ll professionals want to work with individuals who work well with others. A cohesive staff of team players who communicate well and bring out the best in their peers and clients can make anyone's job more productive.

No one wants to waste time and resources managing workplace power struggles, coaxing peers to work together or placating dissatisfied customers.

Even if sales professionals are technically qualified, skilled or experienced, they still need to "play well with others." If you are the sales professional who has the right skills and personality, you will be the one to go the furthest.

Following are some tips to help you become:

• The employee bosses want working for them
• The colleague peers want on their team
• The sales professional merchants choose

Make Your Expectations Clear

When working with others, it's vital to know what they want, need and expect from you. It's just as important for them to know what you want, need and expect in return. Therefore, it is essential to be clear about your expectations, requirements and consequences up front.

For example, when signing merchant agreements, make sure merchants understand what you expect from them. For example, do the agreements require them to meet monthly minimums?

If there are chargeback issues, what are merchants' responsibilities? These are important things that involved parties need to have clearly spelled out in advance to ensure a successful relationship.

Also, make your expectations clear to your superiors. For example, a project you're working on has a greater chance of success if you communicate your expectations to the project manager.

For instance, do you anticipate needing overtime hours to complete the project? Does the project manager understand that you might not complete the assignment on time if the required software is not available? These are important factors that your boss needs to know for you to work well together and successfully complete the project.

Be Open to Suggestions or Criticism

We are all accustomed to receiving feedback and critiques from our bosses. Why not get a fresh perspective and ask for suggestions from peers and clients?

For example, share a presentation with colleagues and ask for suggestions on how you might fine-tune it. Or, check back with clients after they have used your service for a few months and inquire if you could make any improvements to help them use the service to its full potential.

If the feedback is critical, accept it graciously and professionally and work to remedy the situation. Making yourself vulnerable in this way demonstrates that you value others' opinions and that you have an open mind. Making others aware that you possess these qualities will open up new professional opportunities and client accounts.

Recognize Achievement

Give credit when credit is due. You don't have to be a boss, or even an employee of the same company, to praise others for a job well done. We all like to hear that our work is recognized and valued.

A short congratulatory note or phone call to a client on her recent sales figures will be appreciated. Likewise, a brief e-mail in response to a colleague's promotion announcement will be warmly received.

These gestures take only a minute or two, and they show that you are someone who is interested and cares about the success of others. Colleagues and customers will want to work with the sales professional who is interested in more than his own success.

Bosses, fellow sales professionals and merchants want to execute their responsibilities as efficiently and productively as possible. They want to work with salespeople who have the technical skills and personality to make their jobs as easy as possible.

If you are clear about what you need, open to criticism and quick to recognize achievement, you will be the employee, colleague and sales professional of choice!