Sales Slump?: How to Block out the Noise and Control the Controllables
Sometimes it feels like the chips are down, you can't catch a break, and it will never get any better. Keep going... There are lessons in perseverance.
If you've read my blog for more than a couple weeks, you'll know that I'm very much a golf fan, and the thought of warmer weather has me itching to play again. Until I can get out myself though, I'll live vicariously through the pros on the big tour. It's not terribly difficult to distill lessons from their experience, especially with so much media access and every talking head needing something to say.
Rory McIlroy is one of the best players in history. the most athletic swing I've ever seen. Not yet 30 years old, he's already had a hall of fame career. Still, the pundits wondered aloud:
Has he lost something? Why can’t he close the deal anymore? Were they wrong about him?
Rory has tremendous talent and was always in the mix, but just couldn’t seem to put it all together at the same time. Then he did. Rory McIlroy won a big tournament—the 2019 Players Championship—finally.
What a relief, right? Not necessarily. The group of people exhaling so deeply didn’t include him.
He hadn’t won in a year. Yes, he’d finished in the top 6 in his previous five tournaments without closing the deal, and without his best stuff in the final rounds. That was the louder narrative.
Meanwhile, Rory’s inner monologue reminded him that he was always around and in the mix. He knew that sometimes he failed to close and other times there really was no way to win (both true). However, he believed that if he kept positioning himself to win, then he’d eventually break through.
He knew how to break through the noise. In an interview for TheGolfChannel.com he said:
“Even with some noise around me, whether it is, ‘he can’t close,’ ‘he can’t play on Sundays,’ blah, blah, blah. I’ve just got to do my thing. If I go and I concentrate on me, control what I can do, good golf and good attitude takes care of the rest.”
Statistically, he’s near the top of the list in just about every major category. We also cannot forget that he won four major championships, in record-setting fashion, by the age of 25.
My point is this: there will be times in your career when things just don't seem to pan out the way you'd like them to. Noise creeps in, except it doesn’t come from analysts on television, it comes from inside your head.
What am I doing wrong?
Why can't I close anymore?
Have I lost something?
Will I find it?
Did I ever even have it?
During these times, you must remind yourself of the facts and concentrate on what you can control. You have to review the tape and your stats. How have your sales calls been going? Are things moving through your pipeline? Are you missing or forgetting about steps in the process?
If you're missing or delinquent in some areas, then this analysis will help you shore up your game and get back on track. This is where it's good to meet with your manager or even another experienced sales rep on your team. Another set of eyes really helps with this process.
If you're doing everything right, and the dominoes just aren't falling yet, then keep your chin up, put your head down, and keep going. Control the things you can control, and the rest will happen when it's ready. Whether you're willing to admit it or not, you only have so much influence...
So, after a no-win year, Rory finally got the job done. What changed? Not a whole lot. He just showed up again, put himself in position to win again, and he did. And now he's the favorite to win the biggest tournament of the year, and the only major championship he doesn't have in his collection. It's really funny how a shift in perspective changes the entire narrative, isn't it?
Everyone runs into rough patches from time to time. They're an important part of life. They bring perspective. Acknowledge the negative narratives that creep in during rough patches, check in with the facts and what you can control, and keep moving forward.
Rory went on to win three more times in 2019 and was voted by his peers as the Player of the Year. Think his mindset had anything to do with that? Undoubtedly, and it’ll lead him to success in the future as well.
Jeff Bajorek
Real. Authentic. Experience.
There’s a big difference between knowing how to sell and being able to. Jeff Bajorek spent over a decade in the field as a top performer. He’s been in your shoes. He knows what it will take. He can help you succeed.
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