Confidence
I do a number of one on one sessions with various clients.
One in particular was with a client who was experiencing real nervousness at the idea of picking up the phone and following up prospects.
Now if you are in sales being nervous at the idea of talking to a client can be a bit of a problem right?
Well here’s the thing…
We all have experienced nervousness around talking to or approaching a client at some time or another – I know I have!
In fact, nervousness isn’t even exclusive to being in sales – it can creep into all sorts of cracks in our personality armor.
A few years ago I discovered a fantastic technique for dealing with nervousness and building confidence in a book written by the Dalai Lama in his brilliant book
The Art Of Happiness
The “Lama” reckons whenever you are feeling nervous or apprehensive about anything, all you need to do is examine your “motivation”
C’mon Lama, what’s that meant to mean?
Well let me explain what the lama meant by telling you what happened with my client. What we discovered was she wasn’t focusing on the area of her expertise – the real value she provides her clients when they work with her.
She was focusing on the act of simply phoning someone up and being thought of as a pest. (like one of those people from India that calls at 6.30pm and tries to sell you a new mobile phone).
So, to get past that, I had her recall in her mind a time when a client was ecstatic about the job she had done.
And I had her focus on that memory in her mind as she picked up the phone to call her list of current prospects.
This simple shift in mindset (with a tip of the hat to “the Lama”) did the trick. Sure we worked on a script and some key language but I am convinced it was the shift in mindset that did most of the heavy lifting.
The next day I had a message from her saying everything was back on track.
Use these processes before a meeting or sales presentation where you are likely to feel nervous.
- Recall a time when you added amazing value to a client.
- Keep that in mind as you focus on the greater good you provide with your product or service.
- Take that feeling and that motivation ie “I am calling this person because what I do helps people make money”
- Feel confident and great in any sales situation.
Good luck with it. Have a Confidence!
