Since I wrote the articles "The Salesperson Distributors Like Most" and "The Salesperson Buyers Like Most," many salespeople have called or emailed me, asking if I could write more articles of this kind. After careful consideration, I thought that since there is a market for such articles, they might offer some inspiration for the career development of salespeople. So I wrote this piece, "The Four Types of Salespeople Bosses Like Most." Because even if a salesperson is well-liked by distributors and buyers, it is all in vain if the boss doesn't like them. Therefore, the first priority for a salesperson is to win the boss's favor.

We often hear bosses say: "Those with both virtue and talent, I boldly promote; those with virtue but no talent, I assign minor tasks; those with talent but no virtue, I absolutely do not employ!" How should we understand virtue and talent here? What virtues and talents do bosses want? Some bosses say, "The salespeople I like most are those who can create profits, benefits, and value for the company." Is that really the case?

Throughout my career, I have met many salespeople who are highly capable and create value for the company. In the industry, people praise them everywhere, yet they still fail to win the boss's favor, and eventually, they part ways unhappily. Upon careful examination, I have summarized the following four types of salespeople that bosses like the most:

Type 1: Salespeople who dare to take responsibility

As market competition intensifies, many salespeople have developed a habit of avoiding responsibility when facing life's ups and downs and work pressures. Avoiding responsibility is a negative mindset and a behavior of lacking courage to face challenges and pressure. In fact, the more one avoids responsibility, the more one is doomed to failure, and the more problems one encounters. Those who dare to face challenges head-on and take responsibility are the ones who taste the fruits of success.

Salespeople inevitably make mistakes in their marketing work; this is determined by the professional nature of marketing, which is a job full of pressure and challenges. However, wise bosses generally forgive work-related mistakes, unless they are principled errors. But first, one must take responsibility for one's mistakes. Courageously admitting mistakes can enhance one's credibility and help improve one's character. Therefore, as salespeople, we should not evade responsibility. Due to cultural and educational factors, Chinese salespeople often tend to shirk responsibility and lack the habit of taking responsibility.

We often hear salespeople say: "The market competition is so fierce, I can't do anything about it," "It's not that I don't try, but the competitors are too strong," "It wouldn't have been like this if it weren't for..." "If it weren't for XX reason, I would have definitely..." "It wasn't me who did this," "It's all because of this and that." These are all excuses to avoid responsibility. Avoiding responsibility can only provide temporary relief; it is difficult to achieve good performance at work. Salespeople who are unwilling to take on more responsibility either stay stagnant or get trampled by others, never becoming managers, let alone achieving great things.

However, whether in personal conduct or work, I believe any boss likes employees who dare to take responsibility. If the boss has to take responsibility for everything, such a boss will either be exhausted by work, or the company will be dragged down by the boss alone, or the company will never grow big.

How can salespeople develop a habit of responsibility?

First, they must have a sense of responsibility. Work requires responsibility; any job has its duties. The duties of a salesperson are to develop markets, maintain markets, serve markets, and collect payments. Each of these tasks comes with pressure and difficulties. When encountering difficulties or problems, never look for excuses in your mind; in action, first solve the problem, then share responsibility. Second, always think from the perspective of work and the company, not from personal feelings. Because thinking from a personal perspective can lead to biased views, complicating issues, and failing to handle problems objectively. Finally, cultivate the habit of taking responsibility for small things. Everyone starts with small things; if a person is not responsible for small matters, it is hard to believe they can be responsible for big ones.

Type 2: Salespeople who dare to make suggestions

Salespeople are often afraid to make suggestions, either because they fear the boss won't like it, or because they worry the suggestion won't be effective for work or the company. In fact, smart bosses like employees to make suggestions about the company, even if those suggestions are not immediately useful. At least it shows you love the company and take your work seriously. If you have never made a suggestion, from the boss's perspective, you probably are not serious or responsible about your work, or at least you haven't really used your brain at work, so you have no opinions about the company and no suggestions for work.

Another reason bosses like salespeople to make suggestions is that many improvements and innovations in the company come from salespeople's suggestions. For example, reasons for poor market performance of products, why products don't sell, or quality issues—these problems are often unknown to the boss at home, but he is eager to know. Improving or innovating products based on salespeople's suggestions is the most effective way.

Of course, making suggestions also requires tact. You should not make overly sharp suggestions in public, especially those that are aggressive or critical of the boss himself. According to experts, before making suggestions to the boss, you should be well-prepared. Before proposing, you should have a comprehensive and detailed understanding of the pros and cons of the boss's or supervisor's decisions, so that you can analyze the strengths and weaknesses of their thinking face-to-face. Besides that, it is more important to clarify your own thoughts, preferably forming complete written materials, so that when you present your suggestions, you can be well-founded, persuade the leader, and make him believe and accept your advice. Second, choose the right timing. Find an appropriate opportunity for face-to-face communication with the boss. As long as your suggestion is specific and feasible, most wise bosses will consider it. Finally, absolutely avoid direct conflict with the boss. Whether or not the boss ultimately adopts your suggestion, do not have a direct confrontation; you must understand that the final decision rests with the boss. Because bosses care about face, they rarely listen to sharp suggestions; bosses like Emperor Taizong of Tang are rare.

Type 3: Salespeople who are willing to dedicate themselves

Here, "willing to dedicate" means not being overly concerned with personal gains and losses at work, and being willing to treat work as a career. The characteristic of this type of salesperson is "working for the company like a boss, thinking about the company's development like a boss." They are the most dedicated employees in the company. They firmly believe: "No pain, no gain." Like the protagonists Rowan and Argyburt in the books "A Message to Garcia" and "No Excuse," they are sincere, dedicated, and willing to contribute.

They never care about immediate interests, are not intimidated by others' sarcasm, do not abandon their pursuits due to personal gains or losses, and do not retreat because of the surrounding environment!

This type of salesperson knows a simple truth: Where your heart is, there your time goes; where your time goes, there your growth happens; where your growth happens, there your wealth lies!

Ask yourself: Is there any boss in the world who doesn't like such employees? Such salespeople are definitely important assets to the company and can become the backbone of the company's development.

Type 4: Salespeople who are adept at flattering the boss

When you do not possess the above abilities or attitudes, I think you must learn to flatter the boss. People are people, and bosses are no exception. Everyone likes to be complimented; that is a human weakness. In any company, you may see that salespeople who are good at flattering the boss are well-liked. Although their work ability is not strong, their intelligence is not high, and they may not be well-educated, they can still wield influence in the company and leverage the boss's power. Even when the boss changes several times, they remain standing firm.

The reason is simply that they can cater to the boss, act according to the boss's intentions, and never go against the boss's will to act independently. Even if they know the boss is wrong, they still execute according to the boss's wishes. Of course, I don't quite approve of salespeople being so spineless, but for survival, you have to "lower your head under someone else's roof."

Salespeople who are good at flattering the boss are basically psychologists. They can always figure out the boss's psychology, preferences, behavior, and ways of dealing with people and things.

Another characteristic of this type is that they are personnel experts, relatively low-key, good at dealing with people, and good at choosing sides. They don't study work much, but this is both their strength and weakness, yet they can be flexible and resourceful.

Among the above four types of salespeople, although the other three are indispensable in the company, in the boss's mind, the last type is the most favored.

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