How Do You Learn
Your success is shaped by the way you think

Think back to when you were in school. I’m sure you can picture the teacher standing in front of the class with a lesson plan, talking for a while, and writing some stuff on a board. You may have done some exercises, then she assigned homework, which you did or didn’t do, and then after a few more lessons, you took a test. That grade determined how much you learned.

Or did it? If you got a 60, you didn’t learn squat. Whose fault was that? The teacher’s or the student’s? Answer: both. The teacher was boring and you failed to realize that you only had one shot at learning that particular bit of information. Besides, you really didn’t think that algebra or modern European history or grammar would take you to the promised land.

If you’re really interested in becoming great at sales, you have to learn it and study it, in spite of who is teaching it. And you have to learn it in a way that you feel comfortable with, so you can apply what you learn in the real world. It has to be relevant to you, not just the instructor. In fact, most sales skills are learned without an instructor.

If I ask you, “Where did you learn most of your selling skills?” most of you would reply, “While I was making sales.” Well, you’re partially correct. While you were making sales, you were implementing and modifying what you had already learned. You were applying your knowledge and adapting it to that situation or circumstance.

Let me give you a more in-depth run down of the best ways to learn:

Reading. You can learn the most from reading, and yet it seems to be the medium that people use the least. All the information you need to succeed beyond your wildest dreams is in a book. You just haven’t read the book – yet.

Studying. Reading things once will help you come to an understanding. Studying will help you master them, and in sales, mastery is the difference between winning and losing. You either win the sale or you lose the sale.

Writing. I’ve found writing to be the best way to understand new information as I seek to master this craft. I’ve been doing this for more than 12 years, every day. I’m good at it now, but not as good as I plan to get.

Writing helps clarify things and writing, in and of itself, generates new thoughts and ideas when you think none exist. Writing is a discipline. It is, in fact, the single element of my learning that has taken me to a higher level. And every time I write, I learn. I teach myself something. Every time.

Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible, and Customer Satisfaction is Worthless, Customer Loyalty is Priceless. He can be reached at 704/333-1112 or e-mail to salesman@gitomer.com.

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