Trumped!

It’s that moment in time when it’s all on the line. Pulses are racing. You’re sitting on the edge of your seat and waiting with baited breath.

Yes, it’s time to crown another celebrity apprentice. I have to admit that I like the Donald Trump NBC series where celebrities compete each week in teams to do sales tasks. Yes, this show is like Selling 101.

Of course, there is a little twist. On the show, the salespeople are rich and famous and pampered people who are forced to do everything from selling lemonade to selling gourmet burgers for $100 a plate. All of the money goes to charity, and the celebs are often cutthroat when it comes to who will be the next celebrity apprentice.

The show made me think that there are good lessons here when it comes to sales because the sales personalities are so text book. . Let’s mull over a few of the apprentice types and their successes long-term in sales.

On the Celebrity Apprentice…..

*You usually have your basic screaming hothead person. Last season, it was Joan Rivers and her daughter Melissa Rivers who lost their tempers a bit when Melissa called her teammates “pit vipers” and Joan shrieked “You’re nothing but a poker player!” And this year it was Sharon Osbourne who was quick to toss out a few bad words or lose it. I’m sure you’ve encountered the high octane, in-your-face sales type from time-to-time. And guess what? This method only works for a period of time and then it can wear very thin. Notice that Sharon isn’t in the finale of the current apprentice where rocker Bret Michaels and mom Holly Robinson-Peete are competing for the final prize. Yes, Joan won last year, but a little of her went a long, long way.

The point here is that the hothead creates a point of contention. Most people want their work life to be a bit easier. You don’t want to buy from a sales person who makes it too volatile and hard. When you’re always in a “fight” situation, it can become uncomfortable. The person who is more moderate gets more things done over a longer period of time.

*The next type if the know-it-all. This is the person who doesn’t delegate a thing to their team because they’re the smartest in the room. Clint Black was like that last season. The problem is the “smart, I do it all” person can flame out quickly in sales. This really is a job that revolves around teamwork and over a long period of time you really do need the support of your team. Smart salespeople realize that different people are good at various tasks and there is always somebody who is better at a certain part of it. Why not brand that person an expert and draw on their expertise?

*The do-nothing is a common Celebrity Apprentice loser. This is the person who lolls around and is present, but really isn’t doing much work. They’re just there. This is a dangerous game to play these days in sales. Many companies don’t have the finances to keep extra people and ultimately everyone must bring value. If you have five givers and one taker on your team who also helps take the credit, but gives little then your team doesn’t work. You need all givers. Everyone must provide a benefit. I just did a radio show where a friend talked about how you need to create a circle in sales so everyone benefits. Maybe I benefit more than you do and the next time you benefit more than I do. But it’s eventually an equal balance with people willing to help each other.

*The Narc is another great Apprentice persona. This is the person who like Robinson-Peete just happens to mention how someone else isn’t doing a good job. It’s like being a kid who tattles on someone else, but now also twists the knife. On the show, Trump seems to enjoy a little bit of tattling. In real life, the bottom line is the narc doesn’t have enough self-esteem to value what they’re doing. They gain by stepping over someone else or bringing them down. This person needs to believe in their own talent or someone else will eventually bring them down.”

As for this season of “The Celebrity Apprentice,” I think Holly is a lion or a fast-paced, task orientated person. Rocker Bret Michaels is a fast-paced people orientated person. He’s more like the otter in that he’s creative and playful. He will crack jokes while Holly will never make a joke.

Bret has a sales personality and Holly is a management type. My heart and money are on Bret on Sunday.