Meet three car salesmen who work for the same dealership. Their names are Mr. Wish, Mr. Want and Mr. Need. All the three have the same experience and knowledge about cars. Each has the same monthly quota and the same time on the job. However, they all produced different results this month.  
Wish would like to sell a lot of cars but he rarely does. He has plenty of excuses and blame for why he cannot close a sale. He missed the quota. Want narrows his focus at the end of the month to barely make his quota. But he makes it. Lastly, Need chips away every day at his goal. He exceeds the quota while breaking the dealership record.  
What are the differences in their thinking?  

Wish wishes he could reach the quota. His wishes contain no substance of sales processes and work ethic. The quota, inadvertently, becomes his ceiling. He places a psychological safety net underneath himself in case he falls. The net, which will catch his ego, is built with excuses and blame. He wears the nametag of the victim and the judge. He ridicules the sales manager. He puts down customers behind their backs. He wields sarcasm like a knife on his peers. He mocks Want. He despises Need.

Every prospective customer can feel his negativity and last minute desperation. They resist even his best pitches. He will soon be on the streets looking for another job. “I used to work there.” “Their systems are terrible.” Management does not get it” he will probably say to whoever will listen.  
Want believes he will make the quota. However, his push at the end of the month repels a few savvy buyers. He still prevails. He is a journeyman. He gets by now with the minimum effort. However, he looks and acts the part when needed. He has been by-passed multiple times for the sales manager position. He holds resentment and grudges. His best years are in the rear-view mirror. He tells stories of the good old days and brings up how they used to do it. He has settled. He despises Need. “What does he think about himself?” laments Want.  

Need expects to be the leader. He expects to blow by the quota at mid-month. Management sets quotas for the average and below average personnel. Need know this! His mind is on setting records. He sees the goal clearly. He has mapped out his month with precise strategies and tactics. He chips away every day at the record with unbridled confidence.  This need to be the record-holder gets him up in the morning and puts him into bed at night. “One day I will have my own dealership,” he thinks to himself. The buyers love his confidence.  They buy from Need.  

We react to stress in two ways. Stress – which produces cortisol in our bodies – is the ignition fuel for peak performance. We can create it on our own terms and conditions. It can motivate us and lift us up. By setting our own goals and timelines, stress can drive us to greatness. Or stress can bring us to our knees with crippling force. We can choke on it. It  can  depress  the confident,  slow  down  the  grizzled veteran  and disable  the  special  talent. Even champions have fallen victim to the cruelty of stress. It can ravage our bodies. With muscles tight from stress it can trigger sickness and disease. Stress can kill. Without it, however, our achievements will be mediocre at best.  

Wish, Want and Need handle stress differently. Let us look under the mental hood of our three car salesmen.  

Wish has a chip on his shoulder. His judge and victim demeanor mask his insecurity and lack of confidence. His belief is focused outward without looking inward. He wishes he was making more money but his effort is inconsistent. He seldom trains. He tells his wife only what is wrong at the dealership. He does it so much, she is finally glad he no longer works there. She has, unwittingly, become an enabler. This cycle will continue until she catches on and busts him out or until he morphs into Need.  

“I wish to sell cars!” Wishes lack structure. Seldom is there a plan of strategy and tactics with a wish. Wishes typically wait for something to happen. Wishes attract more wishes. “I wish to buy a car.”  

Want has procrastinated all his life. He believes he can pull it off no matter what. However, the last minute rush is mentally draining. The first 10 days of the next month are spent replenishing his energy. There is little sense of urgency until quota time rolls around again. This roller-coaster cycle is very difficult to change. He does not know how to get off this endless track.  

“I want to sell cars!” A want usually lacks power from within. Commitment is seldom there. Most wants skip the process needed for achievement. Wants attract more wants. “I want to buy a car.”  

Need sells himself on himself. He makes positive deposits in his optimistic bank account every day while Wish and Want make withdrawals. Need has a need to be the best at every phase of the sales process. This translates in studying the competition. He knows his product line inside and out. He knows his customer base. He needs to improve your quality of transportation at a price you can afford. This attracts your need to buy a car. Need knows you. He knows himself. He needs to know.  

“I need to sell cars!” This need permeates all of the process. It comes from deep inside. There is conviction when a need is present. A need has purpose. A need demands. A need is essential. Needs attract more needs. “I need to buy a car.”  

Now you know the difference in a wish, a want and a need. This is so apt in the World of Direct Selling marketing.