About Fear

I see and hear a lot of fear right now. A senior executive described to me how frustrated he was with this “Rabbit-in-Headlights Economy”. “We need more belief in ourselves!"

I coached an experienced salesperson who had fallen on hard times. Sales were down.
Like all good salespeople, he worked extra hard, and made as many sales calls as he could. He crossed all the t’s and dotted all the i’s in abundant call reports, to demonstrate his commitment and loyalty to his bosses. Alas, all to no avail.

Like most of us (I include myself) it was easy to blame the economy..................

I asked what was driving him. Back came the response “Well I’m behind in my numbers and I want to catch up. I don’t want to lose my job!”

I asked a series of questions:

Q: “So fear drives your actions?”
A:“Yeh, I’ve got a wife and kids to support” came the answer.

Q: “To what extent do your friends and colleagues share your fear?”
A:“Quite a few, it’s time like this you find out who your friends are.”

Q: “To what extent do your existing customers share in your fear?”
A: “Yeh, a few have intimated that I’m trying too hard and come across as more pushy than usual. They are a bit apprehensive about me.”

Q: “And what of new customers and prospects?”
A: “Yes again, everybody I meet seems fearful to do anything right now, even when the business case is clear cut.”

So what's going on here? I've coached many people in this predicament. Here's what I've seen, time and again.

What drives us, we attract. Fear attracts fear.

So in the above client’s case, the coaching focused on tools to switch out fear and replace it with what the client wanted instead: “creative confidence”.

Within weeks, despite an ailing economy, the client’s sales figures went from poor, to fair, to good, to very good. He got back on track.

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Find out how to rid yourself of fear (and replace it with..............?)

Are you based in Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Sussex, Surrey, Hampshire, Wiltshire or London? Call me (07768 60-19-74) for a no-obligation, face-to-face, chat about what it takes to switch out fear. Are you further afield? If so, we can have a webchat.