Few of us are born salespeople. When the average independent professional first goes into business, he or she quickly discovers that in order to succeed at serving clients, it's essential to also be able to sell to them. But when you learned to be a consultant or architect or graphic designer or accountant or whatever your professional specialty is, sales skills were probably not part of the curriculum.

That said, there is something you already know how to do that is a fundamental component of successful selling: You already know how to talk to people.

Tip #1: Talk It Up

When I started my first business, I didn't know much about selling either. But I did know how to have a conversation. So I set out to have conversations with people who could be my clients in every setting I could think of—networking mixers and conferences, lunches and coffee dates, in line at the bank and working out at the gym.

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