Serve rather than Stress
Remember starting that new job? Or moving into a new position after a promotion? As exciting as it can be, it frequently comes with some challenges, especially for a new sales manager.
So, what are the greatest challenges a new sales director / manager faces? And most importantly, what are some ways to move beyond those challenges?
1) Overcoming the context of “You need to fix the mess your predecessor left behind.”
Suggestion = Start a dialogue with your boss and direct reports to get their experience of your predecessor complete. No matter what happened with your predecessor, you’re walking into an existing context that may not support your success. Context is decisive, so if you don’t address this, you will have a heck of a time “proving yourself” because your boss and team will be constantly comparing you to your predecessor rather than the actual goals of the organization.
Just Three Things
Yesterday, I had a conversation with Alex, a business owner who expressed his frustration with the current state of affairs. He’s coming off a roller-coaster year in revenues and worried that 2010 will be the same or worse. The exasperated question came about half-way through our conversation, “Why does this have to be so difficult?”
I had a conversation with Jeff, another business owner later in the day who’s had three consecutive years of increased growth. His question to me was a bit different… “When will this actually become difficult?”
The similarities in business, service and geographic location are clear between these two owners.
So what is it that creates the seemingly enormous difference between the two? How come one is having the experience of dread while the other is having the time of his life?
I asked and here’s what I found:
Three Hours of Delight
Goal #144 – “Ask my partner to give three hours of his/her time per week, to release me to do something I really enjoy.” ~ Thomas Leonard, www.thomasleonard.com
Can you imagine that?
Most of us can’t. Time is just too scarce. Just too valuable. Plus, we’re the only ones who can do what we do.
What a crazy trap we set for ourselves. Much of it is based in ego; the rest based in the concept that suffering under current circumstances is still more comfortable than changing them.
