June 30 , 2009
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Sales Managers Could Take a Cue from Heroes of Yore
Tim Roberts
Great sales managers are worth their salt.
“Well, duh,” you say. All right, that’s fair, but allow me to ratchet up your notion of great.
The three best books I have ever read are, in order, “Undaunted Courage,” by Stephen Ambrose; “1776,” by David McCullough; and “Two Years Before the Mast,” by Richard Henry Dana Jr. They rank at the top because of the sheer awe I felt as I savored the pages. They are books that inflame passion and stir the soul.
These books are about extraordinary men. Legendary men. Men who were high-performance players reigning in the category of “best of the best” and who surrounded themselves with only the best.
“Undaunted Courage” is about the expedition of Lewis and Clark. As a reader, you’re grabbed from the get-go. Capt. Meriwether Lewis picked some bad dudes. I’m talking rugged, outdoor types that could survive by themselves through the harshest, coldest conditions; face challenges they had never imagined; and leave excuses well behind in the comforts of home and hearth. Great managers choose strong players and are excuse-proof.
Hand-picked by Thomas Jefferson, Lewis was the manager of America’s greatest expedition. He was everything a manager should be. He followed the vision. He devised a plan. He recruited, built and motivated the Corps of Discovery team. They were highly trained and well-disciplined. He executed the plan. Their response to adversity as a group was incredible. His team knew that, to be successful, they must always work as one, counting on the strengths of each. Great sales managers know how to bring the best out of everyone, even in adversity.
“1776” focuses squarely on George Washington and the development of the Continental Army in the trying year of 1776. The American colonies were in a whole heap of trouble. Great sales managers know that taking on big problems means big commission checks. Freedom was Washington’s commission.
Washington was the perfect manager for the role. He was respected by all. He was the perfect lieutenant following the Continental Congress’ wishes, even when he second guessed them. He was a first-rate player who knew how to establish equal business stature. Great Britain did not want to acknowledge America as a country, let alone an equal, yet Washington refused to meet with the British until they afforded him the proper respect. Great managers always have a presidential mind-set.
In his role as the executor of the plan, Washington’s commitment to the “glorious cause” was steadfast. Against overwhelming odds, his passion for this cause and his ability to take action ruled the day. He saw the glorious cause well into the future and set aside short-term thinking. If only we could act so nobly today. Short-term thinking cripples so many managers and salespeople. It is eliminated by fierce commitment. Great sales managers accomplish objectives no matter what.
Dana’s “Two Years Before the Mast,” written in 1840, is based on his journal as a seaman aboard The Pilgrim. This classic is simple, gripping and instructive. He wrote the book to describe the life of common seamen. Everyone at the time knew and read of great naval heroes, but few knew the life at sea from the common sailor’s perspective. The boat ride the crew takes around Cape Horn through the winter months is a ride I wish on no man. It’s instructive in too many ways.
Imagine sailing in the nighttime blackness, stars your only guide, while being menaced by icebergs floating by like rushhour traffic at 96th Street and Keystone Avenue. Imagine climbing the icy ropes, barehanded, to the frigid crow’s nest to spend an eye-opening evening dodging ice floes. White-knuckle driving, anyone?
You only survive this kind of journey by the skill of your captain and your willingness to follow his lead. The young Dana wrote repeatedly of Captain Francis Thompson’s skills and depended on him to return them safely. The rewards are many for the manager that can take his ship from Boston round Cape Horn to the western coast of North America and back. Great managers can always get you where you want to go.
Great sales managers typically have experienced adversity, yet they are without fear. They have chosen their destiny and accept that there will be pain, suffering and setbacks along the way. Great sales managers never lose sight of their company’s own “glorious cause.”
I like my managers with a little salt.
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