Sell like a Navy Seal

Sales, like Navy Seal special ops, requires special consideration and process. Smooth things out. Take time to master the basics.”

Jeff Sleete, a 50+ year broadcast industry veteran

When we moved back to Florida, we picked a spot to live on a 16,000-acre lake — part of a chain of lakes that comprise 50,000 acres.

However, we didn’t want to deal with the maintenance and other issues of boat ownership, so we joined a boat club. To be a member, you had to go through their boating education course run by a former Navy Seal team master chief petty officer.

In my opinion, the hardest thing to learn about piloting a boat is docking into a slip. My instructor drilled into my head that “slow is fast” when docking. Small bursts of engine power are used — followed by shifting to neutral — to guide a boat into a slip gently. This allows you to master the boat’s movement and adjust without losing control.

 “Slow is fast” is an offshoot of a phrase commonly used in the Seal Teams: “Slow is smooth; smooth is fast.”

Seal Team operations are highly stealthy and involve life-and-death situations, demanding incredible planning. With so much on the line, it is easy to comprehend why Seal Teams have such high regard for allowing the time to move slowly and deliberately, focusing on precision and process over speed.

When “you know what” hits the fan, Seals want to be able to move very quickly and accomplish their mission.

Before Seals even begin executing a special operation, they painstakingly prepare for all the steps they will do, when and how. They drill through the details so they can work through potential roadblocks beforehand. It is always about making everything as smooth as possible so they can get in and out quickly.

The “slow is smooth; smooth is fast” concept is a valuable lesson that can be applied to various fields, like:

…NASCAR, where mastering tight cornering and smooth acceleration brings about faster lap times.

…Martial Arts, where exhaustive and repetitive practice of techniques leads to greater speed and impact.

…Music, where practicing a musical piece at a slower tempo develops the control to play faster with greater ease.

…and Sales — you guessed it! Slow is smooth applies here as well.

One of the biggest mistakes is rushing into a potential sale without proper preparation. Moving too fast in the sales process, whether in the research, discovery, presentation or closing phases, can delay or even kill a deal.

Sales, like Navy Seal special ops, requires special consideration and process. Smooth things out. Take time to master the basics.

Do you want to close more deals faster? The choice is yours.

You can be as smooth as sandpaper by pushing more and more activity into your sales day, going for the quick close, ignoring research and discovery, passing over relationship-building and believing speed will deliver success. 

Or you can be as smooth as a lake on a windless day by methodically mastering your sales fundamentals.

Jeff Sleete is a 50+ year broadcast industry veteran — sales manager/GM/corporate sales head. He most enjoys helping sales departments position themselves as “mavens” (experts) of business to be more successful at selling advertising. Fundamentally, Jeff is a salesman. Through his media sales consultancy, Sleete Sales Script, he provides a daily road map for sellers of any media outlet type to be more consultative in their approach to their clients and set themselves apart from all their competition. Learn more about Jeff at https://www.sleetesales.com/. Or reach him at  jeff@sleetesales.com.