Since 2013, I have been investing and participating in many training programs to develop my selling skills as I found my passion in that field. But, aside from learning valuable knowledge and skills about the subject, I also learned a lot more about life in general.
Here are five of my most valued lessons from all those training programs.
- Life is what you make it. From all the trainers and mentors I have had the opportunity to learn from, I have extracted a similar lesson. Human beings can change their circumstances as long as they know to rid themselves of their victim mentality. If we allow hindering factors to stop us from taking a step towards the direction we wish to follow and use those obstacles as excuses to fail and never try again, we allow ourselves to go with the flow. But, we do have a choice not to resort to that because, given our innate ability to think and make decisions, we can make our situations better and on the path towards our purpose.
- The best business is born from passion. When I was still not exposed to those training programs, I often wondered why businesses thrive while others sink to the bottom. I wondered what factors affect them. I learned afterward that one of the most significant factors is passion. A great business is established to offer a product or service that results from passion. When someone opens a restaurant but is not interested in food or food service, it is without a doubt that the business would not go well.
- Selling is about believing in what you sell. This lesson had been a revelation to my young and naive self in a salesman role. I thought that being able to enumerate the benefits of the product or service I sell to the people I serve is enough for them to buy. I used to wonder why I failed to close deals even after rambling all the information to them. Fortunately, I learned from my experienced mentors that believing in your product or service is the most important key to selling. If you, as the salesperson, do not believe the value of what you offer, how do you expect them to believe it is the best for them?
- Personal development is the main ingredient of success. Regardless of the subject matter, all the programs I completed include topics about personal development. Whatever career a person wants to pursue or whatever venture they wish to engage in, success and fulfillment in such endeavor can only be achieved when they develop themselves from the inside out.
- Relationships only grow when you nurture them. When I was younger, I thought that relationships should be the least of my concerns and that people who are meant to be in my life would always be there, which was why I did not mind the falling out I had with many people. I learned then that relationships result from our decisions – decisions to keep and nurture it or let it go by doing nothing to keep it.
These lessons summarize the many various life lessons I have learned from many different trainers and mentors worldwide. I came to realize that all aspects of life – professional and personal – are interrelated. Your beliefs and practices in one part may as well affect the other aspects of your life.
Do you find these lessons meaningful?