In this episode, Dr. Croner talks about one of the most important gifts any of us can receive in the course of our career . . . something that can have a huge influence on both our short and long term success. And this is especially important to younger salespeople. 
 
  

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At SalesDrive, LLC, we help companies perfect the salesperson hiring process by offering a variety of tools, like a sales assessment and psychologically-based interview guides, that aid companies in never hiring a bad salesperson again. SalesDrive was founded in 2005 based on the single biggest frustration many companies face, selecting sales candidates who interviewed well, only to flame out when placed on the line. Dr. Croner reviewed more than 90 years of academic research as well as his own work in conducting intensive behavioral interviews and discovered that high-performance salespeople shared three innate personality traits. After identifying a gap in the marketplace, he went on to develop The DriveTest® sales assessment. The only sales assessment to measure the three non-teachable traits necessary for new business acquisition.
 
If you are hiring salespeople, request a free DriveTest assessment today: https://salesdrive.info/free-trial-request
 
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[00:00]  Katherine Abraham: Hello and Welcome to the Sales Psyched podcast, where we discuss strategies for leveraging psychology within the world of sales. Each episode is hosted by Dr. Chris Croner, who has a PhD in clinical psychology and has spent his career helping companies around the world build stellar sales teams.

[00:20]  Let's get started.
 
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[00:30]  Chris Croner: Dr. Chris Croner here. Today I want to talk to you about one of the most important gifts any of us can receive in the course of our career. Something that can have a huge influence on both our short and long term success. And this, is especially important to younger salespeople.

[00:49]  I'm talking about a mentor. Now before I go further, let's be sure we're on the same page here. A mentor is usually not someone's manager or boss. Those positions by definition are judgmental and they hold too much power to generate a relationship of pure candor and trust. People are naturally guarded when they're with superiors who have power and influence over their work, in their compensation.

[01:18]  A mentor is a neutral and safe place. People can go to express their hopes and their fears, to ask questions that they might not ask of others, to test new ideas, and even challenging the status quo without fear of judgment. And, most importantly of all, to learn.

[01:38]  Meanwhile, being a mentor is an enormously important privilege and one which should be handled with self awareness and care. When you have a protege, you may not realize it, but he or she is watching you like a hawk. The way you dress, the way you talk, the way you handle yourself with other people. You'll be surprised years later when proteges tell stories about you that you've long forgotten. You will have gotten into their heads at a very influential time of their life.

[02:13]  I bring this up because many companies miss this rich opportunity to mind this deep and permanent element of psychology. They often provide sales training and sales management, but they missed the third leg of the developmental process. Someone whom the young or new salesperson can just be with. Learning the ropes, getting comfortable, fitting in, and someone who they can talk to when they wake up some nights scared. Come on, we've all been there. Who can talk them down the next day at lunch or over a drink after work.

[02:52]  I'd like you to think about this this week as a business owner or manager. Do you have a mentorship program?

[03:00]  I realize that some senior salespeople don't have the time or the inclination to be mentors, but you might be surprised how many would be willing to participate. Many people enjoy the gratification of helping the next generation get a foothold.

[03:19]  From a psychological standpoint, it's a wonderful win-win as both people grow as human beings, not to mention greatly accelerating your salespeople's production as individuals and as a team. I'll be talking more about mentors and mentoring in the coming weeks.

[03:40]  See you next time. 

 

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[03:44]  Chris Croner: Thank you for listening to the Sales Psyched Podcast. If you haven't already, please be sure to click the subscribe button and leave us a five-star review. If you found this information helpful, please consider sharing it. We'd love your help in spreading the word.
 
[04:02]  Until next time, take care!