Competitive streak traced back to childhood

A survey of 254 sales professionals across the UK and USA has shown that their career paths may have been determined from an early age.

Demonstrating the ambition and drive required to succeed in a sales career, more than two-thirds (68%) say they were made to earn their pocket money as a child, while a third (31%) found their first employment aged just 13. Just 8% questioned in the survey, undertaken by sales intelligence SaaS provider, sales-i, waited until they were 18 to find a paid job.

On average, respondents to the survey met their monthly targets nine times and exceeded them in seven of the last 12 months.

An analysis of the results shows that most salespeople already demonstrated a competitive nature as children: more than 70% competed in at least one school sports team. Conversely, just 17% chose to avoid, or were not included in, school teams. It’s a trait that sales professionals recognise in themselves, as shown by the 36% that selected ‘competitive’ as their principal childhood characteristic. Qualities including ‘social’, ‘driven’ and ‘positive’ were also indicated.

This profile of a young salesperson is reinforced by the 66% that deem themselves to have been popular during their school days. Only 7% believe they were unpopular, while 3% say they were bullied during these years.

“These results reveal an unmistakable personality type for salespeople. They are social, competitive and driven, with a positive outlook on life, not just in their work and career,” said Cary Cooper, CBE, professor of organisational psychology and health at Lancaster University Management School. “Salespeople are the typical self-starters – they’ve had a job from an early age and they’re pragmatic. They’re used to being successful and can adapt to make sure they stay that way.”

Aside from their inherent personalities and social choices, nurture may also play a role in the future salesperson’s career choice. 92% of respondents indicate that they have at least one sibling (39% have more than three), and 38% are the eldest. Previous studies have indicated that firstborns have a tendency towards diligent personalities. These children often want to be the best at everything they do.

“The results of this survey are important for sales team leaders and hiring managers in that they indicate exactly what personality traits to look for in a graduate salesperson,” said Paul Black, CEO of sales-i. “Competitive, driven personalities are rarely developed in adulthood, they exist within salespeople from a young age. Similarly, self-starting behaviour in childhood correlates well with high performance on the job.”