Here’s How To Turn Your Weakness into a Sales Superpower

This article is part of the Be Focused. Live Great. series, where I publish performance learnings based on taking a non traditional and holistic approach to strategic sales. Subscribe here to read upcoming newsletters.

Being an introvert in an extroverted world can be tough. And sales is usually an extroverted world.

For years, I thought my introversion was holding back my potential as a salesperson.

So I acted how I thought I needed to act: I tried to be social and gregarious and always on, just like the other salespeople I knew. 

Embodying that persona wasn’t for me.

I didn’t get the results I wanted and I also developed a lot of anxiety; it was imposter syndrome in a painful and unsustainable way.

All of this caused me to view my introversion as a weakness that was preventing me from achieving my goals, as something I was ashamed of. 

But there’s no need to be ashamed of your weaknesses.

Everyone has them — plenty of them — it’s just something we don’t generally talk about.

In fact, they aren’t really weaknesses at all.

They’re personality traits that come with a whole spectrum of associated behaviors which can be positive or negative, depending on the context.

(As an example, someone who struggles to prioritize — something generally considered a negative — has probably figured out how to be good at working through lots of tasks — something generally considered a positive.)

Once I was able to shift my mindset, I figured out a process for confronting the areas of my life I wanted to improve and then using them as fuel for my selling strategy.

Ultimately, that led me to unlock my sales superpower.

Here’s how I did it.

1. I identified what I perceived as holding me back — my introversion
2. I thought through the other traits associated with my introversion — I think a lot, deeply, and methodically
3. I figured out how to use those associated traits as a fundamental part of my sales strategy — by thinking deeply and methodically, I could differentiate myself by providing strategic insights to my clients that other sellers missed
4. I tested out my new strategy in the real world and evolved it over time — ultimately, I found my sweet spot selling to enterprises in strategic SaaS sales

(Pssst – want help executing this exercise yourself? My fill-in-the-blank template will help you turn a personality "weakness" into a sales superpower. Click here to add my contact info and text me the word "SUPERPOWER").

I truly believe that if you are able to shift your mindset and change how you think about your weaknesses, you can unlock a whole new range of opportunities. 

What’s a weakness that you think has been holding YOU back as a salesperson?

Share it in the comments and let's see if the rest of us can help you figure out how to make it your own personal sales superpower.

I would love to hear what you uncover after trying this exercise.

And how I can make it more beneficial for others!

🐝