Unfortunately most companies that I have worked for tend to motivate through fear. Fear of loosing your job, plain out intimidation, and always flexing the muscles of the higher ups. In my opinion this is not a very good way to motivate anyone. Have you ever heard the old expression, you catch more flies with sugar rather than salt?'

By praising a person for a job well done it goes a lot further in establishing a good working relationship that helps to build self-esteem. Most people take kindly to positive praise rather than being made to feel as if they are inadequate. Negative motivation, though it may work for a while, in the long run is detrimental to creating a positive worker.

One should lead by example. If the so called leader of the group can out-sell the rest of the group, then respect is earned not given out of fear. Loyalty can be earned and that type is more likely to be real and have lasting impressions on the subordinates. Human nature once again proves the fact that people respond to positive criticism rather than being belittled all the time. What is wrong with saying, good job, but have you tried it this way?'

I have heard it said, and witnessed it first hand, that the best way to ruin a good salesperson is to promote them to a manager's position. It is true and I have seen it with my own eyes on more than one occasion. Being a good manager is an art form in and of its self. Just because you call someone manager that doesn't make it so, sure they have the title, but what about the skills.

In order to be affective as a boss your people must first respect you and feel that you have something that you can teach them, which in turn will make them better at the job and more successful. It is much like walking a tightrope to manage a room full of sales people.

In order to be a good salesman egos are involved. No two salespeople can be treated exactly alike. This is the most common mistake corporate America makes in their training approach. If there were a cookie cutter approach that worked on everyone then training salespeople would be a snap. Sadly, the opposite is truer than not. Each individual is just that, an individual. They all have different things that motivate them. For some, I might say the majority, money is the strongest motivator. It is not always the case and doesn't work on everyone.

Once a good manager understands this and takes the time to get to know what makes each of their salesperson's tick, the further along

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