The fear of the phone is a common problem many business people face every day but it is absolutely essential to overcome this if you want to move your business forward. I know firsthandedly how this fear can cripple you and prevent you from conducting your daily operations.
Let’s really think this through logically. A phone does not have the ability to hurt you in any way so it’s obviously not the phone itself you’re afraid of but the person on the other line. So, where are these fears coming from? Many people won't pick up that phone simply because they fear rejection but if you change the way you react to rejection than that's when you will start seeing changes in your business as well as yourself. Here are some tips that have helped me conquer this.
Learn to accept NO and move on. If you can’t accept this you are going to be a very unhappy person in business and you may want to rethink your career. Let’s face it. No one likes the word no but there’s no way around it. Remember that rejection is a normal part of selling. You must not take it personal when someone says no. Focus on the yes’s that you are getting and forget the no's!!Learn to separate the business from the personal and keep on keeping on.
Don’t try to be Perfect. It’s natural to want to give a great presentation but don’t analyze every word you’re going to say or follow a script word for word. Be yourself and be natural. Pretend like you’re talking to an old friend. If you put the focus on the person you’re talking to as opposed to thinking about yourself and what they may be thinking about you, the conversation will go much smoother. You want to address your client’s needs first and then decide whether they can benefit from your company and vice versa. It’s a lot easier to speak naturally when you’re not trying to force an outcome. Have the “how can I help you today” approach and you will see a big difference in your conversations with people as well as an increase in your paycheck.
Practice over and over. Practice will build your self confidence and self confidence is an absolute must when picking up the phone. Even if you have to “fake it til you make it” that will help you learn how to act like a confident person and changing your actions does really change how you feel.
Just do it!
When I was trying to conquer this problem, I would set a goal for that day as to how many prospects I would call. My main goal was to call say 20 prospects that day with the concentration being on making the call. I would pay no attention to the result. I would then make separate piles to show how many prospects I left messages for, how many I gave a full presentation to and how many may have said no. I was surprised to learn that I had much more success than I anticipated. Remember fears are created in your mind and the more you give in to them the more they grow. Also, try not to prejudge anyone. Prejudging is like setting yourself up for the negative.
My last and final point is try to have fun with it. Don’t take the phone so seriously. Pick it up with a smile on your face and great intentions to help someone today. Again, if you focus on the prospect's needs you will feel less pressure and they will feel more comfortable with you. Feed your mind with positive thoughts before you start calling. Your phone call could make a difference in someone's life. If you approach the phone in a friendly manner and with a positive attitude you will notice a big difference in the success of your business.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Quick Tips for Curing Low Self Esteem
Your self confidence and self esteem come from within yourself, others and from your achievements. Low Self Esteem feeds on negative thoughts and negative comments others may make. This can cause you to lose confidence so it’s important to stop those negative thoughts if you want to build your self esteem.You need confidence to build relationships, be a parent, go to work, take up new challenges, improve yourself, be open to change and learn life skills. Self confidence goes hand in hand with self esteem because you need both in order to face the challenges of life. Raising your self confidence will improve your life as well as the lives around you. Self Esteem is the key to your happiness and overall well being. Here are a few tips to help you boost both your esteem and confidence.
PLEASE YOURSELF BEFORE OTHERS: I know for many of you this may sound foreign because it certainly was against my everyday way of thinking but when you have low self esteem you’re an exception to this rule. You need to put yourself first. Remember that your needs are just as important as someone else’s. Start making a list of your wants and desires. Put it on paper so you can see them daily.
BE YOURSELF: Don’t try to be like someone else. You are unique. There is no one in this world like you. Comparing yourself to others feeds negatively into your self esteem because often times you will look at someone else and you think they are better than you which causes you to feel worse about yourself. Make a list of your good qualities and when you’re feeling down take a look at that list.
DON’T TAKE LIFE AND YOU SO SERIOUSLY: Give yourself a break. Everyone falls. Everyone fails. Failure simply means that you haven’t succeeded YET! Without failure, you would not appreciate the successes. Failing is a sign that you are growing and learning so the more failures you experience, the stronger you will become as a person and consequently your self confidence and self esteem will continue to grow.
FOCUS ON YOUR NEEDS AND WANTS: You deserve to live the life you desire and there is nothing selfish about that. As you learn to pay attention to yourself and your desires, your self worth and confidence naturally boosts.
CELEBRATE YOUR SUCCESSES: Reward yourself when you accomplish goals and succeed. Make a list of your achievements and continue to focus on the positive.
ELIMINATE THE CONSTANT NEED FOR APPROVAL FROM OTHERS:You must stop depending on others to make you feel good. Take time to reflect on “who you are” and make a list of your good qualities. You must see value in yourself first before others will.
GET SERIOUSLY RELAXED: Stop thinking and relax. Some people do this by occupying their mind or exercising. Hypnosis and meditation are really great relaxation techniques. : Treat yourself with the same respect that you would treat others. You wouldn’t tell a friend that she is awful or not good at something so why would you do it to you? Get into the habit of treating yourself nicely and over time you will believe it.
TAKE TIME FOR YOURSELF: Plan to have some fun for yourself whether it’s your favorite hobby or enjoying a movie. Make sure you set time aside for YOU even if it’s paying attention to what you eat each day or catching up on sleep.
Self Confidence and Self Esteem will build as you learn how to navigate through uncomfortable circumstances and day to day events. Once you realize that you hold the power and control over your own life and thoughts and with the right skills, you can get through any life experience. Since your self esteem affects pretty much every facet of life, having a healthy realistic view of yourself is very important. You deserve to like and respect yourself and be happy and comfortable with who you are.
PLEASE YOURSELF BEFORE OTHERS: I know for many of you this may sound foreign because it certainly was against my everyday way of thinking but when you have low self esteem you’re an exception to this rule. You need to put yourself first. Remember that your needs are just as important as someone else’s. Start making a list of your wants and desires. Put it on paper so you can see them daily.
BE YOURSELF: Don’t try to be like someone else. You are unique. There is no one in this world like you. Comparing yourself to others feeds negatively into your self esteem because often times you will look at someone else and you think they are better than you which causes you to feel worse about yourself. Make a list of your good qualities and when you’re feeling down take a look at that list.
DON’T TAKE LIFE AND YOU SO SERIOUSLY: Give yourself a break. Everyone falls. Everyone fails. Failure simply means that you haven’t succeeded YET! Without failure, you would not appreciate the successes. Failing is a sign that you are growing and learning so the more failures you experience, the stronger you will become as a person and consequently your self confidence and self esteem will continue to grow.
FOCUS ON YOUR NEEDS AND WANTS: You deserve to live the life you desire and there is nothing selfish about that. As you learn to pay attention to yourself and your desires, your self worth and confidence naturally boosts.
CELEBRATE YOUR SUCCESSES: Reward yourself when you accomplish goals and succeed. Make a list of your achievements and continue to focus on the positive.
ELIMINATE THE CONSTANT NEED FOR APPROVAL FROM OTHERS:You must stop depending on others to make you feel good. Take time to reflect on “who you are” and make a list of your good qualities. You must see value in yourself first before others will.
GET SERIOUSLY RELAXED: Stop thinking and relax. Some people do this by occupying their mind or exercising. Hypnosis and meditation are really great relaxation techniques. : Treat yourself with the same respect that you would treat others. You wouldn’t tell a friend that she is awful or not good at something so why would you do it to you? Get into the habit of treating yourself nicely and over time you will believe it.
TAKE TIME FOR YOURSELF: Plan to have some fun for yourself whether it’s your favorite hobby or enjoying a movie. Make sure you set time aside for YOU even if it’s paying attention to what you eat each day or catching up on sleep.
Self Confidence and Self Esteem will build as you learn how to navigate through uncomfortable circumstances and day to day events. Once you realize that you hold the power and control over your own life and thoughts and with the right skills, you can get through any life experience. Since your self esteem affects pretty much every facet of life, having a healthy realistic view of yourself is very important. You deserve to like and respect yourself and be happy and comfortable with who you are.
Microwave Mentality vs Reality
Are you guilty of having a microwave mentality? You know, the type of person who starts huffing and puffing in line at the bank because he's been waiting 5 minutes for his turn or what about the guy who keeps hitting the elevator button in hopes it will speed up the elevators' arrival. This " I want it now" Mentality is really causing people to have a distorted view of reality and now with the Internet promising so much wealth and success, people are jumping from one opportunity to the next hoping to find that get rich quick thing. Often times when people do find a great company with a great service or product, they quit before the blessing. They expect it to happen overnight and when they do not see results fast enough they're gone and onto the next one. I can't tell you how many times a team member has come to me after a few weeks saying "I'm not signing business!" What kills me is they've only been in the business a week or two! It's almost laughable but by the same token it's actually pretty sad that a person could expect that from themselves in such a short period of time. You need time to get to know the Service/Product, the company's background and the skills needed to do the job. Some people come in with more skills in place than others but you need to give yourself time to learn the ropes.Can you imagine being thrown into a nursing job with no education or training? You must treat a new business opportunity with the same respect. It saddens me more than anything to see someone throw away what "could be" simply because of impatience and this microwave way of thinking. Most often this is the same type of person who never finishes what they start because they never stick around long enough to reap the rewards.
Impatience is a sign of inconsideration and selfishness. It shows that we are ungrateful and too easily distracted. It's really not hard to understand why simply because in today's fast paced world of drive through restaurants, text messaging, and cell phones, we have grown accustomed to instant gratification and immediate access to whatever we want. When you're hungry you can put a meal into the microwave for 3 minutes and voila, your hunger is gone. If you don't like that song, you can change the station or if you don't want to see that tv commercial just grab the remote and with the internet, you can type in what you're looking for and immediately you have the world at your fingertips. It's really become that easy but unfortunately it is not reality. There are still some things in life that require hard work, time and patience. For ex. growing a garden. You don't plant seeds and immediately you have a flower. It takes time for the seeds to cultivate and grow and not all the seeds are going to take. Many of them will die. We must apply this principle to our businesses. You must enjoy the ride because it's the journey that teaches us the lessons which help us grow and develop ourselves and achieve our goals. That's the part of the equation people are missing out on these days.
Let's be honest. No one likes to wait but this "Microwave Mentality" has caused us to expect everything we want to be readily, easily and instantly available. The problem naturally comes when things that take real work are not instantly available but the good news is we do have the power to change if we want to. Dig deep inside yourself and find the reasons why you are impatient. Don't blame it all on society and external things, get to the root of the problem inside you and change your attitude. When you start showing gratitude for the blessings you already have in your life, you will stop focusing on those every day situations that cause you to be irritated and stressed out. Remember that happiness is a journey not a destination and once you learn the virtue of Patience andyou start showing patience towards others, you will live a longer happier life and achieve success in everything you do.
Impatience is a sign of inconsideration and selfishness. It shows that we are ungrateful and too easily distracted. It's really not hard to understand why simply because in today's fast paced world of drive through restaurants, text messaging, and cell phones, we have grown accustomed to instant gratification and immediate access to whatever we want. When you're hungry you can put a meal into the microwave for 3 minutes and voila, your hunger is gone. If you don't like that song, you can change the station or if you don't want to see that tv commercial just grab the remote and with the internet, you can type in what you're looking for and immediately you have the world at your fingertips. It's really become that easy but unfortunately it is not reality. There are still some things in life that require hard work, time and patience. For ex. growing a garden. You don't plant seeds and immediately you have a flower. It takes time for the seeds to cultivate and grow and not all the seeds are going to take. Many of them will die. We must apply this principle to our businesses. You must enjoy the ride because it's the journey that teaches us the lessons which help us grow and develop ourselves and achieve our goals. That's the part of the equation people are missing out on these days.
Let's be honest. No one likes to wait but this "Microwave Mentality" has caused us to expect everything we want to be readily, easily and instantly available. The problem naturally comes when things that take real work are not instantly available but the good news is we do have the power to change if we want to. Dig deep inside yourself and find the reasons why you are impatient. Don't blame it all on society and external things, get to the root of the problem inside you and change your attitude. When you start showing gratitude for the blessings you already have in your life, you will stop focusing on those every day situations that cause you to be irritated and stressed out. Remember that happiness is a journey not a destination and once you learn the virtue of Patience andyou start showing patience towards others, you will live a longer happier life and achieve success in everything you do.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
