There are three kinds of salespeople:

(1) Those who hate cold-calling, and would rather get a route canal;

(2) Those who love and hate it, knowing its good for them, but are still uncomfortable doing it;

(3) And those who actually look forward to doing it, who find it exciting and challenging and financially rewarding.

99% of the people Ive trained are in the first two groups. They are only moderately successful as salespeople.

The real winners teach themselves to enjoy cold calling, to relish the thrills and spills and the special status that accords to the Big Dogs, who really know how to hunt.

Speaking of which, there are three kinds of hunters:(1) Those who want to hang around the campfire and tell stories; (2) Those who stay near the campsite, gathering berries and low-hanging fruit; and (3) Rambos.

Of course, you remember Rambo, the movie character brought to life by Sylvester Stallone. He was the guy that the small town Sheriff tried to bully. The Sheriffs name, by the way, was Dummo.

Rambo can do it all, fashioning a poncho from a scrap of canvas, hunting with only a knife, some self-made string, and his grit. And he, better than anyone else can survive and thrive on adversity.

I was doing a ride-along with a salesman in Florida whose specialty is building his insurance accounts by cold calling at business parks and out of the way factories.

I asked him why he enjoyed cold calling so much. Heres how this Rambo replied:

You never know what opportunities youre going to walk into, he beamed, brightly.

A second later, we passed through a portal only to find a million-watt, gorgeous smile waiting for us.

Ill tell you why I like it. Once you can successfully cold call, you can accomplish anything else in selling. Its like bench-pressing 300 pounds and then cutting back to 100.

A Rambo who is handed a warm lead swarms all over it, and doesnt back off until a deal is made. If hes so lucky as to receive an inbound call, well, the game is over.

Hell definitely transform the lukewarm inquiry into a sizzling sale, on the spot-no call backs, or Please send me a brochure dodges, allowed.

Dont believe anyone who says cold calling is dead, unnecessary, or pass.

Just Rambo-up, and youll prove them all to be wrong!

Dr. Gary S. Goodman 2005