Women in Business: Tales From Hecate, The Goddess of Magic

I have always been enthralled with how the various aspects of any sales process align with the behavioral strengths that women in business naturally have. Those behavioral types manifest themselves universally in business.
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I have always been enthralled with how the various aspects of any sales process align with the behavioral strengths that women in business naturally have. Those behavioral types manifest themselves universally in business. Carl Jung believed that every archetype, every personality, and every character that has ever existed has assumed a role that is borrowed or worn, like an article of clothing, and then returned to the wheel of time. As a sales coach, I write about female business archetypes, metaphorically as Greek Goddesses, and incorporate the various techniques and competencies in a sales role to tell the story of how to create an authentic sales process.

In the Olympic Battles of Business, Every Women is a Goddess.

Of the seven Greek Goddesses that I write about, at the very top of the pyramid lives the Goddess Hecate, the Goddess of Magic. I am proud to share with you some of her favorite techniques.

Manifesting, Visualization, Creation, Karma

Your intention in this segment is to create.


Manifesting

I have always been a huge fan of Tony Robbins. I read everything that he has written and always had a feeling that I would meet him. In one of his books, Awaken the Giant Within, he discussed being an avid vegetarian. At the time, I was selling soy protein and we were in the heat of the low-carb trend. My company was the market leader at the time, and we were innovating all kinds of low-carb and vegetarian alternative foods. I imagined that I could pitch a concept to Tony to help alleviate the growing trend of consuming meat -- which I assumed probably concerned him. I had a pitch completely rehearsed, anticipating the absolute joy of a dream encounter.

A few weeks later I was manning the booth with my company at the largest nutritional products show in the world, and I actually had a copy of my book with me. While there, I learned that Tony Robbins had invested in my industry and was attending the show. I ran out of my booth, book in hand, searching for the autograph line, and actually ran into him. Sure enough, I met him and pitched my heart out. He signed my book with a "Stay Passionate" note. I cannot recall his reaction to my pitch, although I doubt that I continued paying attention once I spit it all out. If I hadn't spent so much time working on the pitch, visualizing the experience, I never would have been able to seize the opportunity to pitch to one of my biggest heroes.

Segment Intending

Esther and Jerry Hicks discuss Segment Intending as one of the primary methods in The Law of Attraction: The Basics of the Teachings of Abraham. A segment begins when you enter into a new situation, begin a meeting, or enter into a new phase in your sales process. You should always have a positive intention for the beginning of each phase to allow the dialogue and structure to focus upon your intended outcome. However, there are also spiritual reasons that support this technique. The intention, once put out into the universe, will attract the outcome which you seek. In addition to the intentions summarized below, add whichever positive outcome you would wish for to your segments. I have come to a place in my career where my outcomes are almost always met with the original intention, or lack thereof.

Intentions

  • The Worker: I want to prepare, organize, and take action to achieve the best result for my customer.

  • The Connector: I want to network, build emotional connections, and uplift.
  • The Leader: I want to take charge, facilitate, and orchestrate for the best of all involved.
  • The Lover: I want to understand and protect, with curiosity and attentiveness.
  • The Speaker: I want to present, persuade, and delight you with my information. I want to formalize our partnership.
  • The Seer: I want to see patterns and plan.
  • The Knower: I want to create.
  • Remaining in Your Goddess State

    One of the most powerful ways for women to succeed in sales is to remain in complete control of their power and their reactions. Have you ever received an email that made you want to snap back in a way that might be not quite professional? When you are on the receiving end of a less-than-respectful email, read the note and put it in a folder that you (hope) not to look at ever again. Reframe the note objectively, taking out all of the emotions or capital letters that it was originally encased in. Now imagine receiving that same note written in a sweet and loving way, or imagine it coming from a child. Now respond to that note, after at least a few minutes have gone by, with your response intended for the imaginary note -- gracefully. When you experience rejection, or heated questions, or anything that might typically throw you off your game, learn to pause and then smile. Answer that question or rejection as though you are a wise old friend that understands the questioner is coming from a place of pain. Be gentle and treat them the way that they should have asked that question.

    Any time that you focus on the negative, you give it life and bring about more of it. Even if it is the most obvious flaw in the world, and that flawed individual is coming after you personally, the fastest way to get rid of that experience is to not give it any attention at all. Immediately expand the picture to think of bigger, more exciting things than your personal insult. Or think of your greatest dream in life. Take your head out of the current situation and focus on your coaching plan.


    Karma

    When I started writing my book, The Authentic Sale, A Goddess's Guide to Business, I became instant friends with two female writers on separate occasions. Both of them came to my house over the holidays without my having known they were writers. I mean, how cool is that? I manifested becoming a writer, and two amazing writers just showed up at my door--with advice to enthusiastically share. For this, I had to thank my karma.

    I have learned to see people the way that they want to be seen through my coach training and sales experience. I have learned to see women as goddesses through my karmic experiences.

    I have a favorite habit of always introducing female colleagues by the rank that she represents to me rather than her official title. "Please meet my friend, the Head of Research and Development"--even if at the current time, she's a junior researcher. This can sometimes be shocking, to hear your name with said title for the first time. This always makes me smile when done back to me. To have someone else see you as you wish to be seen (in the presence of others) is enormously empowering.

    When I speak behind another woman's back, I am going to throw out her three key points of differentiation: She is so on the ball. Everything she touches turns to gold. She created millions of dollars worth of business. This is a fun start to building a whisper campaign. A personal brand buzz in the office can skyrocket a female colleague's career.

    Negative Karma

    I have seen very bright men (and women) make the mistake of not catering to the female energy in the office. Some men fail to see behind the veil of how women feel each other's pain. For example, if a woman in the office is treated poorly, I will feel it. It is plainly recognized in any workplace environment when a professional is less than respectful to any woman, or man, of any rank. I worked for a huge Midwestern ingredient company, and a junior accountant that I had met when I first made the move joined me in the cafeteria for lunch after my first year. She told me that she knew I would be successful at the company because I "wasn't a jerk" to her. She explained that she had a barometer for peoples' success based on if they were jerks to her. What an awesome compliment that was to me. Organizations have a collective spirit, and it will know if you are a jerk to anyone in the building. The female energy in the building will respond in kind.

    2015-10-02-1443758486-884878-hecateskey.png

    Goddess Story: The Knower

    Hecate was an only child to her parents Perses and Asteria. Hecate embodies many of the strengths of the other goddesses; she has a tender heart and is associated (I'm sure you will appreciate this) with barking dogs. She protects, fights, and speaks with spirits. She was idolized by Zeus to further emphasize the power that this goddess had. Hecate's symbol is a key.

    I see Hecate as a creator and diviner of success, as she could see the past, present, and future. She is the goddess of magic and protects all that is new and born. Hecate is enlightened, compassionate, and wise. Baba Yaga is an Eastern European version of Hecate. She is seen as a haggardly grandmother who can shift into any form that she likes, which includes all of the archetypal images that we have discussed. She either will help you or hurt you, with incredible endless power. Neither of these women need men (they aren't married or coupled), and I like to see them as protectors of achieving whatever you set your sights on, for those whose intentions satisfy them.

    Simply put, the belief that you create your own reality, your own success, is a protected force for women. We might believe this to be true, but we so often struggle with our own inability to receive the praise or compliments that enable seeing our true goddess selves that we don't stand a chance of manifesting them. If I were Hecate or Baba Yaga, I would put anyone who stood in the way of a goddess in his or her very place, for fun. I wish I could say that I have had many experiences with this lady at work, but I haven't. Let's bring her into our work places!

    Read more in my book, The Authentic Sale, A Goddess's Guide to Business.

    Rena Cohen-First is a Vice President of Sales in the Food Ingredient Industry where she has been for the past 17 years, selling to the largest food and beverage manufacturers in the world. She has taught online business and leadership classes as an adjunct instructor, studied Professional and Executive Coaching, completed her MBA and Served in the US Army. She resides in San Diego with her two children and husband. Her goal is to show every woman that she can become a Sales Goddess in all circumstances. See more about Rena at: www.thesalesgoddess.com

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