I have played and coached many sports during my life. If you have been involved in any way with sports you have probably heard it said that someone was a "natural born athlete". These are the people,that have a God given ability to do something without having to practice a great deal. On the other hand you have probably seen a person who is not as gifted but has to work very hard to keep up. As a coach, I always felt bad when I saw a "natural" not working hard and not reaching their potential. They seemed to know that they had the gift and therefore did not need to work hard. As these players got older they inevitably were surpassed by the player who was working hard and giving 100% effort. As a coach, if I had the choice I would always choose the hard worker over the "natural". They were more likely to be open to learning new skills. They would be "more coachable" and this would lead to success Most articles and discussions relating to the business world at some point speak in terms of athletics. You often hear about team, goals, scoring and competition in these articles or discussions. This caused me to think, are salespeople just like athletes? The answer I came up with was YES! Here are a few things that made me come to this conclusion. It's your choice! Athletes must first learn the skills of their sport. This is true for salespeople. Without the necessary skills both would not be "in the game" Athletes must practice these skills over and over for them to become natural at them. This is also true for salespeople. If either of them does not make their skills second nature they will perform robotically and this would cause them to fail. Athletes must get and stay in shape in order to perform at their highest level. This is also true of salespeople. If either get slow,Cheap Cowboys Jerseys, lazy or take short cuts they will inevitably fail. Athletes must prepare for their contest. They must strategize before the game. They look for the opponents weaknesses which can be taken advantage of. Athletes must also identify their own strong points to see how to use them to win the contest. This is also true of salespeople. They must constantly review their performance and identify weaknesses and strengths. Then they must work on these so they can be successful. Athletes must always stay sharp. In their world, someone is always trying to take their spot on the roster or win the starting position. In the salesperson's world, they must also stay sharp by constantly keeping abreast of new techniques and sales tools. If they get complacent, someone is looking for that sale or even job. Remember that just like athletes,Cheap Prince Amukamara Jersey, someone is looking to take that sale or position away from you! Coaches or managers do not want excuse makers, they want winners! In the business world I have seen the same scenario played out. I have seen salespeople who had the "gift" but would not work hard at honing their skills. They do not embrace new sales techniques. They do not see the need for improving and developing into a better producer. Then I see the salespeople who are not "natural" salespeople but who work hard. These people are the ones reading sales books, going to sales seminars, listening to sales CD's in their cars and always looking to improve their performance. These are the people who as a manager I want on my "team". These are the people who are coachable and will contribute to the success of their company. We should all ask ourselves,Cheap Israel Idonije Jersey, what kind of athlete or salesperson do we want to be? Do you want to be the kind of person that people want to have on their team? Are you coachable? Do you embrace new sales techniques? Are you staying in shape?