- January 9, 2012
- Posted by: Dave Kurlan
- Category: Understanding the Sales Force
I hear this very often, “Dave, your assessment said that Joe was not money-motivated but I disagree. It seems like Joe is in here every month asking for more money.”
Me: “Tell me about that.”
Client: “Well, he says he isn’t earning as much as he’s worth, so he hits us up for more salary or demands an increase in commissions.”
Me: “So, what you are saying is that he is demanding that you pay him more money.”
Client: “That’s right.”
Me: “In my experience, a money-motivated salesperson simply sells more to earn more. That’s the motivated part of money-motivated. It seems that rather than doing that, Joe is asking you to give him more money. He feels entitled, but isn’t doing anything about earning it. It’s like he’s on welfare and you’re the government.”
Client: “Ouch. Thanks.”
Money motivation tends to be very confusing to people but there is a huge distinction between being motivated to perform versus feeling entitled to more money. What do you have on your sales force?
There will be a couple of opportunities to hear me and other top sales experts this month (January 2012).