You Are What You Read: 11 Books Every #Salesperson Needs to Read by lisafugere

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You Are What You Read: 11 Books Every #Salesperson Needs to Read
by lisafugere

?It is what you read when you don?t have to that determines what you will be when you can?t help it.? ? Oscar Wilde

Ralph Barsi, Inside Sales Manager and lead sales hiring manager at InsideView, judges job candidates on three qualities: discipline, determination, and curiosity:

?In sales, you talk to a lot of people from very different industries, types of companies, locations, backgrounds, etc. You need the curiosity to learn how their businesses work, the determination to dig deeper for details, and the discipline to constantly study your craft. I encourage everyone on my team to read about business so that when they pick up the phone, they have the knowledge and confidence to pitch InsideView to any title in any industry.?

So, without further ado, we present:

Eleven Books Every Salesperson Needs to Read

How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie

Though he wrote it three quarters of a century ago, Dale Carnegie?s people-skills book is still incredibly relevant. Carnegie explains how to deal with people without making them feel manipulated, how to get people to like you, and win them over to your way of thinking. Every sales rep who spends his or her day convincing people to buy things needs to read this book.



The Little Red Book of Selling by Jeffrey Gitomer

A short and sweet approach to selling that explores why people buy, and how to use those insights in your sales. This is an accessible and motivational book full of useful nuggets that emphasizes how important it is for sales reps to understand their prospects before they enter a deal.



Sales 2.0 by Anneke Seley and Brent Holoway

When Social Media propelled the sales industry into a complete 180 degree spin, Anneke Seley and Brent Holoway named the domino effect it created on sales the era of Sales 2.0 ? a time in which customers, salespeople, the buying process and the sales process shifted forever. Sales 2.0 describes how the industry changed, and what salespeople need to know to adapt to this new world of selling.



The Challenger Sale by Matthew Dixon and Brent Adamson

Conventional sales expertise suggests that relationship selling is the most effective way to win big deals. Dixon and Adamson throw conventional sales expertise on its head. They present the data to prove that top performing reps are challengers. Rather than bludgeoning prospects with a list of questions and acquiescing to a prospect?s demands, challenger reps approach customers with unique insights about how they can save or make money. And they win more often than any other type of rep.

Thinkertoys by Michael Michalko

When you ask a class of kindergarteners to raise their hands if they think they are creative, a classroom of hands will shoot into the air. When you ask a class of college students the same question, only three or four hands will go up. What happens between childhood and adulthood to convince us that creativity is a trait we either have or do not have? Michael Michalko argues that creativity is not a gene ? it?s a state of mind. Thinkertoys teems with creative suggestions for how to spur creativity in a business setting, including practical exercises that open our minds and engage our subconscious.

Jack, Straight from the Gut by Jack Welch

In his climb from a working-class childhood to Fortune Magazine?s ?Manager of the Century,? at the helm of General Electric, Jack Welch demanded nothing but the best, and earned himself the popular nickname, ?The World?s Toughest Boss.? He grew GE into one of the world?s most successful companies, and his autobiography chronicles his experiences along the way. The lessons Jack teaches about billion-dollar deals and high-stakes corporate standoffs contain priceless insights into how, at the end of the day, people drive business, and understanding them will take a company further than anything else.

The Art of War by Sun Tzu

B2B Sales can quickly morph into a treacherous battlefield. Sales reps must become warriors and learn to train and strategize the same way Sun Tzu?s soldiers had to. Read the art of war to become a sales samurai.







Wooden on Leadership by John Wooden

In 41 year?s of coaching, John Wooden maintained one goal: to get maximum effort and peak performance from each of his players in the manner that best served the team. In his leadership book, he explains how to achieve success through leadership in his 12 Lessons that outline the mental, emotional, and physical qualities essential to building a winning organization.



Revenue Disruption by Phil Fernandez

The advent of new technology has rendered a traditional marketing and sales model obsolete. Phil Fernandez describes why the traditional model no longer works, and details an action plan companies can use to redesign their sales and marketing performance strategy to disrupt the status quo and dramatically increase revenue-generating capacity.



The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey

Covey?s 7 Habits are a refreshing reminder that at the end of the day, integrity, sincerity, and fairness always win. His step-by-step path for winning at life offers deep wisdom and describes how to incorporate the 7 Habits into your daily life.





The Greatest Salesman in the World by OG Mandino

This small parable is set in a time just before Christianity. Through mythology and spirituality, Mandino maintains that to succeed, you must believe in yourself and in the work you are doing. His book is an important reminder to everyone beginning a career in sales that they need to like their job, not just the money it pays.