VULNERABILITY IS MONEY IN THE BANK By Todd Cohen

Many factors can impact one’s feeling of comfort and security for their jobs and livelihoods. A shifting and unsteady economy. Tumultuous global events. Te unforeseen and unpredictable can shake one’s confidence to the core. You see the same phenomena with anyone who has something to sell—which is all of us. Regardless of what you are selling—a product, a service, and of course, yourself, there are unfortunate instances of people taking any business and not quality business. Why? Your internal fear of allowing yourself to be vulnerable and accepting the business and responsibilities you know you can deliver at 100%.

Where things begin to veer off track is when people think they are going to lose their jobs or lose a sale (which is the same thing) they hold on tighter to them or take any deal. In doing so, you stretch yourself thin and tend to accept more and more responsibility. Subsequently, when people assume more responsibility than they can realistically handle, they become inefficient and less successful. In other words, holding on tighter in an attempt to ensure job security is actually harmful and professionally destabilizing.

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What this means is that you cannot and should not attempt to be everything to everybody!

When you try to do it all, you wind up making bad decisions, which leads to settling and a feeling of unhappiness and dissatisfaction with your choices. In that event, everyone suffers; the client, the employer, your colleagues and you. All because you’re hanging on so tight that you don’t allow yourself to be vulnerable. In other words, a strong indicator of any success is your ability to be vulnerable and know your strengths, your weaknesses and having the courage to walk away when necessary. It’s about having the bravery to embrace one simple concept— you will be more successful when you can successfully articulate your position and say “no” when you should. A simple concept that is in actuality very difficult to do.

Become vulnerable, improve job security and get more at the same time.

When people think of sales, the words “aggressive” and “pushy” can come to mind. It’s a product of many poor experiences dealing with sales staff. “Vulnerable” isn’t a word that you would often associate with sales—and that reason alone proves its importance. Vulnerability allows your clients and customers to view the entire sales industry through a new prism.

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So how can you let go, become vulnerable, and actually improve your standing with your clients and colleagues? In a sales culture, everyone knows that they play a vital role in the sales cycle. And regardless of whether their role is visible or not, it is an essential part of the sales ecosystem. In some cases, an individual’s contributions may not be immediately seen, but he or she knows that their role is essential to clients ultimately saying “yes.” Tis is the essence of sales culture.

In organizations that are more siloed—and thus highly dysfunctional—there are people who believe that gripping very tightly to their jobs and staying beneath the radar will increase the odds that they will be “okay.” Here’s the problem with that theory. You are more likely to be seen as a valuable member of the company if you know and can communicate your specific area of expertise and stick to it. When you can communicate your value proposition in a compelling way, you make yourself vulnerable and more secure at the same time. Why? Because now people know what they are “buying” in you and you can now do a much better job.

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