Communication – no matter what else is in place, if the message is not understood, nothing ever happens. No relationships are formed and no value is ever shared without solid communication. This is the foundation of all sales.

Care (includes: curiosity, compassion, and craftsmanship) – While not the foundation, this is the #1 most important characteristic of great sales professionals. No one cares about you until they know how much you care about them. When you care, you will do anything and everything to become better and to help others. Your care for the problem and for the customer is driven by humility.

• Curiosity: The desire to understand and learn erases most skill-gaps. Curiosity is what allows you to understand others and the situation and see the big picture. Curiosity means you are humble enough to learn, which means you are humble enough to help.
• Compassion: This is what drives you to help others.
• Craftsmanship: When you care you will do whatever it takes to become the best in your field, you will develop the skills, abilities, and knowledge you need. When you are a master of your craft, your results and effort will be trusted.

Character – true character is about honesty, keeping your word, sharing truth, transparency, aligned goals, and not having to remember what you said. Winning relationships are fortified by strong character.

Confidence – You need to instill confidence in others. They need to believe that you and your product (service) will help them gain value, reduce risk, and reduce costs. This is about taking action and showing enthusiasm. No amount of skill can make up for lack of action. Passion insights confidence. Confidence is an emotion as well as an action.

Courage – Your ability to say what needs to be said, to do what needs to be done at the right time is how you display courage. It won’t be easy to tell someone they are wrong, or their idea won’t work, but being courageous is what allows space for growth. You know what must be done, you know the right way to do things, taking the right action is the only way to show courage.

Creativity – Boring doesn’t get remembered. Be creative to create an impression. Boring is hard work. Engage your team, your client, and your prospects by doing things differently. When mundane activities become new and fresh, they are much easier to embrace. Creativity creates excitement and buy-in.

Commitment – When you get others to keep commitments, everyone improves. Keeping commitments is the openly way relationships progress. Actions need to happen in order for change to take place. Keep your commitments and help others keep theirs

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