I don’t mean that you should sell while holding the yoga headstand posture, Sirsasana. I mean that it’s often good to look at selling from a completely new perspective. What if we took everything we “knew” about selling, and stood it on its head? What if we assumed a whole different set of viewpoints?
What if selling were:
- A natural, enjoyable, generous, and valuable way to connect with others in an intimate way that brings out the best in them and in us
- Not just the means to an end, but something we look forward to doing
- Service to everyone we meet, because we honor, respect, and appreciate them—whether or not they buy
- A way to feed our souls, as well as our bottom lines
- Practice for growing into the people we’ve always wanted to be
BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE…
Come to think of it, selling has a lot in common with Sirsasana after all! The Yoga Journal http://www.yogajournal.com/practice/178 points out that articles on yoga tout “the benefits, ranging from increased flexibility to ultimate immersion in the Great Cosmic Ooze. They describe yoga as a stress-free, painless way to well-being. But by touting only the obvious goodies, these articles not only paint an incomplete picture of yoga, they also rob it of its juice. The pleasures and benefits of yoga are indeed numerous and profound, but the difficulties you encounter in your practice are at least as important.”
That sounds like selling! But wait, there’s more. The same piece says that “Sirasana provides an opportunity for experimenting safely with the unfamiliar and the fear it engenders. Headstand can be scary. It literally turns your world upside down. Beginners may become disoriented, unable to tell left from right and top from bottom. But, as B.K.S. Iyengar says…, ‘The best way to overcome fear is to face with equanimity the situation of which one is afraid.’ Fortunately, disorientation in Headstand subsides fairly quickly. With regular practice, you can begin to experience the benefits which led the yogis to call Sirsasana the ‘King of Asanas.’”
STRONG AND FLEXIBLE YOU
I don’t have to tell you that selling can be uncomfortable. It’s even uncomfortable to stretch ourselves into the “new points of view” listed at the top of this post! But the benefits are enormous when you use the 6 Soul of Selling steps. In The Soul of Selling, I list some of the many payoffs of selling in this way:
- You master something challenging. Selling isn’t for sissies. It asks you to make the uncomfortable transition from talking about results to producing them. It asks that you be the source of inspiration and value, both for yourself and for the people you contact. It asks for a high level of personal power and commitment, as well as for compassion and service. When you’ve done that, you have accomplished something—and you know it.
- You never again have to wonder if you will produce the result. You are no longer waiting to find out what you’ll produce; you are guaranteeing it.
- You never again have to wonder if you are manipulating people. You aren’t.
- You are in the driver’s seat. You say how many sales you will get, and you get them.
- Your confidence soars. You are winning and helping others win. You know that people are served and honored in your presence.
- You become a bigger person, with a larger vision for success and serving others.
Just like the headstand, selling asks a little more of you than is comfortable—but it gives back to you a hundredfold.
