Work When There is Work to be Done

This advice is only for seasoned and relatively successful sales people. Not you newbies that see top performers like me come in at 10:00 and leave at 2:00 and are green enough to think you can do that too. Until you are on top of your game you need someone to tell you what needs to be done and when. Period. YOU should be in the office at 7:30 AM and back at 5:30 to wrap up until you get it down.
This is for top sales people that are feeling stressed or resentful about working from 8-5 every day and wishing they had more time to themselves sometimes.
I work when there is work that needs to be done and that is rarely Monday through Friday from 8-5. No one has to tell me to work, what work I need to do, or when I need to do it. I work when there is work that needs to be done.
5:00 AM
Through lunch.
Late into the night.
Holidays.
I also come and go as I please and plan my work around my life and not the other way around.
I live in California, so we have plenty of beautiful days. Today was one of them. I woke up at 6:00 and sent an e-mail back to a frantic customer in Ireland. (It was 2 in the afternoon there) then I went back to bed for another hour.
I sat through a dreadful conference call and webinar then I went to the DR. Did some shopping. Came home made lunch, screwed around on Facebook, and now I am writing to you. I did take care of a couple of urgent customer care items for one of my largest international customers, (which I did at home while prepping dinner) but that was about it as far as "work" for me today.
Top sales people are top sales people because they instinctively know the difference between what is critical and what is important and they take care of what really needs to be done when it needs to be done.
It is easy to be self managed if you work at it. Start your day with a plan and get the things done that need to be done. I know a lot of people think using "to do" lists is "old school", but they really help me stay on track with what is critical to my day.
Being self managed also means not getting sucked in by things that will pop up through out the day that seem important but really aren't urgent and don't need to be dealt with the minute they pop up.
I never put anything off that is going to bring me closer to my professional goals because it is after 5:00, the weekend, whatever.
I think one of the biggest shifts that happened for me that really propelled my sales success was seeing myself as a consultant for my company and not an employee. I don't work for them, they work for me so to speak. Being a consultant is very different than having a job. People hire consultants to help them get better at something, or to drive more revenue, etc. That's where I come in. I am the best in my area at bringing in net new customers. Now, my Manager requires most of the other people on our team to use my methods for prospecting.
The point is, take time to evaluate what you are doing during the hours you are putting in. If you are working 9-5 but not really doing anything to generate revenue for yourself, consider making some changes. Take more time to yourself sometimes. If you are having an "off" day, go to the beach, or to a movie. Once you start to feel like you are in control of your time and what you do with it, and that it is OK to work during times other than 9-5 I believe you will start to see a shift in the way you feel about yourself and position as a sales professional. Our customers don't work from 9-5 so why should we?
I hope this is helpful!
Sales rocks!
Trish