Who comes to mind when you think of people who never quit or give up? Perhaps Abe Lincoln; eight political defeats, then he is elected President. Or, perhaps Admiral Perry who mounted three expeditions to the North Pole before he successfully achieved the goal. There are legions of folks who embraced tenacity and were willing to withstand either rejection or seemingly insurmountable obstacles to achieve their dreams.

Perhaps the person I think of first who exemplifies intestinal fortitude was brought to us by Dr. Seuss. "Hello, I am Sam; Sam I am. Do you like green eggs and ham? Do you like them in a house? Do you like them with a mouse? Do you like them here or there? Do you like them anywhere?"

Yep, that Sam took rejection on the chin. He never took "no" for an answer. That's a dude (not sure if it's Samuel or Samantha, so I'll stick with dude) believed in his product so much that he was willing to pursue his prospects until they just took a taste."Just try them," he explores. And, tadah, turns out green eggs and ham are great! He offered his prospects fourteen options and took sixty-six rejections before he got a yes!

What would it do to the success of real estate sales professionals if they were willing to view, "No," as "No for now?" How many opportunities are left on the table that could have been converted to transactions if the agent was not discouraged by an initial decline in services?

In addition, sales professionals who understand that every client has his/her unique needs and offers lots of solutions to meet those needs are hitting the proverbial nail on the head when it comes to service delivery. As every woman knows, one size does not fit all!

When you're willing to take rejection and turn it into a motivating force driving you forward, you are mirroring the best of "Sam I am."

Published: March 9, 2007

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Marylyn B. Schwartz, CSP, is a noted expert in real estate and corporate sales training, team development, customer care and diversity issues. She is president of TEAMWEAVERS and a trainer for Leader's Choice, the number one real estate sales training program in North America. Marylyn is also an author and Business/Life Coach. Contact her at , or visit her website at teamweavers.com.