Last Friday one of my softball teammates brought her five-year old son to our game. He was a ball of energy and in many ways he reminded me of my childhood days.

But what really struck me was what sales people could learn from a five-year old kid.

1. Curiosity

During the game Tim asked a constant stream of questions.

His mother would say something and he peppered her with questions. She would answer and he would ask another question. His favourite question was “Why?”

He was incredibly curious and when he got the answer to his initial question he would ask another one.

Top sales people are curious too.

They are genuinely interested in their prospect’s business and ask thought-provoking questions to get the answers.

2. No fear

Most sales people have some fears and hesitations especially when it comes time to ask for a commitment or asking tough, probing questions.

However, five year old, kids, especially boys, have no fear.

No question is stupid or irrelevant. They have no hesitations in asking for something that they want.

For example, during our game, the young boy kept asking for another slice of pizza—the mom brought pizza to the game. His mother kept saying no but that didn’t prevent him from continuing to ask. Eventually, his mother relented and gave him a slice of the pizza.

Most sales people don’t persist enough.

They end a cold call as soon as their prospect says no and give up when they encounter any type of resistance.

3. Rejection

Even though this kid’s mother kept saying no, he didn’t take it personally.

He didn’t allow the initial rejection to prevent him from continuing to ask for the pizza (aka the sale).

He wasn’t afraid of the rejection or concerned that his mother kept saying no. He ignored the rejection and kept persevering.And, eventually, he got what he wanted.

4. Baggage

Behaviours are learned. And sales people often miss out on valuable sales opportunities because they don’t ask enough questions or because they give up too soon.

They carry around baggage from previous sales interactions and allow this baggage to prevent them capitalizing on high-potential sales.

I’m not suggesting that a five-year old child could sell a complex product but most sales people could learn a thing or two from someone this age.

Here’s my question to you…

What have you stopped doing that could increase your sales…

Is it asking more probing questions?

Is it asking for the sale one more time?

Is it establishing contact with a prospect who was initially not interested in your solution?

Take a lesson from a five-year old boy and start increasing your sales.

**Thanks to Troy Claus for initially planting the seed of this post in my head at a recent coffee meeting.