The natural salesman

There were only three of us in Bible study group the other morning, and the other two guys were both in sales—one in property and one in software. We were talking about how to encourage other people with the message of the Bible (whether Christian or non-Christian), about why we fail to do so, and so on. I started to say that I sometimes find it difficult to talk easily about Christian things, especially with non- Christians, because I’m not a natural ‘salesman’ sort of personality—“Not like you two guys”. But one of my friends pulled me up short. “No, you don’t understand sales”, he said. “It’s not about being a particular personality. I’ve got all these guys who think they’re great salesmen because they’re the fast-talking, ambitious ‘sales’ guy. But they’re actually not. The girl who’s bringing in the most business is much more laid-back, but she’s genuine. She communicates real concern and sincerity. She gets next to people, understands and listens to them, and then works really hard to help them get what they want. She’s bringing in the business, but if you asked her, she wouldn’t say she was a natural salesperson. “It’s really about whether you love the product and know it well, and whether you actually care for people and want to see them satisfied. If you really believe in it, then you’ll sell it.” My other friend the salesman chimed in: “Yes, that’s right. You can have someone who knows the technical details of the product perfectly, but who has no passion for it, and no empathy or ability to relate to people and listen to them. Selling is just as much about listening as anything else.” My first friend smiled at me and made his point: “So don’t tell us you’re not a salesperson. You sell us the Bible every week. You lead and guide the group. You listen. You relate well to us. You obviously believe in the ‘product’. And the person who believes in the product and really wants to sell it will do it in their own way, through their own personality.” There was one of those nice pauses that happens sometimes in a small group—not the awkward silence, but the silence of completion when someone has just drawn together and summarized exactly what God wanted us to hear that morning. We looked at each other and felt the challenge. It doesn’t have a whole lot to do with how gifted or clever we are, but how much we love the message of God, and how much we love the people around us who need to hear it.