Using Your Personal Story to Inspire and Instruct: the Mound Road Story by Bob Terson

I first heard about Bob Terson, author of Selling Fearlessly, through Steve Lahey’s Small Businss Talent site. I was struck both by his wonderful use of stories and how his goodness and desire to help others was so evident.

In the interview, Steve Lahey noted that Selling Fearlessly was story-based, rather than a dry, techincally written book. Bob said he consciously chose that format.

Bob knows the power of stories.

I ended up purchasing Selling Fearlessly (loved it) in part because of the focus on courage and stepping outside your comfort zone and in part because, given Bob’s interview, it seemed like a great example of how to use stories to make your point come alive.

I wanted to share with you my favorite story in the book because its a message we all need to hear now and then…especially if we are going through challenging times.

It’s an example of what I call the “If I could survive THAT…I can survive THIS!” perspective and how to use a story to remind people that they have the courage and ability to prevail over the “dark night of the soul” they are going through.

OK…enough of the preamble…Here’s the opening of the story and then a link to the rest.

“The Mound Road Story”

Chapter 1 from Selling Fearlessly: A Master Salesman’s Secrets for the One-Call-Close Salesperson

– By Robert Terson

I think a hero is an ordinary individual who finds strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles.” – Christopher Reeve (1952-2004)

In the Introduction I quoted Olympic pole-vaulter Bob Richards: “Every day ordinary people do extraordinary things.” Now I’m going to tell you about an extraordinary event, 41 years ago, which turned my life around forever; I call it “The Mound Road Story.” It encompasses all three sides of the selling Triangle (see Chapter 9, “The Triangle”). I’ve told this true story, maybe, a hundred times; and each time I tell it, a tidal wave of incredulity sweeps me out to sea and I ask myself: Would my professional life have been markedly different, would the success I achieved been lessened, if that remarkable event had never taken place? It truly makes me wonder.

Here’s some background to help you appreciate that improbable night and morning. I trained four weeks before going into the field alone that Wednesday; my first town was New Lenox, Illinois, approximately ten miles east of Joliet. I lost two presentations that first day and two more the following day, Thursday. I also set up an appointment Thursday to present to two women, partners in a beauty salon; forty years have faded their names into oblivion, but we’ll call them Margaret and Joanna. They were in their mid-thirties and, as I recall, quite attractive. So I was 0 for 4, a bit shaky mental-attitude-wise—my fantasies had foreseen instant record-breaking numbers—and a dark shadow of desperation stalked me as I drove over to that beauty salon.

Bob Trudeau, who taught me the telephone-book-cover advertising business, used to say, “The first olive out of the bottle is the toughest; they start pouring out after you get that first one out.” I craved that first olive out of the bottle.

My subconscious must have been working in overdrive, because when I got there, I re-qualified them to make sure they were the sole decision makers; it’s a good thing I did.

“Well, actually,” Margaret said, “we’d have to get our husbands’ approval, too; it takes all four of us to decide anything.”

The sound you would have heard was air exploding from my lungs via my agape mouth. You’ve heard about the deer caught frozen in the headlights? Well, that was me. I thought I’d properly qualified them earlier, but obviously not—a rookie mistake. I was making too many of them. Oh, God, what else can go wrong?

 …read more….

About Bob Terson: Robert Terson writes the Selling Fearlessly blog and is the author of “Selling Fearlessly: A Master Salesman’s Secrets For the One-Call-Close Salesperson.”  He has retired from a 40 year career in sales, including owning his own company, to write, speak, and help others succeed; to give back for a lifetime of blessings.

for more about Bob…