I can only tell you what I did. I studied them and learned to be better at their game than they were, and I also had the fact that I actually know what I'm talking about. It took years.
See, the idea is that sales is about people wanting you on their side - they want you in their corner, and want to believe your going to fix everything with magic. Nobody wants to be responsible for anything, nobody wants to really work or actually have knowledge, they just want to relax and make money - and have everyone think they are the smartest guy in the room. A good salesman makes everyone believe they have the answer to every question...a great salesman actually does have the answer to every question.
I can be funny, I can be authoritative, I can be sarcastic. Throw me into a room of guys who think they are sharks and I'll turn them into minnows. Throw me into a room full of Fortune 50 CEOs and I'll make them know they need my advice because I build bullets, not blanks. Always know that business is about one thing: money. Either making more or losing less.
I seriously doubt it. I work in code so every day is a humbling experience in how much I don't know, and should.
The point is understanding people don't want truth, they want magic. Your job is to make truth and sell it like magic.
See, the other guys just have magic, and it's most likely fake magic. Your magic works.
This is why I always say IT guys should focus on being much better communicators. It doesn't matter if you're right when nobody believes you. But if you're right and everybody believes you? Then you can get a lot done in a company.
Nope. I did it the same way I worked to be a better programmer. A lot of study, a lot of reading, and 'throwing myself to the wolves' until I got it right. I'm definitely not a sales guy.
Think about this...when you first started learning about connecting to a database or how to write 'Hello World', you don't go into it with the mindset of 'well, I really need to be in a job that allows me to learn this so I can succeed'. No, you sat down and threw yourself into it and learned it. Then you moved up from there, taking on harder and harder problems. No matter what it was in programming, no matter how many many times you failed or blew up your application (or even your OS), you still kept battling until you got it right.
Most of us go from being someone who writes 'Hello World' on day one (whenever 'day one' is for you) to a person who is in a meeting articulately arguing with other developers over whether your companies' app code should make another round trip to the server or not. You go from being a person who knows zero, or close to zero, to a person who can dive into a room full of seasoned devs or lan admins and hold your own.
When you first started coding or hacking you started with no preconceived notions of what was 'acceptable' practice. Within a few years you have a truckload of concepts which you adhere to.
The process is no different for understanding sales - start with no preconceived notions, study the landscape, make mistakes and don't give up. Watch the best and learn. Read a lot of sales material just as you would tech material. The main difference between sales and technology is that people who work in tech are used to a meritocracy - generally, you try to make decisions on fact and truth. Sales is not like that. Sales is about emotion. Sales is about making the customer feel safe, making them feel good about their decision to buy, even if that decision isn't really the best choice. IT guys are always at a disadvantage because they value truth over deceit; in sales, deceit means nothing if it gets money in the door. But how do you turn this disadvantage into leverage? If you build the best product and you're the best salesman. Then no one can beat you.
There's a lot more depth to this - it took me years to learn. But consider that even in IT, you should be considered a 'trusted adviser' to whoever your client is - even if that client is "Sue from Customer Service". Even if 'Sue' is difficult and bratty and thinks she is a genius while being an incessant whiner. You want 'Sue' to think you have all the answers - which you actually have because you work in IT and we work on facts, right? So you want that customer service rep or vice president or head of HR to know that every time they need an answer, they want to come directly to you, because you will hold their hand and make them feel good and safe, and they will trust you. This may sound like a horrible method of viewing it, but consider that you are actually trying to help them make the best choice, while sales people all over the world are doing exactly the things I'm describing without a care in the world what's best for their customers.
I'm long winded on this, and I apologize. I do passionately believe in IT being better communicators.
See, the idea is that sales is about people wanting you on their side - they want you in their corner, and want to believe your going to fix everything with magic. Nobody wants to be responsible for anything, nobody wants to really work or actually have knowledge, they just want to relax and make money - and have everyone think they are the smartest guy in the room. A good salesman makes everyone believe they have the answer to every question...a great salesman actually does have the answer to every question.
I can be funny, I can be authoritative, I can be sarcastic. Throw me into a room of guys who think they are sharks and I'll turn them into minnows. Throw me into a room full of Fortune 50 CEOs and I'll make them know they need my advice because I build bullets, not blanks. Always know that business is about one thing: money. Either making more or losing less.
It's all about communicating.
Turns out it pays well, too.