Salespeople: you need an iron sharpener.
And you probably don’t have very many of them.
That little huddle you get into every day? Be careful.
If all they do is complain about the leads, the managers, the customers, the pay plan, the inventory, and how “nobody can make money anymore,” that is not sharpening you.
That is dulling you.
Proverbs 27:17 says, “Iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.”
That means you need somebody around you who will tell you the truth.
Somebody who will challenge your excuse.
Somebody who will ask why you didn’t follow up.
Somebody who will tell you your attitude is off.
Somebody who will push you when you’re coasting.
Somebody who will cheer you on, call you out, pick you up, and kick you in the ass when needed.
That’s an iron sharpener.
And here’s what I’ve been thinking about:
If iron sharpens iron, what dulls it?
Three things:
Corrosion. Neglect. Misuse.
Corrosion is what you stay exposed to.
Constant complaining. Excuses. Cynicism. Blaming customers. Blaming management. Blaming the market.
Stay around it long enough and you’ll start talking like them, thinking like them, and eventually performing like them.
Neglect is when nobody challenges you.
Everybody agrees with you.
Everybody tells you the customer was crazy.
Everybody says you did all you could.
Maybe you didn’t.
Sometimes the best thing somebody can ask you is:
“What could you have done better?”
And then there’s misuse.
That’s when you burn your energy on the wrong things.
Arguing over every deal.
Comparing yourself to everybody else.
Trying to prove something.
Sitting around talking instead of following up.
Fighting battles that have nothing to do with getting better.
You don’t need a bunch of friends at work.
You need an iron sharpener.
And pay attention to the people around you who may be corrosion, neglect, or misuse in your life.
That doesn’t mean you’re better than them.
It means you’re trying to be better for you.
There’s a difference.
Find somebody who sharpens you.
And then make damn sure you’re sharpening them too.
Because iron sharpens iron.
Who’s sharpening you?
#ironsharpensiron #friends #success #goals