Those are not my words.

It’s the propositional question of a wonderful book called, appropriately, “Stop Selling and Start Leading.”

Salespeople are known for their legitimately bad behavior, reminiscent of the guys selling cure-all snake oil to unsuspecting and naive townspeople the old West. We assume people selling used-cars and other such things are the same sort of shysters today.

A life of sales means a life of being one of “those people”.

The good news is it doesn’t have to be this way. Marketing and sales don’t have to be crooked and deceptive at it’s worst, slimy and shower-worthy at it’s best.

I have something that will truly help people. (I assume that you (or your organization) does, as well.)

We can leave a “sales-y conversation” feeling good about ourselves and the potential client feeling respected, loved, and cared for.

It’s about empathy.
Genuine concern for the welfare of others.
Making emotional connections with people.
Solving problems.
Serving others.

That’s sales.
More importantly, that’s leadership.

It’s possible (and in my opinion necessary) to do both.

On the day I am publishing this post, the book “Stop Selling and Start Leading” is ridiculously cheap on Amazon. You can get the Kindle version or the hardback for less than $3.00 bucks.

Buy it. It’s worth it.