Confidence – A Basic Requirement to Success
‘Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence.
-Hellen Keller
‘Self-trust is the first secret of success’
-Ralph Waldo Emmerson
Remi felt the dopamine flow through his body as a result of the great rapport he had built with the prospect. He understood all the elements of a high-quality sales process.
The environment is always key therefore Remi chose the lobby of the Hilton with its very good ambiance, as the setting for his sales pitch and by the prospects’ roving eyes when he walked into the entrance of the five-star hotel Remi could see the positive impact of the right environment.
Product or service knowledge is another key element that must be present in the top salespersons’ arsenal and Remi studied his companies range of products to near perfection.
He upskilled himself in the knowledge of body language and he was well versed in the art of communication but suddenly it all fell apart for Remi….
Even the music flowing effortlessly from the piano did not sound so wonderful anymore as he could feel a well-known fear stir up in him. Albeit that he was very well prepared he had an inner battle with the anxiety, fear, and pressure of ‘closing the deal’ –
If for any reason the prospect did not decide to buy there would be no commission. The boss might be unhappy, and the pressure would mount to close the next deal fast and the next… and the next…
Remis’ body language changed from optimism to be a slumped figure struggling to make eye contact with his prospect.
Kay, Remis’ prospect felt that his uneasiness spread to her like a disease and she’s grasped the chairs’ armrest with a force that made her knuckles turn white. She just wanted to leave….
An excuse ran through the connections in her brain and she said with an attempt at a smile:
‘Apologies Remi but I did not realize the time I will be late for my next appointment and you know with KL traffic …….’
Remis’ heart skipped a beat as he recognized the undesired emotional force of rejection clinging to the words that formed her excuse.
He greeted her reluctantly with his eyes searching for relief, but none was to be found. Kay left and as Remi stared into her back he saw and felt failure……
The fear of closing the deal, the fear of being rejected, the fear of failure is common amongst salespeople. Albeit that people, generally speaking, tend to seek and apply blame externally it is almost always sales peoples’ lack of confidence or own internal doubts, fears, and insecurities that are their own worst enemies when it comes to sales performance.
In our story the context is a sales meeting that went wrong yet as a high performance coach I know without a shadow of a doubt that a high level of confidence (Not arrogance) is a basic requirement of success in any endeavor in any field and any career.
What or who appears to be so cool is a manifestation of amongst other things confidence. The public speaker who commands a room with elegance and in appearance minimum effort with what they call charisma has at its root an unshakeable confidence.
Now, those suffering their fixed mindset would tend to argue that you are either born with a low or high level of confidence and if you were born with little confidence your fate is sealed.
Contrary to that those with a Growth mindset will endeavor to build and grow their confidence levels as they would hold the fundamental belief that it is possible to improve and learn how to become increasingly confident.
Click here to find out more about Custom Performance Coachings’ Scientifically validated Fixed/Growth mindset test: https://ai.pivotaltalent.co.za/?CID=1D4C5
How do you build an unshakeable level of confidence?
Self-confidence = Self-trust!
We all stop trusting people who do not sincerely endeavor to keep their promises to us. We, however, in general, fail to apply the same logic to ourselves. We tend to make lots of promises to ourselves that we do not keep:
‘Next week I will start the diet. Monday I will start working harder. This year I will get into shape.’
And then we fail to do it, generally speaking…
Self-confidence = self -trust and self-trust is all about the promises that you keep or break to yourself. Next time be very careful what promises you make to yourself and fully aware that if you break any promises that you have made to yourself that you are deliberately breaking down your self-confidence levels.
Our practical advice is to make at least two written promises (that you daily refer to) per week. Building confidence is like building a muscle do not overwhelm yourself with ‘heavyweights’ at first. Make reasonable and promises that are relatively easy to achieve at first.
Of course there is more to sustainable self-confidence building than what is described in this article. Building self-trust is the solid foundation though that you truly need. If you want to learn more about building self-confidence enquire about our :
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