In over 25 years in sales, I estimate seeing 50-60 salespeople/colleagues come and go . This means they come into the profession with hopes and dreams and leave when it does not work out.

The challenge of finding a stable career in sales comes down to a few things.  Lack of training is one, lack of focus on the skills required to be successful is another, unrealistic expectations is a third.   Perhaps the most critical mistake of all is the definition of the job.

A salesperson is responsible for generating revenue.  Sales refers to the exchange of a product, or service for money. Traditionally, a salesperson is defined as someone who persuades someone else on a transaction.

Therein lies the first obstacle to a nice career in sales.

Persuasion.  Day in day out, it can get tiring to wake up with the sole purpose of convincing others. As a salesperson, I can share features of the product or service, I can anticipate and answer questions, but persuade?

Who wants to be convinced? The old saying is true, many love to buy but hate being sold.

For the sake of clarity: sales is less about selling and more about helping. 

Helping the customer understand how they can benefits from the service or product. 

Sales can be a very rewarding career in many ways. Especially when you commit to helping those who could benefit from what you are offering.

Stop selling, start helping.