Reach Your Full Potential In The Automotive Industry

Are your choices ruining your potential?

How can two football players with virtually the same physical abilities and potential get completely different results?

 

• The football players are both 6’4.
• The players also have the same coaches.
• They have access to the same weight room & training.
• And finally, both players have access to the same playbooks.

Yet one player succeeds while the other one fails miserably. So what separates those two players? 

In one of my older articles, I also address this same question but on a more familiar level which I want to share with all of you, “What is it that makes some salespeople more successful than others? Take two salespeople standing side by side, both well dressed, clean cut, certified on their product, given the same amount of leads and selling from the exact same inventory. One succeeds and consistently sells 25% more than the other.”

Hey, I’m sure there are a lot of reasons for why one did better than the other, but one of the biggest reasons would be the choices they make on and off the field or in a dealership.

At NFL training camps, each team can invite up to 90 players to try out for the team. From there, they will cut those 90 players down to 53 and those remaining will end up making the opening day roster. To put it into perspective: there are 32 NFL teams which means there are 2,880 potential players that have been invited to try out. 

Only 1,686 of them will make the opening day roster. The rest didn’t make the cut. 

Now if they are lucky, they might make it to the practice squad or the developmental team. If they are not lucky or if they didn’t work hard, they are going to be bagging groceries, selling insurance or God forbid, selling cars.

Potential can be a dirty word. 

Former Florida State Head Football Coach Bobby Bowden said it best, “Whether you are a player, coach or manager, you get paid for production, not for potential.” Isn’t that the same in the car business?

We all heard that we have unlimited earning potential in the car business. Everyone of us has been told the exact same thing and it amazes me how many salespeople never realize their true potential.  Look, you may never be 40 car person – so what? But if you are selling 8 right now then why aren’t you selling 12? You have to ask yourself: What am I going to do to be the best of the best?

In the dealership we all have the same customer pool that we are selling – we all have the same websites, we’re selling from the same inventory, we have the same managers that are going to help us or not help us. So if our environment is the same, the tools that are supplied to us are the same, then what separates us from the rest? Why are only a few successful? It’s  all about the choices — choices you make every single day.

So are you working on your skills or are you just hoping you will get better?

Here’s the bottom line: in sales, your success is based on your choices. Everyone of us in the dealership has tons of potential but it’s time to start capitalizing on that potential instead of wasting it. 

An example of wasting your true potential:

In sports, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen guys get drafted and have unlimited potential. I remember one receiver, his last name is – well I don’t remember, let’s call him Benjamin – he was a freak of nature physically. He was tall, ran like a deer, strong as hell and he had more potential than anyone else on that team…

Two years later, Benjamin was traded because his original team became tired of dealing with his crap. Turns out he had a bad attitude and would show up late. His new team saw potential in Benjamin and decided to take the chance. Unfortunately Benjamin was traded again and later was benched. One of the best receivers, was not on the active 53 player roster.

That’s crazy.

Their best athlete was watching people play instead of being on the field and capitalizing on his potential.

Are the choices you made helping or are they holding you back? Are you maximizing your potential or are you currently a Benjamin? Don’t waste your potential! Let’s get out there and make it happen.

Remember DDD = Decisions Determine Destiny

 

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