Chapter 1 Summary: To Sell Is Human... by Daniel Pink

As a instructional technology coach, I spend most of my days trying to convince teachers and administrators to integrate more technology effectively into their lessons and their schools.  In other words, I'm trying to sell them an idea or a new way of thinking.  I truly believe that integrating technology effectively into everyday lessons is imperative if we live up to our goal to produce lifelong learners and productive members of our society.  The difficult part is getting my message through to the teachers and administrators that I work with.

Daniel Pink has written a new book which deals with all of us, especially in education, are salespeople of ideas.  Each day we do our best to convince young people that reading, writing, arithmetic, social studies, etc. are important to their lives.  In his new book, To Sell is Human: The Surprising Truth About Moving Others, Daniel Pink explores the idea that most of us are sales people.  In the Introduction he states, "But all of you are likely spending more time than you realize selling in a broader sense-pitching colleagues, persuading funders, cajoling kids.  Like it or not, we're all in sales now." 

 

Part I "Rebirth of a Salesman", Chapter 1 "We're All in Sales Now" 

 

Mr. Pink begins the chapter by telling the story of Norman Hall who is Fuller Brush Salesman.  Now being 42, I should remember a Fuller Brush Salesman coming to my hometown in Greene, New York, but the memory escapes me.  However, I do remember vacuum cleaner salesmen, the Charles Chips guy, and the two encyclopedia sets my parents bought.  Norman, as a door to door salesman, must convince people to buy brushes in his catalog, and it is a lost art.  As Mr. Pink points out, whatever I want to buy in 2013 I go to the Internet and buy the item much like I bought this book.  I read reviews online, saw posts on Twitter, and purchased the book through Amazon for my app without ever having to leave the comfort of my home.


The next part of the chapter reveals stats of many sales people are in some countries around the world.  Mr. Pink references 1 in 9 Americans are in direct sales, but as he points out, most of the rest of us are in indirect sales for example, "Teachers sell students on the value of paying attention in class."  In a study he conducted, 40% of us spend our time at work persuading, influencing, and convincing others but more powerful, we consider this time crucial to our work. (Chapter 1, "The Rise of Non-Sales Selling").

I'm looking forward to reading the next chapter and the ones after.  After all, my job and responsibility is to sell to teachers and administrators the value of effectively integrating technology into the classroom.