Self-belief is the fulcrum point of  success. It’s the bridge between  your personal attitude and enthusiasm,  and your ability to transfer confidence  to your prospective buyer or  existing customer.

Without belief in what you do, what  you’re selling and whom you’re selling  for, your ability to engage your prospective  customers and get them to want to  buy will be low.

As salespeople try to build their  careers, they focus on product knowledge,  selling skills, maybe some networking-  relationship skills and little  else. They leave out one of the two critical  success elements for true achievement  and fulfillment: self-belief (the  other being positive attitude).

HISTORY: The common thread  among all thought leaders,philosophers  and personal development experts is  their consistent writing on the subjects  of positive thinking and self-belief.

Dale Carnegie, author of the timeless  “How to Win Friends and Influence People,”  said:”If you believe in what you are  doing, then let nothing hold you up in  your work. Much of the best work of  the world has been done against seeming  impossibilities. The thing is to get  the work done.”

See what I mean? Well, is that you?  How deep is your belief?

CHALLENGE: Timeless quotations  are truths that have stood the  test of time. They make you  think about where you are and  where you seek to grow.

Among hundreds of powerful  thoughts and pearls of wisdom,  Napoleon Hill, in his epic  self-help book “Think and  Grow Rich,” said, “Whatever  the mind of man can conceive  and believe, it can achieve.”

This morning, my e-mail inbox  had this “quote of the day”  from Maxwell Maltz, author of  “Psycho-Cybernetics”: “Within  you right now is the power to do things  you never dreamed possible. This  power becomes available to you just as  soon as you can change your beliefs.”

AHA! Maybe you don’t want to  change your beliefs. Or maybe you  think your beliefs are strong enough.  Maybe, but if you’re losing sales on  price or low bids, I doubt it. Believers  get past price with value and passion.  How about you? Do you believe  enough to succeed? Do you believe  enough to sell with passion? Do you  believe enough to persuade others to  see your point of view, or to see your  way as the best way?

Here are the 4.5 core beliefs:

1. Belief in your company.  Belief that the ethics are high  and the people are great. Belief  that the support is superior  and the dedication to customers  and excellence are at  the top of their core values  and principles.

2. Belief in your products.  Belief that you are the leader  in quality and value. Belief that  is self-evident when you present  your value proposition to  your prospective customer.

3. Belief in your service. All customers  need service; the issue is how  you respond. If your company supports  customers and considers loyalty above  satisfaction, you’re on the right path.

4. Belief in yourself. This is where  the rubber meets the … brain. Your  thoughts precede your words and  actions. If you are unsure, that will be  evident to those you seek to persuade.  If you have a history of success and  present with self-confidence (a.k.a.  deep belief), it will often turn the tide  from doubt to certainty in the mind of  the prospect.

4.5. Belief that when your customers  buy, they are better off. This is the part  that tests your real belief. When they  buy, you have joy and positive anticipation  rather than remorse and guilt.

“Mediocrity stems from lack of belief  more than lack of skill.” That’s my quotation.  And in my experience, I could  not write words more true.

If you want to increase your chances  of increasing your sales, deepen your  belief system before you make your  next sales call.

Here’s the cool part: the deeper your  belief, the deeper your pockets.

Want more quotations on belief? Go  to www.gitmore.com , register if you’re  a first-time user, and enter the words I  BELIEVE in the GitBit box.

Jeffrey Gitomer can be reached by  phone at (704) 333-1112 or by  e-mail at salesman@gitomer.com.  © 2007 Jeffrey H. Gitomer