[wushupork]

I was an engineer as well early in my career. As an entrepreneur now, I've been doing sales for the last 8 years. I've never been formally in any sales role prior to running my own business, so I mostly learned on the job and on my own through trial and error.

I think when most people hear the word sales, it usually has an adverse reaction. Someone mentioned here that being a consultant is a good way to approach it and I've found that to be true.

I've recently heard of a great acronym that helps you think of how to approach sales: S - Serve - go in w/ a service mindset A - Ask questions - don't go yapping about your offerings just yet. Find out what their pain point is. This way you know what to offer and what to skip L - Listen intently. I think a lot of times, I'm very guilty of "waiting to speak" vs listening. E - Emphathize - with the customer and their pain. This is why they are coming to you. S - Summarize in your own words what you heard.

Then you can "do your thing"