5 Must-Have Traits for Today’s Successful Direct Selling Executive

November 26, 2018

Guest author Alan Luce is Co-Founder and Managing Principal of Strategic Choice Partners (SCP), a consulting firm that provides strategic support and services to help today’s direct selling companies thrive.

Alan is a US DSA Hall of Famer, and member of the DSEF’s Circle of Honor. He’s served in executive roles at Tupperware, PartyLite, DK Family Learning and other companies, and has been a part of launching more than 30 direct selling companies over his career.

Guest post by Alan Luce
5 Must-Have Traits for Today’s Successful Direct Selling Executive

Perhaps the most common question I get asked by young, ambitious direct selling company executives is this: “What do I have to do to build or lead a great direct selling company?”

That question may be the most difficult there is to answer, at least for me, and I do not think I have ever answered it the same way twice. The problem is that “leadership,” no matter what the environment, is very hard to define. Thousands of words, hundreds of books and dozens of business gurus have tried to define “leadership,” and yet no single definition seems to adequately define a set of characteristics or actions that can be applied to every type of leadership situation.

Perhaps it is because what it takes to achieve leadership status changes to meet the situational needs of the environment that requires leadership. What it takes to lead a Wall Street bank differs from what it takes to lead a platoon into battle. The knowledge, skills and actions necessary to successfully lead a turnaround situation are different from those needed to be a founder taking an idea from inception to launch and beyond. I am no more able to completely define “leadership” in a direct selling context that those who have tried before me. But let me share my observations about the ‘traits” that most successful direct selling leaders display.

A “trait” can be defined as a distinguishing quality or characteristic of one’s personal nature. A trait is something that makes you “you.”

Every single business, civic, military or academic environment requires different knowledge and skills to effectively lead. And yet it has been shown over and over again that the best qualified person in terms of knowledge, experience and skills will often fail as a leader. Why? Well, in my experience, it is because they lack one of more of the following traits:

1. Empathy:

Successful direct selling leaders inspire volunteer followers to achieve goals beyond their individual expectations. All of our Distributors and Consultants are essentially volunteers. Yes, they like, even love, the products as customers, but they choose to become sellers and business builders because they were inspired to do so.

Empathy is the ability to see and feel the world as your listeners experience the world. It’s the key ingredient to successful, long-term inspiration. A leader’s followers need to feel and believe that the leader knows who they are, appreciates what they do and wants to help them better themselves in some way. True empathy cannot be faked over the long haul. One either has an empathetic personality in good times and bad, or one doesn’t. In times of stress when that empathy is needed most, this is when that lack of true empathy will diminish a leader’s standing the most.

2. Kindness:

Being a kind person is a sign of strength, not weakness, and is a natural follow-up to empathy. Empathy allows you to really feel what it is like to be that person; kindness comes out of that recognition. The best and most enduring direct selling leaders are, in my experience, kind and courteous to all.

3. Candor/ Transparency:

The great direct selling leaders instinctively understand that candor and transparency must be the hallmarks of their communication with their employees and the field. Candor means that you will address the truth in all situations, good or bad. The people you want to lead must be able to trust what you say. That means you acknowledge your mistakes and you do not try to cast blame on others. You give credit where credit is due to subordinates, and you discuss challenges and opportunities with equal openness.

4. Belief:

Leaders want the folks they lead to believe in them. It comes as a surprise to many leaders to learn that the folks they lead have an even stronger desire that their leaders believe in them. Over time, to be successful, the person in charge must believe that whatever needs to be accomplished can be accomplished with the team she or he has. If the person in charge does not believe that he/she has the right players, then they must make changes to find the right players quickly. The need for the belief of the volunteer sales force in the leader is critical for direct sales success. That belief must run in both directions. Belief will not last if the leader is not an empathetic, kind and candid person.

5. Persistence:

To be a great leader your followers must believe that you will not give up on them or on the goal you are working together to achieve. Yes, the leader should abandon what is not working and focus on what is working, all the while continuing to display confidence in your ultimate success. An essential trait in direct sales leadership is to openly display confidence and persistent belief in the team, the direction and the goals set forth.

Many will probably disagree to a greater or lesser extent with my list of essential leadership traits. There is no doubt that other characteristics can be very important in a given situation. Product knowledge, understanding of market forces, financial management and good communication abilities are all useful, even critical skills. But I am not talking about skills; I am talking about personality traits that will impact how these skills are displayed to the folks who are being led.

It has been a privilege to know, work with and observe some amazing direct selling leaders over my career spanning the last five decades. While they are and were a diverse group of individuals with widely differing styles and skill sets, they all consistently displayed the traits set out above.

I have learned and continue to learn a lot of important lessons from these leaders. You can, too!

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Click here for Alan Luce’s previous articles on The World of Direct Selling.