Dealing with the Roller Coaster that comes with Sales & Life
Emotions are part of the game in life, and certainly in sales. Don’t let yourself get too high or too low. If you read the press clippings or listen to the noise, remember that you are never as good as they say you are, nor are you as bad as you might think you are. The inverse also applies.
On this week’s podcast, we discuss how we regain focus, and avoid getting too high or too low when it comes to dealing with successes and failures.
Avoid the Peaks & Valleys – Never Get too High, Never Get too Low
A former colleague and I would say this often – be like Eli Manning. Don’t allow yourself to get too high or too low. Perform with confidence, have high expectations on the outcomes, and do the right things. Know that peaks and valleys are just part of the process. Rejection will happen, and it is part of the path to winning.
Hit the Reset Button
In sales, the common question comes up – “what have you done for me lately?” – when thinking about your number. Last year was last year, last quarter was last quarter. Look at each day, week, month, quarter, year, as a new opportunity to succeed. If last year was great, build on the previous success.
Best Practices
This is all well and good, and sounds a bit fluffy, but how do you put it into practice. Here are some things we try to keep in mind when getting out of a rut, overcoming slumps, dealing with false starts, or overcoming a bad year.
- Let the last strike or miss beat you again.
- Dwell on the past – whether it was good or bad – it’s in the past. Learn from it, and move on.
- Assume you know what is going on inside the head of your customer, prospect, person you are speaking with.
- Trust your process
- Seek help
- Share success and failure
- Get back in the game
- Focus on the things you can control
- Have a pre-game/pre-call routine – We hit on some hockey superstitions in the podcast this week
What’s Next?
Focus. Trust your process. Get back in the game, on the dance floor, in the kitchen, on the bike, on the horse, in the moment. Review your account plan, review your call plan, review your 30/60/90, review your KPIs, use data to help you get unstuck. Do work.
Remember – the only thing that you can truly count on is change. Like many say, if you don’t like the weather in Hawaii or Florida, just wait 10 min. The good times will not be there forever, nor will the bad times. If you learn from each opportunity, you will continue to progress in your role.
Please share your personal stories of success or failure, and how you have kept yourself on track. You can do this in the comments below, via comments in LinkedIn or via Twitter.
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