As a professional Sales Rep or Manager, you face many challenges and roadblocks on a daily basis and sales is always a rollercoaster. It’s easy to be motivated when things are going smoothly. You’re reaching contacts, setting appointments and closing deals. How do you stay motivated the rest of the time…when you are getting more no’s than yes’, can’t seem to fill your calendar and pipeline or when your quota seems unattainable? This happens to all of us. Here are a few tips that will help.
Be positive
In sales, we all know you have as many ups as you do downs. Don’t focus on failures. It is better to focus on each success no matter how small or large. Always try to find the positive side of things. If you experience something that seems negative it is often a valuable learning experience that will make the next similar situation easier to work through. When you look for the positive and start with an optimistic attitude, you will find it makes everything run more smoothly. As Henry Ford said, “Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t–you’re right.” So believe that you can!
Know who you are
Take the time to think about and understand your own abilities and limitations. Work out what you’re really good at and also where you could use some improvement. This way you can do two things. Firstly allow yourself to create a plan to get better at what you do every day and work on your weaknesses (we all have them). Secondly, you can then spend the majority of your time on what works really well for you. That will give you far better results based on your style.
Feed your mind to change your mood
It is very natural to sometimes wake up not feeling as motivated or positive as you did the day before. Of course, you’re only human. A great way to break this is to read, listen to podcasts and watch videos to educate and to motivate you while counteracting negative thoughts. You can do this first thing in the morning, while out on a run or at the gym, on the way to or from work, at lunch or anytime that you have a few minutes. This will help you to break that feeling we all get and at the same time learn new skills as well as inspire you and keep you thinking positive.
Break down your KPI’s
Key performance indicators come in all shapes and sizes depending on your company and how you sell. No matter what your sales cycle, your KPI’s can fall by the wayside from time to time making it hard to maintain consistency. A great way to control this, without putting pressure on yourself, is to break them down. This helps you maintain these week in and week out. If you have a weekly target of 30 meetings per month, break that down into a daily target and divide it by the number of business days in that month. This way you can keep super focused and always know exactly where you are.
Keep your eye on the prize
Of course staying motivated as a sales professional you need goals related to your professional development as well as those related to where you want to be in five years and beyond. There should be goals that are very short-term as well as longer-range goals. Reward yourself as you meet these goals. Smaller rewards for smaller goals and larger ones for the longer-range goals. Once you set your goals you need to stay focused on where you are going so you don’t get off track. When you get that promotion and pay raise you have wanted take the time to stop and enjoy that success. Reward yourself. Take that vacation. Buy that watch or outfit. Upgrade your car or whatever reward you promised yourself. It is super important to enjoy those moments. Having these targets to hit will keep you moving forward in your role and thinking about your ongoing development.
Although staying motivated consistently in sales can be difficult at times it can be done. Just remember to know who you are. Stay positive at all times, especially when the going gets rough. Feed your mind with educational and motivational resources. Breakdown your KPI’s to make it easier to maintain consistency. Keep your eye on your goals…rewarding yourself as you hit your targets. And, of course, don’t forget to enjoy the journey!
I hope that this helps
