Fear

Fear is the great motivator and the great disincentive to proceed.

When asked, more people fear speaking in public than most anything else.

Fear prevents us from closing a sale. Ego drives the fear.

Huh?

We don't close because we fear rejection... an absolute attack on our ego. If we are rejected then they don't like us. Our ego requires us to be liked and should not be part of the process.

BUT, you've done all this work; prospecting, qualifying, cultivating and now you have earned the right to harvest the sale. So, your ego forces you into being less than what you are....a salesman whose sole job is to sell. You waffle and wait because you can't afford to upset them. You won't.

If you close the sale you save them time and money and effort and pain.

If you close the sale you keep production and client care and research and administration working for another day.

If they reject you it is because you have not done your job properly. You have not asked enough questions or asked too many or the wrong ones or you ignored their signals and talked yourself out of the sale or ad infinitum.

This brings up another fear...failure.

If I don't try I can't fail. Can't I? Failure IS an option. You will make mistakes. The good ones only make them once.

Sometimes though it may not be your fault. The customer had a bad experience in the past or they took a Negotiation course and they 'know' all of your wily ways. You do have wily ways don't you? They don't want to make a mistake: pay too much, get too little and so on. Their ego fuels their desire not to fail.

You fail if you don't sell value every time. If you don't listen, you fail.

Failure is an option only if you don't do everything in your power and ability to erase their fears before they come up (if you can) or after you hear their objections. Let them know that they have made the correct decision for the right product at a fair price and many of your objections (and fears) will be less of a problem.

Criticism is not a bad thing. How you deal with it is. Ego feeds your fear of criticism and gives you anxiety that prevents you from learning about yourself from how others see you and your mistakes. Remember that a lack of error is never noted, never commented on, never an inhibition to sales. Error is noted, criticised, costs sales and sometimes jobs but ONLY IF YOU REPEAT the error because you were afraid to hear criticism.

"There is nothing to fear but fear itself." I believe Winston Churchill said that at a really dark time in English history.

Thank you.