Win or Learn. That is my mantra.

I play Chess. Jim, a friend of my moms, taught me to play when I was 4.

I don’t know how many games I’ve played in my lifetime but it’s been a lot.

In my mind, I’ve never had an actual loss. I’ve won and I’ve learned.

Sometimes I learn strategy and technique from better players; sometimes I learn what not to do; sometimes I learn that I have to be less impulsive, more thoughtful and patient; sometimes I learn that I should have been more aggressive- had I been focused on the win instead of defending my position….

I feel the same way about sales. You can have a win/loss ratio if you’d like but I think we’d be more productive and we’d be better players if we focused on what we’ve won and what we’ve learned.

So, what’s your ratio for this year? How often did you win? What did you learn?

I wish us all many wins for the year, but I also expect to learn a lot, and that’s ok. It will make me a better player in the long run.