The Unsold Mindset: Redefining What It Means to Sell

A salesperson doesn’t have to be an untrustworthy antagonist with a glib line and a sweaty palm, according to this zippy outing from Coggins and Brown, cocreators of the University of Southern California’s Sales Mindset for Entrepreneurs course. The best salespeople, they suggest, have an “unsold mindset,” which means they refuse stereotypes about “who they are supposed to be, how they are supposed to act, and what they are supposed to think.” Drawing on interviews with high-powered salespeople, Coggins and Brown offer nine core concepts of effective selling: there’s intentional ignorance (giving up on the idea that one has to know everything about the product they’re selling), treating customers like a teammate rather than acting like their coach, and practicing “pathological optimism.” The jovial advice puts a palatable spin on the profession, and the authors’ examples bring home their point that “there isn’t one right way to succeed”: Yellow Tail wine disrupted the industry by offering something accessible rather than high-quality, for example, and musician Donald Glover impressed an agent with his vulnerability as well as enthusiasm. Readers who need sales skills for career success should give this a look. Agent: Lisa DiMona, Writers House. (Feb.)