True optimism will inspire the salesman with a feel ing of cheerfulness and a determination always to make the best of things. Enthusiasm presupposes optimism and optimism generates enthusiasm. Some one has said that a green man can learn to sell goods, but a blue man cannot. The general passenger agent of the Lackawanna Railroad showed his appreciation of optimism and cheerfulness when he issued to his ticket sellers the order: "A smile with every ticket." 17. Imagination.—Two men see a picture of one of the famous German siege guns. To one it represents just a great, cumbersome gun. To the mind of the other it conjures a picture of the assassination of the Austrian Grand Duke, ultimatums exchanged be tween European nations, the 'mobilization of armies, the German invasion of Belgium, the hundred-mile battle line on the French frontier, ruined cathedrals, devastated towns, thousands of homeless peasants. The first man possesses no imagination. The second has an imagination of great range and intensity. The former would not make a salesman; the latter would. All things must be pictured in the mind before they are realized, and if the salesman would appeal to the prospect's imagination, he must first be able to pic ture himself doing so, and then he must be able to get a clear image in his own mind of the picture lie in tends to paint for the prospect. . If the salesman has no imagination himself, he cannot hope to appeal to the imagination of the prospect.
18. Education.—The selling of a commodity that appeals to highly cultured, well-educated people calls for a salesman of culture and of some book learning. The selling of a technical appliance usually calls for a technically trained mind. A man of little or no polish and small book learning may do fairly well in selling an ordinary article, but the salesman in any line should be an educated man. For education, in its broadest sense, means a knowledge of natural forces, of human nature, and of things that are going on about us in the world, as well as the power to interpret them. Many a man who has never had more than a grammar-school training possesses a true education, in this sense of the word. A person who will seriously consider the qualifications that have been enumerated in this chapter, and who succeeds in ac quiring a reasonable number of them will have re ceived a liberal education in the process, even tho he may have had little previous schooling.
19. Voice.—If the salesman has a strident voice and a harsh manner the prospect will probably be prejudiced against him, while a man of fine sensibili ties will certainly be repelled. A clear, full, soothing voice will do much to predispose the prospect in favor of the salesman. No man who must speak a great deal should neglect the cultivation of his voice. He should be particularly careful to keep it, if possible, in a pleasantly low range.
There are many methods for training and cultivat ing the voice. One that is known to produce satisfac tory results is to read poems aloud. Another is to take lessons from a vocal instructor. The salesman should be particularly careful to cultivate a sympa thetic tone of voice. He should learn to direct the tone forward toward the teeth and lips, at the same time allowing it to pass naturally thru the nasal pas sages. Such tone-production is conducive to a good
‘`carrying quality," and also is a preventive of what is known as "speaker's throat," which results from straining the voice. The large amount of speaking required of the salesman causes a dry throat and a rasping tone unless proper care is taken.
20. Appearance.—It goes without saying that a salesman should always be well dressed and well groomed. Slovenliness prejudices a prospect against him and his proposition. His clothing should be freshly pressed and his linen spotless. His shoes should be of the best, with straight heels, and should be kept well shined. The salesman must be careful of his teeth, his hair and his finger nails, and he should never appear before a prospect with a day's growth of beard on his face.
The keynote of the salesman's dress should be unob trusiveness. Any exaggeration in his costume is detrimental to his obtaining the best results. Just as the finest French plate-glass is the kind that is en tirely unobtrusive to the eye, so the best dressed man is he whose apparel attracts no attention to itself.
21. Personality.—Personality is that indefinable something which makes the presence of one man wel come and the presence of another unwelcome. Com bined with sympathy, and the ability to see the other fellow's point of view, it is the prime factor in the quick creation of confidence. Personality is that quality which definitely characterizes a person and distinguishes him from another, not by his nature, or by the way his features are molded, but by his expres sion, his manner and his actions. Personality in cludes poise, that elusive characteristic which is more than mere calm or asstirance, and which enables its possessor to appear to advantage, and to be at ease under any circumstances.
Personality, as such, cannot be acquired apart from those elements of which it is composed. Personality is the sum total of one's mentality, education, habits of thought and experience.
22. Self-analysis and improvement.—The sales man should possess the ability to review carefully his work at the close of each day, and decide just where and how he has been weaker than he should have been. There is some reason for the loss of every sale. The salesman may not be at fault, but it is safer for him to assume that he is and to endeavor to put his finger upon his weakness. Such a practice will foster in him the habit of holding himself strictly accountable for errors. He should also at the same time review the essential qualifications of a salesman and decide in which of them he is lacking. During this period of introspection, the salesman should be thoroly honest. with himself. The man who has too much self-con ceit to admit his mistake when be is at fault, cannot profitably perform this task- of introspection. Such a man is as useless in selling as in any other occupa tion. The salesman can develop only by earnestly striving to discover and eliminate his negative quali ties, while at the same time he makes every effort to strengthen his positive ones. A prominent New York firm has devised a self-analysis chart—produced below—which was prepared for the special benefit of those salesmen who wish to carry on a particularly complete and systematic introspection along the lines that have been suggested.