“Oh, what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to believe.” – Laurence J Peter, Best known for the formulation of the Peter Principle.
How many ways do you have to make a sales call more difficult than it is?
Limiting beliefs, we all suffer them and they are the great saboter of a sales call.
Scared, are you? Don’t be. It is not a medical malady or a psychiatric disorder. It is simply something you acquire as you tread along the path life sets for you. Unfortunately, limiting beliefs do not work in your favor and therefore you need to do something about them.
What are limiting beliefs?
Limiting beliefs are any kind of thoughts you have which hold you back. They are specific to each of us and are therefore not something others can perceive easily. The real problem with limiting beliefs is they are untrue and yet you tend to believe in them strongly. Just as the worlds looks different when looking through a colored glass, limiting beliefs too distort the truth for you.
For example, how many ways do you have to make a sales call more difficult than it is?
- This is going to be a challenging call.
- It will be difficult to . . .
- I am not good enough
- I not very good at . . .
- I don’t know enough to . . .
- I can’t get past . . .
- The prospect will be difficult to sell.
- I won’t be able to . . .
- My price is too high to sell them.
- I’m not going to be able to . . .
The list is endless.
Some of you may be saying, ‘Well, they are a tough a prospect, the call is going to be tough.’ Again, these are limiting beliefs. In workshop discussions about limiting beliefs, when participants start to list limiting beliefs about selling, many participants react and give me reasons “why” those beliefs are so. The big problem is EVERY reason they give me is a limiting belief. Participants quickly realize there is little basis for these thoughts or opinions. Remember, every reason you have for a prospect not doing business with you is a limiting belief.
Now that you know limiting beliefs exist, you can be sure you too are afflicted. How do you identify limiting beliefs you may have?
It’s not easy. You believe so deeply in limiting beliefs you do not even acknowledge them as such. However, it is of utmost importance you identify and understand them. As limiting thoughts are negative in nature, the best way to identify a limiting belief is by analyzing all negative thoughts (or reasons for not . . .) that pass through your mind. If you find certain thoughts are repeated more than others, then you have identified a strong limiting belief.
How to eliminate limiting beliefs?
It is now amply clear, limiting beliefs are no good. Once you have identified your limiting beliefs, try to eliminate them. Once again, it’s easier said than done. However, there are ways to will you into freeing yourself from all limiting beliefs.
Think positive:
- Always, always think positively.
- Think the opposite of your limiting belief. Practice it and most certainly you will succeed. You can start today.
- Visualize your success before you begin your sales call.
Question your beliefs constantly:
- Most of your beliefs are from the time we were a child or derived from your experiences. Learn to question your beliefs and others beliefs. Ask why and then, why not?
Limiting beliefs are simply thought processes you need to change. Once you have successfully eliminated the unnecessary thoughts, you will feel the difference in the sales calls you make, as well as your life.
If your prospect will benefit from product or service, then you owe it to them to do everything you can do to get in front of them and then have them use your product or service.
Remember!
“Believe and act as if it were impossible to fail.”
– Charles F. Kettering an American inventor, engineer, businessman, and holder of 186 patents.
LIMITLESS! I think so.
Copyright 2012 By J.P. Thompson CHt. All rights reserved.