| Almost every successful sales person I know can | | | | stage where they can be easily crushed with too |
| point to one or a few people who were | | | | much criticism. Look out for areas of specific |
| instrumental to their success. They can name the | | | | improvement and praise them. Find the right |
| mentors who encouraged them, showed them | | | | opportunities to tell them you see greatness in |
| the error of their ways and helped them over the | | | | them. Instead of always telling them what they |
| humps. I began my sales career with Jantzen | | | | should do differently, ask them how they could |
| Sportswear. I had an apprenticeship with one of | | | | have improved in a given situation. |
| their top reps, Kent McCreight in Minneapolis for | | | | 2. Keep them focused with a specific plan off |
| ten months before taking over my first sales | | | | attack. Explain the three to five key daily activities |
| territory. That experience with Kent was | | | | that will drive their performance and create a |
| invaluable. He was a seasoned pro who took the | | | | scorecard for a goal to attain and their actual |
| time with me a served as an excellent role model. | | | | results. You can track their progress daily or |
| My next mentor Tom Hopkins, was a virtual | | | | weekly, but stay in touch. As a mentor, you can |
| mentor. I purchased two of his tape series on | | | | not coach them on what you can not measure. |
| sales and success and listened over and over | | | | 3. Get them a Journal as a gift. Encourage them |
| while driving thousands of miles in my territory. | | | | to not trust their memory and to write down |
| I began working for Tony Robbins in September | | | | what they are learning and enjoying. Tony gave |
| of 1988. The manager of the sales team was | | | | me my first Journal and I now have 18 valuable |
| Michael "Hutch" Hutchison. Almost twenty years | | | | editions. It is a great way to capture moments |
| later, he is still a mentor and one of my closest | | | | that you would normally forget. You can use it as |
| friends. Here are a few ideas to make a | | | | a scrapbook of accomplishments and lessons. |
| difference in your role as a mentor. If you choose | | | | 4. How they "tell the story" of what you and |
| to become a one, the first question you will ask | | | | your firm does for clients is critical. For a mentor |
| yourself is why? | | | | to conduct role modeling on a sales call, the |
| Usually a mentor has achieved great success and | | | | protege must be invited to watch as often as |
| is a role model other look up to. Sometimes the | | | | possible. Get permission to record the sales call |
| mentor is in later career stages and can | | | | from the client or prospect and tell them you |
| sometimes become disengaged and switched off. | | | | would like to use it for training purposes for your |
| Mentoring provides a way to reengage the | | | | protege. Repeatedly listening to you and others at |
| mentor and get them switched back on. For | | | | their best will cut the learning curve dramatically. |
| example, in the act of teaching someone else, the | | | | 5. It is tempting to solve their problems. This is |
| mentor may begin to see a new role for | | | | not mentoring. By solving their problems you take |
| contributing to the firm he or she may "catch" | | | | away their opportunity to become educated, and |
| some of the protege's enthusiasm, and be | | | | their ability to solve problems for themselves. |
| reenergized him/herself. They will be motivated to | | | | People learn best when they face new challenges, |
| set a strong example and challenge themselves to | | | | in addition, they gain the skills to solve other, |
| get back to executing the disciplines that got | | | | more difficult, problems. It builds self esteem and |
| them to the top in the first place. | | | | the belief they can handle any situation once they |
| A good mentor should put their new protege at | | | | are on their own. |
| ease and let them know they did not learn the | | | | Being a successful mentor is a tremendous |
| business overnight. Anything worth doing well, is | | | | experience and delivers a great feeling of |
| also worth doing poorly. You do not master | | | | satisfaction. Being able to drastically cut the |
| anything worthwhile quickly. They must know you | | | | learning curve for someone is a great gift and of |
| do not expect perfection. Your expectation should | | | | course a cost savings. You get the person up to |
| be consistent progress. They must be allowed to | | | | speed quicker and cut the failure rate too. It can |
| learn by doing and doing means making mistakes | | | | even be an informal relationship over the phone. |
| and learning from that experience. | | | | Keep these five points in mind to make you even |
| 1. Often the protege is in the enthusiastic beginner | | | | more successful. |