After the 2012 Olympics, Ryan Lochte stated he wanted to be a celebrity. He went on to “star” in a terrible and ill-fated reality show titled “What would Ryan Lochte Do.” I think we all know now what he would do. Blame others, and lie about the facts.
It goes without saying that you should be honest for honesty’s sake. But if you can’t muster those morals, at least be honest because you know that you will be caught. There are just too many cameras, too many eye-witnesses, and too much information for you not to be honest these days.
You will be found out.
And when you are found out you will lose deals, lose customers, and after not too many losses, also lose your job. The lesson from #LochMess is simple for sellers. Be honest. All the time. Don’t;
- Makeup facts about your products
- Overestimate delivery schedules
- Underestimate the time it will take to get back to a customer
- Lie in your pipeline with inaccurate data. At the same time, don’t hold off of entering deals until they are ready to close. These lies of omission are just as damaging to your career.
- Lie to yourself about why sales are lost. What really happened? And who was really responsible?
- Blame others, or worse!) customers for mistakes that cost you the business
- Lie to your manager about your daily activity levels. Are you really seeing enough people each week in order to hit your goal
Lies unravel, lies can be proven, lies ruin your relationships, and erode trust. Honesty Sells!
Dedicated to increasing your sales (and keeping you out of the Brazilian court system!)
