_Preparing to Make Your Success Certain_
[Sidenote: Be Ready When Your Chance Comes]
Thousands of men have failed in life because they were not ready when
their best chances for success came. Some of these golden opportunities
slipped away unrecognized. Others, though perceived, could not be
grasped. The men to whom they were presented had not prepared to hold
and use such chances whenever they might arrive.
_If you would make your success a certainty, you must get all ready for
it in advance_. Then you will not be taken unawares when you find your
big chance. If you are thoroughly prepared, you will sight it quickly,
realize its full value, and seize it with complete confidence in your
ability to make the most of it.
Before you seek it, be sure of your entire readiness for the opportunity
you especially want. You can much better afford to wait a little while
for _certain_ success than to rush, unready, into the field of your
choice, risking the likelihood of failure that could be guarded against
by intelligent preparation to succeed.
[Sidenote: Do Not Start Unprepared]
A young man was offered a position of fine opportunity with a great
banking house. His ambition was to build his career in that particular
organization. But when the duties of the proffered situation were
explained to him, he declined to undertake them at once; though he
risked the chance that he might not get another such opportunity for
employment by the financial institution of his choice.
"I am sorry," he said to the cashier, "but I do not know enough about
accounting to fill that job now. It will take six months of hard work
evenings to train myself to fit your needs. Please give me other
employment in the bank meanwhile, so I'll be able to study the job at
close range while getting ready for it."
This was excellent salesmanship. The candidate suggested in his words,
tones, and actions that he recognized a real opportunity, that he
comprehended all it involved, that he was willing to prepare himself
adequately, and that he felt certain of his ability to fill the place
after completing the necessary preparation.
The bank, however, was in immediate need of his services in the position
offered to him. So the cashier, who had been very well impressed by the
young man's attitude, told him to take the place, and offered to supply
him with an accountant aide for six months.
[Sidenote: Keeping the Opportunity Open]
"I would rather not," the applicant persisted in declining. "I mean to
keep on climbing toward the top in this bank, once I get started; and I
don't want to begin as a cripple. I couldn't give thorough satisfaction
now, even with an assistant on the accounting. It is not good business
for me to start by making a poor impression. I'd prefer that you do not
think of me as a man for whom excuses need to be made. I wish to
commence my work in that job, when I am ready, with your complete
confidence that I can handle it--not as a weak sister." He smiled
winningly.
The failure of so skillful a salesman of ideas was simply _impossible_.
There is no getting away from such a high quality of salesmanship. The
cashier bought the present and prospective services of the young man who
had demonstrated _at the outset_ his comprehension of the _first
importance of preparation._ The opportunity was kept open six months for
the applicant in training, while he fitted himself for his future job.
This successful salesman of true ideas of his best capabilities is now a
vice-president of the great financial institution.
"But," you say, "suppose the cashier had been unable to wait, would not
the young man's over-emphasis of his attitude on preparation have
_prevented_ him from succeeding in his ambition?"
No! A single turn-down cannot cause the failure of a successful
salesman. If that cashier had not appreciated the worth of the
candidate, an officer of some other bank certainly would have had a
clearer vision of his value. The applicant might have been balked
temporarily in his ambition. The best salesman occasionally has to try
and try again. But a successful career for that young man was assured in
advance. From the very start he was "certain to get there."
On the other hand, if he had risked making a disappointing impression in
his new job, he might have taken the first step toward failure. Suppose
he had begun the work for which he was unprepared, and then had made
serious mistakes due to his unfitness. His record would have been
blemished. His ability might have been questioned. He prevented such
possibilities by _making sure his preparation was adequate_ before he
accepted his big chance.
[Sidenote: Preparation Should Be Two-fold]
Your preparation for certain success must be two-fold. You need to
prepare yourself in ability first _to perceive_; then _to appreciate the
full value_ of what you see. Golden opportunities are all about you. If
you do not recognize them, or if you perceive but slight value in the
signs of rich chances to succeed, you will fail because of your
unreadiness.
Many a farmer in Oklahoma cursed his "bad luck" after he sold a farm on
which a gusher was later discovered. But the oil had been there all the
time. The "luckless" farmer simply did not _perceive_ the indications of
wealth under his plodding feet; or, if he saw signs of oil, he did not
realize that they _denoted_ the possibility of millions.
[Sidenote: Developing Perception]
Perception can be broadened almost immeasurably. The physical eye, if
normal and thoroughly trained, is fitted to be "all seeing." _So can
your mind be made capable of widest vision over all the fields of
possible opportunity_. Some are within your present mental view, others
you can see only after going farther or climbing higher in knowledge.
The biggest possibilities of success cannot be comprehended in their
entirety by narrowed mental sight.
The first essential of preparation to succeed is that you _open your
eyes fully, and look all around you_ for the opportunities within range
of your vision. There are so many _close at hand_ that your search would
better begin right where you are. Even if eventually you seek far for
the best chance to succeed, do so with thorough knowledge of what is
near by. Before you leave your present environment, have an intelligent
conviction that you are capable of a bigger or different success than is
to be found within your immediate reach.
Also see and comprehend the especial _difficulties_ you will find close
at hand. It does not always pay to remain in "the old home town." Often
a young man needs to go to a community of strangers to gain
appreciation of his ability. It is likely to be hard for him to win
success among people who knew him as a boy and who still regard him as
immature. He may find it much easier to succeed in a neighboring town.
It is possible to make the greatest success turn aside from beaten
paths, leave the accustomed haunts of the successful, and go to a place
where no such success ever before has been established. The Mayo
brothers compelled their success as world renowned surgeons to come to
them at the little city of Rochester, Minnesota. Elbert Hubbard brought
fame to East Aurora, New York, by founding there his school of
philosophy and the Roycrofters.
[Sidenote: Over-specialized Preparation]
Almost as common as the mistake of first looking far afield for success
opportunities, is the error of _over-particularizing_ one's original
preparation. If you think now that you want to be a lawyer, you should
prepare yourself especially by studying law, of course. But you should
not exclude preparation for other vocations. Judge Gary was thoroughly
prepared for legal practice. Doubtless when he began his studies of law
he expected to continue in his chosen profession. But he did not neglect
to prepare himself in general business capability. So when his biggest
chance came, he was ready to step out of his law practice and into a
manufacturing industry. There he fitted himself for the position of
chief executive in the immense United States Steel Corporation.
The ability of a _master_ salesman is not limited to getting orders for
just one line of goods, or to selling only to certain buyers. He has
_all-around_ sales knowledge and skill. Though he naturally sells to
better advantage in some fields than in others, he can attain a high
degree of efficiency in selling anything meritorious, because of his
_broad and diversified preparation_.
[Sidenote: Varied and Adaptable Preparation]
Your preparation for all the possibilities of success you may be able to
reach hereafter should be similarly _varied_ and _adaptable_; though you
will be wise to specialize, in addition, by making more detailed
preparation for the vocation of your choice. At twenty the average man
cannot _know_ for what he is best fitted. He may not be sure even at
thirty. The start toward eventual success has often been delayed until
middle life. To cite my own case, I prepared myself especially for the
career of a certified public accountant, but found my greatest success
in the profession of selling. I was able to grasp my biggest opportunity
in the sales field because, though I had been devoting my time and
energies chiefly to accountancy, I had studied and practiced
salesmanship for years in order to market my own services most
effectively.
_While preparing yourself for success, keep your mental eyes wide open_.
Perceive any and all chances about you, however much you specialize in
your preparation for a selected career.
[Sidenote: Preparation In Salesmanship]
Comprehend that preparation in _salesmanship_ is necessary, whatever
vocation you choose. Mastery of the selling process is absolutely
essential if you would assure your success in _any_ field of ambition.
Not only must you _perceive_ opportunities to succeed, but you also must
know how to _sell yourself into the chances_ you see. No matter how much
particularized knowledge you may acquire in preparation for a selected
career, your success will not be _assured_ until you are able to sell
your capabilities to the best advantage. You can neither perceive all
your possible selling opportunities, nor make the most of them when
seen, unless you learn the selling process and develop skill in the
actual sale of the best that is in you.
Broad, varied knowledge is required as the foundation for certain
success. It cannot be built on a narrow or limited base. Evidently,
however, exactly the same amount of knowledge possessed by two men would
not make them equally successful. As already has been emphasized,
success is not assured by the mere possession of knowledge, _but by the
effective ways in which elements of knowledge are fitted to
opportunities_.
[Sidenote: Abstract And Applied Knowledge]
Your abstract knowledge may be valueless. In order to succeed certainly
_you must connect the things you have learned with particular people in
particular fields of activity_. When you have developed the power of
relating your individual ability to every imaginable _use_, your mental
eyes will be opened to many opportunities for success that you otherwise
might never perceive. Such an association of _what you know and can do_
with the various ways your capabilities might be utilized will
tremendously augment your self-confidence. When you realize in how many
ways it is possible to use your especial talents, you will not be likely
to doubt your own _worth_. You will offer your qualifications for sale
with complete faith in their value to prospective buyers.
[Sidenote: Insurance Against Undervaluation]
Thorough preparation in _comprehension of values_ is the salesman's best
protection against a personal inclination, or an outside temptation, to
cut prices. If your preparation for your chosen career has been limited
to _gaining knowledge_, and you have not studied its true _worth_ to
every imaginable prospective buyer, you will be apt often to offer your
services for far less than their full value. Conversely sometimes you
will be likely to think your services are worth more than they really
are. You may fail to close sales because your price is too high. A
pre-requisite of good salesmanship is the _right_ price. _If your
preparation for selling your services has been thorough, you will
realize the exact worth of your knowledge and skill_. You will neither
suggest inferior value by quoting a cut price on your capabilities, nor
demand so much as to indicate the characteristics of displeasing egotism
or greed. _If you know what you are truly worth, you will make the right
price on your real value._ Then your self-confidence in your worth will
lend you power to convince the other man that your services would be a
good "buy" for him.
[Sidenote: Seeing Into Opportunities]
If you can imagine _all the various uses to which your ability might be
put_, you will appreciate the full value of every opportunity you
perceive. Not only will you see the chances for success that are all
about you, but you will _see into_ them. When your mind _catches sight_
of success chances, they will look _familiar_ to you because of their
similarity to opportunities you _previously had thought about_ and
connected with your own qualifications. If you are prepared to perceive
and to appreciate fully each indication of a success opportunity that
comes within the range of your mental vision, you will promptly begin
working a chance "for all it is worth," as if it were a newly discovered
gold mine.
[Sidenote: Service Purpose In Preparation]
Possibly what you have read has unduly impressed you with the idea that
the salesman's motive in his preparation is selfish. So perhaps it is
well to pause here for the reminder that your primary salesmanship
purpose should be true _service_. You are preparing yourself thoroughly
in knowledge of your full sales value, _as a measure of success
insurance and self-protection._ It is not true sales service to give a
buyer value greatly in excess of the price quoted. It is right for you
to make sure in advance about your full worth. However, the obligation
to render service is the principal element of right salesmanship, and
should come before the objective of a good price. _Prepare then
primarily to serve your prospect._ Demonstrate your true service
purpose, and he will give secondary consideration to the cost of
engaging your qualifications for his business.
[Sidenote: Pleasing Character]
You can serve best if you _please_ in rendering service. Therefore
prepare your _self_, your _knowledge_, and all your _methods_ so that
from the moment you make your first impression on a prospective
employer, you will please him. Do not prepare for the interview with the
purpose of pleasing yourself. What _you_ like may be distasteful to the
man you want to impress.
Since you cannot tell in advance when or where you may encounter a
prospective buyer of your services, you will not be safeguarding every
possible chance to succeed unless you wear your "company manners" all
the time. You always should dress carefully, act with painstaking
courtesy, and conduct yourself as if you might meet a rich relation at
any moment. You certainly can expect more wealth from "making yourself
solid" with Opportunity than you ever are likely to be willed by a
millionaire uncle. It will pay you much better to please Opportunity in
general than to ingratiate yourself with any person in particular.
[Sidenote: Please Everybody Everywhere Always]
"Company manners" that are just "put on" temporarily may be left off on
the very occasion when you would want to appear at your best if you only
knew that "The Golden Chance" was to be met. Therefore prepare to be
_characteristically_ pleasing to _everybody, everywhere, and all the
time._ Then, no matter where or when or in what guise you come upon
Opportunity, you will be sure to please with your _genuineness_.
Innumerable great successes have begun with the making of a pleasing
impression on some one whose presence and notice were unknown. You
realize that your success is practically impossible if you displease.
Preparation to please is of first importance in getting ready to
succeed. Your success in the field of your especial ambition will be
assured if you win your first chance there by making an _initial_
pleasing impression and then _keep right on pleasing_.
Cultivate grace in your movements--for grace is pleasing to everyone.
Carry your body naturally, especially your head; with such a bearing
that total strangers will feel pleasure when they look at you. _Be a
person who pleases at sight._ It is not difficult. No matter what sort
of face you have, if it expresses habitually your pleasure in living, it
will look pleasant. A look of pleasure is pleasing to others. You like
to see some one else enjoying himself thoroughly. Everybody feels the
same way. Our own faces brighten when we come upon radiant happiness
anywhere.
[Sidenote: Details That Please]
Please others with your smile. It should not be just an affected smirk,
but a smile of _genuine friendliness for all the world_. Please by
wearing inconspicuous clothes that are faultless in taste, fit, and
cleanliness; and of a quality suited to your vocation. Show also that
you take good care of what you wear, for that makes a pleasing
impression. _You can please in your dress without arraying yourself in
expensive clothes._ Indeed, an over-dressed man is more displeasing to
Opportunity than is one poorly dressed. There can be no excuse for
foppishness, but a shabby neat appearance may be due to a good reason.
Please with the suggestion in your manner that you are getting along
well. Do not pretend false prosperity, of course; but _indicate that you
feel successful_. Any one finds it unpleasant to be in the company of a
failure. _If you would succeed hereafter, avoid making the impression
that you have not already succeeded._ "Success breeds success."
[Sidenote: Courtesy And Politeness]
Be courteous invariably. Learn and observe the rules of politeness.
Please by acting the gentleman always. Practice courtesy and politeness
in your own home to perfect yourself in these pleasing characteristics.
Then you will show them everywhere. Remember that the rest of the world
is made up of "somebody else's folks." Courtesy and politeness are not
natural attributes. In order to make yourself a master salesman you need
to _develop_ them to an unusually high degree. You may _intend_ to be
courteous and polite always, but only the development of the _fixed
habit_ will fully support your intention.
You cannot be polite, however courteous you mean to be, unless you take
pains to prepare yourself with knowledge of the usages of polite people.
In order to be polite, it is necessary that you do not only the
courteous thing, but the _correct thing_. Your courtesy might displease
if it were unsuited to the circumstances. It would not be polite, for
example, to invite an orthodox Jew to dinner and then to serve him with
a pork tenderloin. Your intention to be a courteous host would not
lessen your offense against good manners. Your guest would be incensed
by your impoliteness, not pleased by your courteous intention.
[Sidenote: Virility Pleases]
No quality you have is more generally pleasing than virility--_your man
stuff_. Therefore on all occasions show yourself "every inch a man."
Moreover, act like a _he_-man. Never appear "sissyfied" in even the
slightest degree. Swing your legs from the hips when you walk; don't
mince along. The stride of a he-man is strong and free. If yours lacks
the qualities of virility, change your habit of walking.
When you make gestures, move your whole arm. A wrist movement suggests
effeminacy. It is important, too, that you _train your voice to ring
with manliness_. Even a squeaky, weak tone can be made to suggest man
stuff if the words are spoken crisply, and the sentences are cleanly
cut. Do things with the _ease_ that indicates a man's strength, not with
evident effort. Perhaps you have not realized that by cultivating grace
in your movements you can make impressions of your man power. _Grace
means the least possible expenditure of energy in efficient action._ A
man can accomplish things with ease and grace that a child or a woman
would make hard work of and do awkwardly.
[Sidenote: Pleasing Tones]
A pleasing tone helps to assure one's success. You may think your voice
is a heavy handicap. Perhaps it is high pitched and squeaky; or, on the
other hand, a "growly" bass suggestive of ill-nature. Again it may be
faltering or hoarse. Such faults are not serious to a master salesman.
_If your vocal equipment is physically normal, your voice can be made
pleasing._ In order to make your tones agreeable, learn to vibrate them
naturally through your _nose_. A mouth tone is displeasing. The
so-called "nasal twang" that sounds so unpleasant is a mouth tone
_prevented_ from free vibration through the nose. Humming, as you know,
both _indicates_ pleasure and is a pleasant _sound_. It is produced with
the mouth closed, by a vibration of the bone structure of the face and
of the nasal cavities. Certainly, even if you have a disagreeable voice,
you can make your tones _hum_, and thereby render them more pleasing.
Adenoids that could be removed--even failure to keep the nose clean--may
prevent a man from succeeding. _Whatever hinders the free vibration of
tones makes displeasing impressions of the speaker_. When a man has a
bad cold in his head that blocks the nasal passages, his voice rasps the
ears of a hearer.
[Sidenote: Avoid Giving Displeasure]
Not only please by _doing_ things that give _pleasure_; also _avoid_
doing _displeasing_ things. For example, when you say or suggest
anything to another person you want to influence, remember to be a
_salesman_ of your ideas. Do not make the impression that you are
_teaching_. No adult human being really enjoys being _taught_. Any grown
person likes to be treated as an equal, and to have new thoughts
conveyed to him without that suggestion of superior intelligence which
is characteristic of many teachers when dealing with pupils. Perhaps you
have heard Burton Holmes lecture. His enunciation is a delight in its
perfection, but he talks "according to the dictionary" so naturally
that his correctness does not sound a bit affected. You feel at home
with him. His diction is attractive to you. Another speaker practicing
the same exactness of pronunciation, but less artistic in selling his
ideas with words, might displease you by his scholarly accents.
[Sidenote: Tact]
Sometimes it is tactful to speak incorrectly, as a courtesy to the other
man. If in the course of your interview with a prospective employer he
should mispronounce a word, you would be undiplomatic to emphasize the
correct pronunciation in speaking that word yourself. It is not
dishonest, but truly polite to reply "My ad'dress is"--instead of
pronouncing the word correctly. Do not suggest by over-emphasis of right
speech that you wish to pose as one who is _conscious_ of his
superiority, however well you may realize that you are on a higher plane
of intellectuality. We all like a genuinely great man who does not hold
himself aloof.
[Sidenote: Prepare For All Kinds Of Men]
Prepare to meet not only strong men, but weak men; cautious men; very
proud men; greedy men. Be ready for reckless men, humble men, men who
live to serve others. Be aware in advance of the differences in their
_buying motives_. They will not all have the same reasons for giving or
for refusing you a chance. _Hence be prepared to adapt your salesmanship
to the characteristics of the various kinds of men you are likely to
meet_. Though you never should pander to an unworthy motive, study
different types of character and _learn how to fit your ability to the
peculiar or distinctive traits of possible buyers_ of such services as
you have for sale. Perhaps an easy-going employer will appreciate your
"pep" as much as would a hustler, but he won't like it if you seem to
prod _him_ with your energy. On the other hand, the employer who is a
hustler himself might be keenly pleased should you keep him on the jump
to stay even with you.
[Sidenote: Success Insurance]
Be thorough in _preparing_ to sell your capabilities; so that your
success may be _insured_. You ride on a first-class railroad with
confidence, feeling that every precaution for your safety has been
taken. You are at ease when you begin your trip; for you know that
track, train, and men in charge all are dependable. Because of the
complete readiness of the railroad for your journey, you count on
arriving safely at your destination. You have no fears that you may be
wrecked en route.
Similarly you should make the most thorough preparation before starting
out as a salesman of the best that is in you. You have to grade your own
roadbed, and must yourself lay the rails over which your ideas in trains
of thought will be carried to the minds of other men. You are fireman,
engineer, brakeman, and conductor of this Twentieth Century Limited.
_Your destiny as a salesman of yourself is in the hands of no one
else_. Before you travel any farther, take all practicable measures to
assure your safe arrival, without delay, at the station of Success.
[Sidenote: Start Confidently]
When you are thoroughly prepared to sell true ideas of your best
capabilities, you should start with confidence that you will reach the
end of the line safely and on time. Don't attempt to "get there" before
making adequate preparation for success. Remember that a railroad does
not commence operating through trains until the track is finished.
If you are prepared now for the actual start in salesmanship--if you are
packed up and ready to leave for your field of opportunity--ALL ABOARD!