One of the most significant negatives when it comes to sales seems to be the thought and experience of rejection. In any type of people-moving effort, there is the risk of being rejected or ignored. This fear of rejection can often lead to more difficulty in getting started on the selling process. Whether it is a pitch to the board, a door-to-door sale, or simply a non-sales selling conversation, a negative view of potential outcomes does not help your ability to sell.
In Daniel Pink’s book To Sell Is Human, Pink discusses the advantage of positive self-talk and the role that overall positivity in thinking helps in being a more effective salesperson and persevering the constant rejection that comes with selling. However, using the interesting example of Bob The Builder from the children’s TV series from 1999, Pink shows that there is an even more effective way of self-talk than even positive thinking.
This alternative way is known as Interrogative self-talk, the interrogative method digs deeper than simply trying to encourage one’s self to complete a task or achieve a goal. The interrogative method is, instead of saying “I can do this,” it is “can I do this?” However, Pink says that one cannot simply leave the question hanging. After asking a question like, “can I do this?” or, “Can I fix this?” you must answer the question. Self-talk with this method forces you to list why you are capable and can also give you a list of strategies on how to accomplish the goal, as Pink notes, “ask and you shall receive.”
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I think one aspect that a lot of people skip thinking about is rejection even though this happens a lot in the sales industry. Positive and interrogative self talk are both really good methods of how to go about this feeling of rejection. It makes you look back at why the sale didn’t go through and do not bring yourself down.