5 Steps to Get Your Head Back in the Sales Game After a Rough Day
Marcus Chan
Crush your quota with repeatable sales systems | Learn the playbook that made me #1 in 12 roles & helped me scale a 110+ team to profitably deliver $195M+TCV/year | Team + Rep Programs | 4X Salesforce Top Influencer
Sales is tough and is full of up's and down's. One moment you are on cloud 9 because you just closed an account and are fired up!
Next moment you feel like your teeth are getting bashed on and the rejection is painful.
Oh - and the REJECTION. A lot of rejection. It may take talking to 100 people to secure 10 potential meetings. Out of the 10 meetings, maybe 2 will end up closing.
It is a rollercoaster of emotions and if it was easy, then everybody would do it!
(Kudos to those who do residential sales door-to-door as you're smashing down 200+ residential doors/day and working long hours!)
Here's the reality, no matter how skilled you are, the down moments are never fun and everyone has a different way to deal with the pressure of sales.
Some go towards needing a drink or more...
Some go towards medication...
Some just go dark and allow it to overwhelm them ultimately leading to a decline for weeks or months...
What I found is that when we have that tough day, we end up going into a dark place and start questioning ourselves. More often than not, it is because you have not TRAINED yourself to handle a tough day in a productive way!
I used to be that way - however, once I figured out a simple process, I could repeat it every single time I had a rough day and it would ultimately SHIFT my perspective to one of GROWTH! This simple process will ultimately allow you to reflect on the day and reprogram how you PERCEIVE the day as that is what is the true issue you are running into! So after your next tough day, grab a notepad, pen, and get by yourself and do the following:
1.) 10 Deep Full Breathes In - You heard me: 10 full deep diaphragm breaths in and a full exhalation out. Focus 100% on filling your lungs up and exhaling all the way out 10 times in a row. By starting with this meditative technique, you are pumping your body full of oxygen and refocusing your attention to YOU! You'll see after 4-5 deep breaths, you'll already start FEELING better!
2) List out 3 things you learned and how you will apply it - Next, grab your notepad and ask yourself, "What did I learn today and how will I apply it?" No matter how BAD you perceive your day, I guarantee you still learned something! If nothing comes to mind, ask yourself another question: " If someone else was to observe me, what would they learn from my day?" Here's a good example: if you had all your appointments cancel on you, it may be hard to perceive any learning. However, it could mean you learned to send outlook invites to them, call them in advance to confirm, and plan back up places to visit! There is always something to learn and when you shift your focus to that, so does your energy!
3) List out 3 things you made progress on - At this point you should be feeling progress in feeling better. Next you ask yourself, "What are 3 things I moved the ball on or had progress with?" List out ANY and all things you made progress on NO MATTER the distance! It could be uncovering the name of a decision-maker on a major account you're trying to get into, it could be you secured an appointment with a business you've dropped by dozens of times on, etc. Often times after a long day, we've forgotten about some of these micro-wins that are critical to recognize!
4) List out 3 things you are grateful for - Next you write out 3 things you are grateful for. These do not have to have anything to do with sales. For example, if it was sunny out or your health is good or your kid had a good progress report, etc! It is very powerful to focus on gratitude as it pulls your head out of the negative mind space!
5) List out 3 things you are excited about for tomorrow - Just ask yourself, "What am I excited about for tomorrow or what could get me excited for about tomorrow?" Now we are future-pacing our thought process and getting ourselves to pull our head completely out of the day!
Boom - so after these 5 steps, which should take no more than 10 minutes, you'll automatically see visually on your notepad a completely different perspective from what you had before you started this exercise! You may find that you only need 3 of the steps to reprogram your perception of the day!
And then leave a comment below with your questions, thoughts, and advice on the ideas above.
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Marcus Chan is an award-winning results and people-driven executive sales leader. Over the last decade, Marcus has been promoted 10X in 10 years and has been ranked in the top percentile of every company and every role he has been in. He is passionate about helping others sell more and sell better. You can follow him on Instagram here for daily motivation! Or grab his free guide here to learn 7 simple tips to book more appointments!
VP, Business Development, Wilson Learning Corporation
2yGreat article. Thanks for these helpful tips. When I experience rejection, I use that as motivation to plan which additional prospects I will target the next day. This way I am taking a proactive step toward sales growth and it makes prospecting all the easier the next day.
Away from my desk
5yMichael Graham - this is right up your street!
Over 40 Years of Hot Forging Steel & Aluminum-Let's Connect!
5yLoved this! Finding little victories in sales is key. Then making sure you’re trying to follow your own progression & results. The most rewarding times surprise you, and it can be a string of great cold calls or all disappointments. But keeping a positive mentality is key to continually getting back out there! Look forward to reading more!
Strategic Account Executive
5yI love your first point. Making sure to have a solid way to calm yourself is the start. You can't execute on a plan if you aren't calm and thinking a little clearer. Noting what you learned and making sure that you look at the good always helps. After taking a minute or so to calm down I like doing two things to get my head ready to note what I've learned and how to improve. 1. I look to baseball - If you bat .400 you would be a Hall of Famer no questions asked. That would also mean you failed 60% of the time. 2. And as others have commented, remember my why. My why is my family. It is worth the pain or the rejection to know I can provide for my family. Then I can to learning, motivating myself, and just moving past it.
Head Of Sales | Closers.io 🌎
5yGood read as always Marcus - A point to add is to reconnect with your ‘why’. Most Salespeople have a ‘why’ for their decision to pursue a sales career. Whether financial or otherwise - During challenging times there is value in reconnecting with your original purpose to remind yourself what you’re doing it all for.