A Toasted Bagel and 5 Minutes to Understanding the Impact of Sales Training

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This morning I placed a bagel in the oven, turned on the oven light, and experienced an epipheny.  This is one exercise you'll want to try at home - really.

1. Cut Bagel in Half
2. Place Bagel on Cookie Sheet in the oven.
3. Turn on oven and set to Broil.
4. Don't leave the oven.
5. Turn on the oven light.
6. Watch the bagel through the window.

Here's what you'll see:

The oven heats up and hot air is blown in the bagel's direction but nothing happens.
This continues for about three minutes.
Then, all of a sudden, the bagel starts to turn brown, slowly at first, and then really quickly, and finally, a moment later, it's done.

Now apply the following translation:

Bagel=Salesperson
Oven=Sales Trainer
Air=Training
1 Minute=45 Days

Translated Story:

Sales Trainer provides sales training to salespeople and for the first four to five months nothing happens.  The salespeople remain in the training and all of a sudden, after about 6 months, the salespeople appear to understand the training.  And then, very rapidly, after just a couple of more months, they're complete.

Salespeople may be like children, but in training they're more like bagels in an oven.

© Copyright 2007 Objective Management Group, Inc.

Posted by Dave Kurlan on Sat, Oct 27, 2007 @ 09:14 AM