to get a good idea, service, or product out into a world that will be better for it.