I read a story of a Japanese blacksmith from the early 20th century who worked for his father. He put in a few hours for drinking money and didn't take the work too seriously until his father was hospitalized and he needed to earn a real living for his family.
His approach; if a customer was paying $100 for a product he would deliver them a $300 product. In each and every instance he was turning a customer into a client and getting their business for life.
Your work and the people who purchase it from you are your salesmen when you are not around. Either they're telling people not too bother or telling them to only deal with you.
Walk onto a sales floor and you will see the difference between people who can make six figures and people who can barely make a living all doing the same job for the same hours.
I've worked in sales for the past 8 years, my only requirement was pride in the products I sold, that enthusiasm would always carry over to the client. As a sole proprietor of a woodworking shop you will be a salesman who happens to woodwork, if you love the work and want them to have your best work then they see that.
The talent of men like George Nakashima and Sam Maloof that no one talks about is their ability to sell. When you watch interviews with Maloof what did he talk about? He talks about his interesting client stories, times when he went over and above for his clients and how much he loves to woodwork....that is a salesman.
Last edited by Brian Holcombe; 05-01-2016 at 10:32 AM.
Bumbling forward into the unknown.