A young college graduate embarked on what he hoped would be a promising career in sales. He was outgoing, witty, and enthusiastic. His company assigned him his territory. It was a rural area in the Midwest. His responsibility was to sell the latest in farm equipment to the farmers in the area. With great fervor he memorized the strategy sales pitch and left his office to spread his message of "better farming through better equipment." 

His first two visits had not resulted in a sale. But he could sense that the two prospects had been listening as he had rattled off his litany of better yields, faster harvests, and more long-term profits due to updated equipment. He noted in his customer data base beside each name, "Initial cultivation promising, return for follow-up visit." 

Then, he sto…