#55: Listen as Amy Pickens, Tyler Lindley’s mom and retired pharmaceutical sales superstar, discusses what it takes to succeed in sales and whether or not you’re born with those skills. Amy goes over juggling work-life with family, setting boundaries, and what you can do to help develop instinctual skills for better sales performance.
Listen to the episode by clicking play below OR search “the sales lift” wherever you get podcasts.
Don’t feel like listening? Read the Episode Cliff Notes instead below:
Nature vs. Nurture (0:23)
We are all born with characteristics that can make us naturally better sellers, and, as parents, we can decide to either hone or hush those skills in our kids. Communication is a big part of this: not just with peers but adults as well.
Games are a great way to develop communication and improvisational skills from early on and teach children that there’s nothing wrong with making mistakes.
Not only that, but you have to be comfortable trying new things. It’s important to let kids try anything and everything, as much as it may annoy us as parents.
Responsibilities and Boundaries (4:27)
Amy and her husband worked full-time while raising four kids. With that came a lot of responsibility, positives and negatives, and guilt that needed managing.
Time-blocking is even more critical in this situation because you need to change focus from work to family. Otherwise, you risk neglecting one side.
Tell your manager, boss, coworkers, etc., that when you’re at home at night with your family, cooking and doing homework, you’re off.
Setting those boundaries can be difficult, whether you are a woman or new to sales because most people think the expectation is you’re going to be always on and selling.
Customer-Seller Dynamic (10:25)
Amy always tried to have one thing in common with her customer, and a lot of times, that common ground ended up being her kids.
The key to forming that common ground is making a personal connection because that’s what the customer will remember. They’ll remember you and then associate your product with you.
As you grow your relationship, there has to be that connection first. That’s how you become successful.
You want them to see you as a person vs. a sales rep because there is so much competition in pharmaceuticals.
We tend to overcomplicate sales because there are so many different methodologies we can implement. But making yourself memorable is very simple.
But if you’re not good at it, it helps to build the instinctual skills of just being able to talk to a stranger. If you remember just one thing about them, it means so much.
Missing Connections (16:24)
Amy notes that many people seem to be missing that skill set that makes them connect easily with strangers.
One way to help is through coaching because if it doesn’t come naturally, you have to think about if it’s not something you’ve always done.
It can be uncomfortable, but the only way to improve is to be okay stepping out of that comfort zone.
Positive affirmations can be super helpful throughout the process, as silly as they may feel in the moment. Just remind yourself every morning that you can do it and you’re going to have a good day.
Don’t be afraid to be yourself and let what makes you unique shine through every interaction.