We are now in the New Year, 2010, and the real estate industry in Australia has its own National Industry Award to protect all salespeople in the way they are employed and the rules have been set.

For a profession that thrives on entrepreneurial initiative and the individual’s skills and ability to sell, this, and any other award in any field of selling, only further demonstrates the failure of those responsible for drafting such documents to understand what is involved in the selling process.

Just by looking at the table of contents, part one deals with Dispute Resolution and part two covers Termination, (two negatives) far from a positive start!

To me and others in the selling profession opening with two negatives seems to indicate the bias of the award and the attitude of those involved in the drafting.

Although there is a requirement in all business to have agreements set in writing so all parties understand their roles, duties, responsibilities and what is expected, the nature of selling largely depends on the individual being able to achieve sales to the financial benefit of the salesperson and the business.

Any attempt to control the agreements between the parties to the extent that this award does only seems to me to be an attempt to bring salespeople down to a common denominator with all other people in the workforce.

Selling is a profession for the person who wants to get ahead based on their ability to sell and to have no upper limit on how much they can earn.

It is this aspect of the profession, and not just being paid an hourly rate, that makes being a salesperson an attractive way to make a living and have an enjoyable lifestyle.

On the positive side for those employing sales staff this award would be an ideal barometer to gauge the attitude of a future sales employee.

With well structured questions it could be determined if the applicant had the attitude needed to succeed or one that when performance was not satisfactory, rather than look to improve, they would be talking to the “Shop Steward” to protect their job.

The nature of the selling profession is one that it is a great leveller and only those with the correct attitude and an understanding of the need for continual self improvement and development will be a success.

It is fact of life we seem to be living in a Nanny state where the protection of the few in the workplace is inflicted on the majority with no thought that in the process some with the ability to be successful may never know their full potential.

The responsibility to avoid this happening will fall to those who employ salespeople to ensure no talent goes unrecognised.

Those involved in training and developing salespeople need to keep their standards high to avoid just suppling workers, because those involved in selling are vital to the growth of  business and the economy overall.

In business nothing happens until someone sells something!