There are 3 types of salespeople in general: transactional, whale hunters and someone in-between.
Transactional salespeople won’t make good whale hunters and vice versa.
It has to do with motivation.
Transactional salespeople keep selling because they like the ink, the closing, the quick bang.
Whale hunters are not thrilled with a quick little kill. They like landing that big account. The thrill of the chase and all it entails. Whale hunters are good at managing relationships and a long sales process. Other types are not.
Sales is about self-motivation.
It is also about skill set. But more it is about which hunt you like.
That is why some partners will not become consultative salespeople. A long sales cycle that has to be managed is just unappealing, even if the reward (bigger commissions) is a nice carrot.
People do more to avoid pain than to chase pleasure.