You can say it any way you want to, but “keep your business to yourself”.  In today’s wired world too many professionals broadcast things that never would have been exposed before.  Don’t make that mistake!

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A news flash two years ago about our closest celestial body, the Moon, disclosed some secrets that many might not even know were secrets.  Despite common sayings and even albums (Pink Floyd ‘The Dark Side of the Moon, 1973 and many others) many don’t realize that the far side of the Moon, let’s call it the “Dark Side” had not generally been seen until last week.

The Moon does not revolve on an axis as the earth does, so we constantly see one side.  What does this have to do with sales? Being the consummate sales professional has much to do with how you conduct yourself with your employer, your co-workers, and your customers.  As a Black sales professional your personal life, well much of it, should be less visible than the ‘dark side of the Moon’ to many who you interact with in business.

You are developing your sales persona, and it is your ‘brand’ so it is your responsibility to manage what everyone sees and knows about you.  You will overcome obstacles in the process, but you don’t want anything that will make it tougher.  With a few exceptions you are in control of this, and you should exercise that control wisely.

Self-Inflicted Damage

This post is important as much of the damage regarding what is said or released is considered “self-inflicted” damage.

The topics for this ‘self-inflicted’ damage include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Politics
• Race Relations
• Religion
• Family
• Company Management
• Salary and benefits
• Interracial Relationships
• Sexual Relationships

Above all, remember a most important lesson.  As indicated in Black Sales Journal 10/27/11 – The 3 Unmentionables for the Black Sales Professional, avoid talking about the following;

• Politics
• Race Relations
• Religion

The Scene of the Crime

The forums and situations that you have utterances and conversations about these topics are many.  The people that you have these situations with can be the familiar to a network broadcast (social media).

Co-workers – Treat the people that you work with like they are people you work with.  They are not your best friends, and don’t need access to your life story, your relationships, and your ‘master plan to beat the man’.  What you say at the bar or club can come back to haunt you.  Some solid examples appear in the following posts:

• Friends, Co-Workers, and Vampires (Black Sales Journal 1/30/2012)
• Friends at Work (Black Sales Journal 5/23/2011)

Social Media – Wow! This one deserves more discussion than we can give here.  Do you need to post those pictures of you with the dreaded ‘red cup’?  Social media makes it easy to find something to criticize.  This is the broadcast that we spoke of earlier.  Your personal life is your business and you should recognize that there is no context specified on social media, it is just ‘out there’.

• Social Media – Avoiding the Pitfalls (Black Sales Journal 3/10/2011)

Customers – You never know what perceptions the customer has until you have the deepest of relationships.  That is only going to happen with a select number of customers.  This means that you still must project your brand.  For the Black sales professional I suggest that there is no casual day at a customer location that you need to participate in, wear your uniform (Your suit or business attire).  You are the professional.  There is no usage of slang and colloquial terms and foul language.

The customer will only know about your family and friends what you tell them.  Even if he tells you about his brother Rick, who smokes something that smells funny, that does not mean that you need to air your family’s dirty laundry.  You might read the item below to see the importance:

• Preference, Prejudice, and Your Customer, Black Sales Journal 12/27/2010

Management – Your manager needs to know you.  Actually, your manager needs to know the ‘you that you want him to know’.  This is “image management” in its finest sense.  Do you want management to know all of your past?  Do you want them to know the nature and depth of your intimate relationships?  Do you want them to know that you have relatives that are incarcerated?  I say why have those types of conversations and disclosures?  Now you may think that this does not happen, but it does.  Be careful because as I have said before “You cannot put toothpaste back in the tube”.

I say that your superiors should know the things that will shape your brand!  You are a hard worker…you worked your way through school.  You have perseverance and stick-to-it-ness…you were an athlete on scholarship.  You have a good personality and good values and can show it, stick to that type of disclosure.

No discussions on religion, race relations, and politics.  Don’t be baited.

Build a Brand for Yourself

We will cover this more in February and March, as it deserves it.  When you go this route, you use each of the above, social media, co-workers, management, and the customer to make it happen.  It is not an easy process, and it requires that each input and contact be carried out with forethought and consistency.

Always be the best!

Your comments are appreciated.

Courtesy of IBM Archives

As we begin to close out Black History week, I wanted to give you a chance, once again to see what it was like for a true sales pioneer.  His ability to deal with racial preference, racial discrimination, and acts of racial prejudice are legendary.  We cannot avoid giving kudos to Thomas Watson and International Business Machines (IBM) in their effort to provide equality.

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Amazingly enough, it is still not too late to be the first! Being the first is an important role in American society.  It is equally important in business.

I am going to use cite one iconic American company as an example. As a matter of fact, it is more than symbolic, because this organization took a leadership role.  This is a brief study in how an organization handles diversity.

A Leader in More Ways than One

Printed Courtesy of IBM historical archives

In 1946 International Business Machines, also known as IBM, hired its first black sales representative. It was an individual named Tom (T.J.) Laster. This was well before the Civil Rights Act of 1963.  This act was also well before the Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier inprofessional baseball.  This was not a beauty products company, or someone selling durable goods products to the Black community, this was a business products company that was on the technical leading edge, and selling their product to basic ‘white’ America’s businesses.

The audience that Laster was something to was decidedly in the majority. If we think we see racial prejudice and racial preference, we need to recognize that we see nothing like this gentleman was faced with during his tenure as a sales professional.  A couple of years later, Laster joined the 100% Club, an honor for reaching his sales quota.  This was affirmation to many that this individual was a qualified and accomplished sales professional.

The 40s, 50s, and 60s were decidedly difficult time even dream of being “the first” in B2B sales, but someone had to do it.  Soon after Laster, IBM hired their first Black marketing representative (Lionel Fultz) in 1951, their first Black engineer in 1952 (Harry Cochraine), and their first Black engineering manager, (Calvin Waite) in 1956.  Lionel Fultz also was named branch manager in 1964.

This made IBM a leader in both business machines as well as employment diversity.  It also made Tom Laster a pioneer in the sales diversity situation.  He was willing, and obviously began destroying the racial perceptions that Blacks, or Negros as we were referred to in that time, could not handle the technical nature and business relationship issues related to B2B sales to a white business populace.  I would believe that partially as a result, many others Black professionals followed through the doors that were opened.

There was no greater a threshold in business sales as this one!  This was certainly important.  Although you probably won’t read books about it there is no doubt as to the impact.

Following this, IBM, assuming the leadership role again, penned and enacted its Equal Opportunity Policy through the Thomas Watson’s (the president of IBM) letter to his organization termed as Policy Letter # Four.  This September 21, 1953 letter directed his managers to “…hire people regardless of race, color, or creed.”  We wish it was as easy this declaration, but this was a start.

This is Significant, But Why is it Important?

I hope you see the significance in the story of Laster. He is truly a pioneer, and really knows what it feels like to be the first.  What is equally important is that you still can be the first Black sales professional in many organizations.

By the same token, you still can be that individual the changes everyone’s ideas about the abilities and work ethic of black professionals.  It would be nice not to worry about that, but it is significant.

. I was not the first Black sale professional in the organization that I came up in. I was actually the third. I was the first Black sales manager, and the first Black vice president, senior vice president, and executive vice president.  I had some interesting experiences, which I try to share in this ‘journal’, but I am certain that many of these assertions would have paled in comparison to the stories that Laster could tell.

Be the Best

There are many small and medium sized organizations that have avoided, for whatever reason, employment diversity.  They could have avoided it because of their small size, or because they purposely have not hired Black sales professionals.  They may have other Blacks and minorities working for the company.  It does not matter what the reason might be, embrace that opportunity to work for and to change those organizations.  Show your stuff!

Your only requirement is to do be best that you can be at what you do.  By being the best, you increase your opportunities for success, as well as destroy ridiculous and erroneous racial perceptions.  Your success will be rewarded with a high compensation rate, but also in the pride you have in being the first!

Be the Best!  Your comments are appreciated