The One Critical Skill Everyone Needs
They asked me to learn science, maths, language, history, and social science.
They asked me to learn grammar.
They asked me to learn to speak English well.
They asked me to learn production engineering subjects well.
They asked me to learn engineering mathematics(Oh! Laplace and Fourier Series — Still, they spin nightmares in my mind).
They asked me to learn Computer Programming, Basic Electronics, and Electrical Engineering.
They asked me to learn how to use machine tools.
They asked me to learn sketching well.
They asked me to learn design thinking processes.
They asked me to learn creativity tools and practice them.
They asked me to learn the Growth Mindset, Grit, and Deliberate Practice.
They asked me to learn Body Language.
They asked me to learn Public Speaking.
They asked me to learn discipline.
They asked me to learn from others.
But……..
……
But……..
……
Nobody asked me to learn marketing and sales skills.
No parent is asking their child to learn marketing skills.
While researching for the ‘Boil The Ocean’ book, I learned that the most critical skill that everyone needs is Sales skill.
Scott Edinger says, “Sales is the most fundamental skill for every professional”. He further adds “the resistance to sales stems from an antiquated idea that selling is pushing people to buy something they don’t want, don’t need, or can’t afford.” But that notion is outdated. Selling is moving somebody else to action”.
Whether you want to convince your people about your idea, product, or team, you need to sell.
- Ray Croc could transform Mcdonald’s because he was an amazing salesman. He did a lot of part-time selling jobs from his childhood.
- Sam Walton(Founder, Walmart) loved retail sales. He excelled at merchandise-driven sales.
Even, while working in a company, to grow in your career, you need to sell yourself.
- Lee Iacocca rose quickly from an engineering intern to President of Ford because he loved marketing and sales.
- Robert Iger grew from a studio supervisor to CEO Of Walt Disney Company because he was good at marketing and knew how to convince people about his idea.
- Jack Welch grew from a junior chemical engineer to CEO of GE Electric because he marketed himself well during every appraisal.
From his experience, Jack Welch says, “Your work generally won’t speak for itself. You must speak for yourself. Make sure that managers understand the effort you put into your job and the results you produce. A bit of modest bragging will not only help you come promotion time, but it will also help discredit any attacks levied against you”.
It is a common myth that if you’re good at what you do, you will make progress in your life automatically. It will work only when somebody notices and importantly, remembers it at the right time. Why should people remember you at the right moment of your life?. It’s your life and not theirs. Most people are interested in themselves and constantly thinking about ‘What they would gain?’. It is up to you to make some noise to remind them about your abilities at the right time.
So, if you were given a magic wand to fix your life/career, then you should start with your marketing and sales skills.
Read every story from Shah Mohammed (and thousands of other writers on Medium).
Note:: Hi, I would like to know your view about the importance of Marketing and Sales skills in one’s life/career. Please write if you have a story to share.