questioning your way to sales success

There are two basic sets of questions with which a dedicated sales person should gain competence: questions to ask prospects and customers; and questions to ask yourself.The questions we ask ourselves are just as important as those we ask our prospects and customers. The reason goes back to the ultimate power of a question - it directs our thinking. Just as a good question directs the customer's thinking, so, too, does a good question direct our own thinking. And sound thinking is the ultimate success skill for a professional sales person.An effective way to bring better results into your organization, make an impressive career for yourself, and provide for your family is by out thinkingour peers and competitors. Thinking - good thinking done with discipline and methodology - is the ultimate competitive skill.Few sales people, and few people in general, regularly engage in good thinking. Bertrand Russell said, "Most people would rather die than think. In fact, they do."Start with a simple definition of good thinking for a sales person, which is asking yourself the right questions, at the right times, and writing down the answers.Sounds simple, and it is. The power is in the excellent and disciplined execution. Later we will discuss what it means to "ask yourself the right questions, at the right times" but at this point I want to make the case for "writing down the answers."Making a note, either on a computer or by pen and paper, is one of the disciplines of efficient thinking. The process of writing causes you to focus on the exact words which formulate your ideas. You can be vague and indistinct as long as the answer is just something you maintain in your mind, when you force yourself to write down the answers you must select the specific words to put on paper. Writing is a discipline that forces you to think accurately - one of the tenets of good thinking.Putting things in print is an act of commitment. Once it's written down, it is there for you to review forever. Not only does it serve as a commitment, but also as a reminder that you have already gone down this path before and come up with an answer. When you confront the question that prompted that answer again, you'll save time by referring to your annotations.

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