Before you read this article – make sure you have read Part 1 [LINK].

A tricky, non-standard mode for recruiting salespeople is to focus on mindset, behaviors, and personality more than experience. This is definitely missing with recruiting that is done by a founder/leader who isn’t a salesperson and thinks that experience trumps everything. This is also a missing mode for experienced sales leaders that don’t understand the value of mindset and cultural fit and are looking for salespeople who sold similar things to themselves.

This leads to a team full of people with sales experience, but not the mindset and group fit that it takes to succeed. If you have tried this default hiring strategy, you know that the next thing to occur is a change resistant sales team. One that – since they have experience and know what they are doing – don’t feel like they should do anything different, change any aspect of their sales process or conversation, or must learn much more than they already know.

Instead, what we want is a team full of people who fit in with your corporate culture. They are Open to your mission, vision, and core values. They are excited about them. They realize that change is a part of life and success – that you are either growing or dying. There is no such thing as stability.



Mindset Trait #2: Curiosity

And now for the second mindset that we want to identify and hire for is Curiosity. (Of course, read the two articles this week to learn why it’s so important- here [LINK] and here [LINK]).

How can we determine if someone is curious?

This one is actually pretty simple: pay attention to the quality and quantity of their questions during the interview conversations.

Typically, in my first interview, I ask them questions to determine a little bit about their background (based on their resume) and then giving them a brief description of the role and company. But I don’t share a lot – unlike other hiring managers or HR – because I am not there to sell them on the job, role, income potential, company, mission, etc. I am there to evaluate them. They have the job post. They have the internet. They can learn what they need to know - at first.

(Yes, of course, later on we will get into more details. But I see so many company people make the fatal mistake of feeling like they need to explain/sell the role and potential on that first interview. It would be like someone on a first date explaining all of their amazing qualities, how much money they make, their job, their house, their car, their future plans, etc. It would feel weird, and probably gross and off-putting. Yet hiring managers do it all the time.)

Then, in the second interview, my opening statement will be “So, before we begin, since last we spoke, what questions do you have for me?”

Their response is almost all I need to know to whether I will hire them or not.

The Red Flag: Lack of Questions and “Going in for the Kill”

If I get “I don’t have any questions, everything sounds good” – then we are basically done. Candidate rejected.

Instant rejection is if they add on to that statement (keeping in mind we are 3 minutes into the 2^nd interview, where the 1^st interview was maybe a 15 minute phone call) “when can I start?”

While most hiring managers see that as a sign of a sales killer – someone who asks for the sale- the big part that they typically miss is how that person had no questions and then just went in for the kill/sale.

The Dangers of Hiring Salespeople Without Curiosity

What do you think they will do with your prospects?

Think they will ask them questions during discovery? Think they will care about them as an individual? Remember – no matter if B2B or B2C, it’s H2H – it’s a human they are selling to.

No, they absolutely will not. They think they know everything about sales and people and business. They know what people want and need without even asking. They also feel that “buyers are liars” so why even ask them questions – they will just lie anyway, right?

And they will go in for the kill, early and often. They will feel like the key to sales success is asking for the sale, being persistent. Maybe even – which I have heard before – with the goal of just wearing the person down, overcoming all their objections, so they don’t have a choice but to say yes.

They will be an absolute menace to your prospect pipeline. Yes, they will close some sales, but at what cost?

And, since they know everything, how do you think managing them will go? My guess is you already know…since you hired that type of person before. You know exactly what happened.

How Interview Responses Predict Sales Performance

Now, I am not completely trying to sound negative about that type of salesperson – but I am not wrong. If they are not Curious with you during the interview process, they will be the same person with your prospects (This logic holds true with all the traits – people are who they are, especially when they don’t think it matters, or they don’t think someone is watching.).

Keep in mind that I have directly or indirectly hired and/or dealt with more than a thousand salespeople over the years. I used to ignore that voice in my head during the interview that said “well maybe they didn’t have any questions because they did research, are so smart, and ready to go. Isn’t that what I want in a salesperson?” And I would be wrong each time – until I stopped that delusional hiring manager from being so blind and hopeful (yes – that person was me!).

Testing for Research and Preparedness

Now, let’s talk about how you test them for if they did the research.

After they are done asking me questions (which I will get to the quality part in a moment) or not asking me any – I ask them: “So tell me what you know about our company and what we sell to customers.”

Their response will tell me everything I need to know. If I get a “I am not sure, I have applied for a lot of jobs, and I don’t remember which one this is. Can you tell me what you guys do here and sell?” = we are super done. I may answer their question as a courtesy, but I promise that the interview will be about five minutes long. 

Their response will help me understand their Openness and Curiosity all in one – were they Open and Curious enough to research our company, product, and industry? Or did they just wing in? (Not a shock by now…but guess what – that is the same way they will be in your sales role. I promise.)

What to Look for in Their Questions

Now let’s talk about quality. We don’t just want someone who is Curious and has any or lots of questions in general. We want questions that indicate that deep level of Curiosity. I don’t want only questions about schedule, time off, vacation pay, commission, hourly base pay. If they only ask those questions – they are looking for a ‘job’ that will help them live a comfortable, easy life. (Note – if they ask those questions later in the process, when we go from dating to getting married…then I am happy with those questions, because they are admin, process, mental checklist, good-to-know items.)

What I want them to ask are questions about the sales role, the process, the calls, the challenges that new salespeople face in the role, the way to succeed, who is the best closer and why, etc. Questions that give the indication they are coming from someone who wants to learn how the game is played, who is currently winning at the game, and what they will need to do to win. I want that person.

Conclusion

And yes, eventually I want them to ask for the job in the “when can I start” mode. But not too early. In the beginning, I need to feel a great sense of their Openness and Curiosity.