Beat Your Quota? Now What?

You’ve been having a good year. A combination of hustle, luck, using Spiro, and smooth talking has you at your quota with time left to spare.

First off, give yourself a pat on the back. Hitting your quota is something to be proud of. Many sales reps never hit their quota so take a breath and enjoy the moment.

So what now?

Maybe you are like Ross Perot who once filled his annual sales quota in just two weeks. Even if you don’t hit your quota that quickly, you need to start thinking about how you will handle it when you do.

Here are your options.

Should You Kick Back And Relax?

It’s not always just about the money. It’s also about family, health and happiness.

If you hit your quota and you don’t need to earn more, then kick back and relax. Enjoy some time with the family, head down to Disneyland or for some extended travel that you have always dreamed of.

A good friend of mine hit his number by September and negotiated a month off to travel around Australia, which he always wanted to do. He came back a changed man.

Taking time will rebalance your life, allow you to get healthy or work on some side projects that you have always been interested in. Take the time off, you deserve it.

Or Do You Run Up The Score?

Let’s face it, once you hit your quota, your sales commissions just increase. Why not buckle down and work twice as hard to bring home the dough?

Keep selling, keep working harder and keep bringing home more income. That is money you can use to pay down debt, invest in your nest egg or that sports car you have always dreamed of.

One of the sales guys who worked for me absolutely hit it out of the park one year. Never stopped as he blew by his quota and W2’d over a million dollars. It was a life changing moment for him, and you know what? He was able to take all that momentum forward and killed it year after year.

Cue Gordon Gekko and let your greed kick in, land some more sales and you will be laughing all the way to the bank.

Prepare For Sales Management?

Tired of being in the grind of a sales position? Why not use this opportunity as a chance to position yourself for career advancement. You can brush up on new skills, network with the right people, and get ready to move to a new position.

When Ross Perot hit his quota in two weeks, he spent the remainder of the year pitching upper management on his ideas of growing and expanding the business.

When I was a sales rep, this was my strategy as well. Knew that I might make less money in the short term as a sales manager, but it was the way to grow my resume, career and eventually become a CEO. Worked for me.

My Suggestion: All Three!

These choices aren’t exclusive. I suspect your natural tendency is to maximize your earnings, which of course you should, but don’t forget about your other options. My thoughts are that you should in some way do all of them: enjoy some time off, push for extra sales to increase your income while you prepare your career for the next step forward.

Learn More

Do you consistently send out confirmation emails for upcoming meetings? You should! And you should use them as selling moments. Looking for new ways to improve your sales game? Try seeing how music can help you push yourself.

Photo courtesy of Flickr user Adventures of KM&G-Morris.