Leveraging the Psychology of the Salesperson: A Conversation with Psychologist and Anthropologist G. Clotaire Rapaille

Leveraging the Psychology of the Salesperson: A Conversation with Psychologist and Anthropologist G. Clotaire Rapaille: "Typically, archetypes are so deeply embedded in a culture that people are unaware of them. Just as we can speak a language without understanding its grammar, so too we can function in a culture without a conscious awareness of its prevailing archetypes."

"Each culture has a pool of shared archetypes that guide the behaviors of its members—a collective unconscious, if you will. Companies consult me in an attempt to decipher the collective unconscious of their customers, employees, and stakeholders."
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"Salespeople are Happy Losers. Whether they know it or not, they are like addicted gamblers; they are after the thrill. On some level, addicted gamblers know that they are going to lose most of the time, but they are excited by the outside chance of winning. Salespeople share that temperament. They are pros at losing. They are rejected at least 90% of the time, I’d say. Why would anyone choose that job? For the chase."
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"The mental imprint is the result of a learning process that takes place early in life and establishes an unconscious behavior pattern."

"Beyond a certain time period, it is difficult to imprint. First experiences are very powerful. Each one creates a mental highway in the nervous system, and afterward, we use this pathway or chain of neurons in the brain. The more we learn about trauma, for example, the more we see this pattern. People can’t forget a terrible experience; there is a compulsion to repeat it. The same is true for early experiences generally. On some level, what we learn in our early days stays with us forever."
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"It’s not just an impressive clientele that substantiates my work, and it’s not biologically based research. When I get a laugh, I know I’m onto something. I’ll often comment about salespeople as Happy Losers, and everyone chuckles spontaneously, reacting with gut feeling."