F.E.A.R. Kills Sales

Back in the early 90's I was a guest at the Pecos River Learning Center in New Mexico.  I was there with leaders from companies such as Toyota and Pioneer where we were learning about change management.

It was there that I first heard that the word "fear" is an acronym for "False Events Appearing Real."  We were told that when you imagine something occurring, your brain experiences that event.  Think back to a time when you were apprehensive, scared, or embarrassed.  Can you feel it?

As a young sales person I experienced all kinds of "fears."  For example:

• The prospect will be offended or angry when they receive my cold call.
• The prospect will think I am too young or inexperienced to know what I am talking about.
• What if I can't answer their questions?
• They won't see the value in what I am offering and will chastise me for what I charge.
• I won't know what to say when they pick up the phone.

I was right!  All those things happened.

Of course, my real fear was that I would not recover.  I might somehow die.  Well, that didn't happen.  After thousands of cold calls and presentations, all those things did happen once or twice.  Howeverer, it was rare.

Odds are, it you are trying, you will run into a few jerks.  But don't let "fear" of a few people discourage you from doing what you need to do.  The fact is, for every jerk, there were dozens who appreciated my call and a lot who became clients. 

The fact is, the population of courteous and curios people far outweigh those who are not.

So, what do you do to overcome fear?

1. Have a game plan for your prospecting calls, prospect appointments, presentations, etc.  Imagine how the questions you will get and your responses.
2. Practice!  Every world class performer spends more time practicing than playing.
3. Celebrate!  At the end of the day, review the good things that happened and reward yourself for creating some momentum.

4. Build on positive energy!  When something good happens like you just turned a new introduction into an appointment or if you just made a sale, take that energy and call a prospect or a client.

Photo by ClatieK