I’ve known some superior individuals who couldn’t make it in the world of selling. Why? They each had a tendency to take things personally and way too seriously. In the Sandler world, we know that rejection of our products and services isn’t personal. Sometimes things don’t fit. That doesn’t mean they don’t like me as a person; it is simply because they believe we are not a good business fit or that maybe they aren’t committed to fixing the problems they have.
When facing rejection, we need to take it on our “role” side, rather than our “identity”. Here’s what I mean:
Our identity is our values, our belief systems and our self-worth. If we allow rejection to affect our identity, we don’t stand a chance in professional selling. Letting failures weigh on our identity is the kiss of death in any part of our lives, not just in business. As far as you’re concerned, you are always a 10 when it comes to your identity.
Your roles are a different story. We all play different roles: businessperson, salesperson, mother, father, sister, brother, son, daughter, friend, neighbor… this is where we need to accept failure. We can fail in our roles – some days we register as a 3/10 as salesperson, some days a 9/10. Nobody is perfect. No one can be 100% in their roles all the time.
When facing rejection and failure, let it rest on your role. Protect your identity and accept that we all fail. It’s a hit on our role, but since we know as a person we are always a 10, we can pick ourselves up, brush ourselves off and move on.
To be successful in sales you must be fearless – remove the fear by letting your role absorb all the negativity, rejection and failure. Your identity will thank you for it, and you can sleep easy at night.
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