s, however, he concentrates his
thoughts on the _skillful docking_ of his sales-man-ship. The _nature of
the cargo_ a sailor ship captain brings to port has little or nothing to
do with the art of reaching and tying up to the pier. Similarly,
whatever his "goods of sale," the skillful _salesman_ uses the same
principles and methods to dock his salesman-shipload of ideas most
effectively in the harbor of the prospect's mind. So the _art_ you are
studying is _standardized_. When you master it, you can apply it
successfully to the sale of your best self or any other "goods of sale."

[Sidenote: Reasoning And Argument Are Wrong]

Before considering the methods of selling that are most effective, it
will be well to get rid of a mistaken idea that is all too common. A
great many people regard reasoning power, or the force of pure logic, as
an important selling tool. There are so-called salesmen who attempt to
"argue" prospects into buying. Unthinking sales executives sometimes
instruct their representatives to employ certain "selling arguments."
But the methods and language of the debater have no place in the
repertory of a _truly artistic_ salesman or sales manager.

One debater never _convinces_ the other. At best he only can _defeat_
his antagonist. In a skillfully finished sale, however, there should be
neither victor nor vanquished. The selling process is not a battle of
minds. There is no room in it for any spirit of antagonism on the part
of the salesman. So in your self-training to sell true ideas of your
best capabilities, do not emphasize especially the value of logic and
reasoning. If you use them at all in selling yourself, disguise their
character most skillfully. _Never suggest that you are debating or
arguing your qualifications_ with prospective buyers of your mental or
physical capacity for service. You cannot browbeat your way into
opportunities to succeed.

Most employers buy the expected services of men and women in order to
satisfy their own _desires_ for particular capabilities. Few will buy
against their wishes. In order to sell your qualifications with certain
success, you first must make the other man genuinely _want_ what you
offer. Almost always _mind vision_ and _heart hunger_ must be stimulated
to produce desire. Therefore the most skillful salesman of himself does
not use the words, tones, and actions of argument. In preference to cold
reason and logic he employs the arts of _mental suggestion