The Role of Luck in Sales

I am a big believer in the role of luck in sales.

Are you prepared to take advantage of your luck?

The Roman philosopher Seneca the Younger is believed to have said that “Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.”

Are you prepared for the opportunity? Have you developed the sales skills, selling habits, product knowledge, industry expertise and the business acumen to help your buyer quickly gather the information they need to make a fast and favorable decision?

Are you consistently executing your sales process day after day; proactively prospecting, quickly following up your leads, accelerating your responsiveness and delivering value on every sales touch?

I’ve often wondered if Thomas Jefferson had a salesperson in mind when he said, “I’m a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it.”

I’ve lived my career in sales by these words. Work really hard and the unexpected opportunities for success will find you.

My own experience has demonstrated that it is through the diligent and consistent application of the four core sales disciplines (being human, asking great questions that elicit emotions, listening without judgment, delivering value on every touch) to each stage of your sales process that you create opportunities for luck to help you along.

For instance, there is no escaping the fact that a series of seemingly random events all have to fall into place to bring you and your prospect into the same space at the same time. The question for you is; when the unexpected happens, will you be ready?

If you apply Jefferson’s words about hard work to your selling the “lucky” sales opportunities will present themselves. And, when that happens, will you be prepared to capitalize on your luck and turn the opportunity into an order?

You can’t build luck into your sales plan. And, you can’t factor luck into your forecast. But, if you’ve invested your time and effort and preparation to open the door to luck, then you will be prepared to embrace it when it appears.

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