We need to feel our best if we want to perform our best in sales. Below is a powerful rule that will help you figure out what is holding you back from feeling your best in sales.
It was shared by Olympian Alexi Pappas, on an episode of the Rich Roll podcast talking about Mental Health:
“Actions change first…Then Thoughts… Then Feelings… And in that Order. We can’t force our Feelings to change. They follow our Thoughts, which follow our Actions”
On paper this seems simple enough to follow, but in reality it’s far more difficult to execute on consistently. This article outlines three primary reasons why you might not be feeling your best in sales.
1 – We have trouble LABELING our Feelings.
Do you know how your own mind and body expresses feeling…
- “Stressed”
- “Anxious”
- “Overwhelmed”
- “Depressed”
- “Lonely”
- “Bored”
- “Frustrated”
- “Scared”
Or any of the other emotions we can face on a daily basis?
Especially after experiencing a stressor like missing our sales target or losing our job, we can be faced with several intense and unfamiliar emotions simultaneously.
This makes it extremely difficult to label how we’re feeling, which means our “Feelings” get heavier. Then our brain gets stuck “Thinking” and over-analyzing. And finally our “Actions” get paralyzed.
If we can’t label what we’re feeling internally, then we likely won’t know what action to take to feel better. Try working on your emotional literacy so you can learn to unpack what you’re feeling.
2 – We NEGLECT our Thoughts and Feelings
Maybe we think exploring our emotions shows weakness? Maybe our thoughts and feelings scare us so we avoid them?
Or maybe we’re so distracted and/or addicted to other areas of our life (social media, work, drugs, sex, fame, etc.) that we never spend time exploring our inner world?
Whatever the reason…
Neglecting the hidden messages and needs of our inner world will always affect the Actions we take in the external world. Try journaling to help you sort through the meaning behind your thoughts and feelings so they stop holding you back. This article provides some good journal prompts at the end to help you.
3 – We take the WRONG Actions too often.
We over work. Stay up too late. Have too much to drink. Wake up too early. Play too much.
It’s normal to get caught up in the moment and over do it from time to time. That’s called being human.
But if we consistently take the wrong Actions too often (aka bad habits), then they’ll start to change our Thoughts… And then our Feelings… For the worse. It becomes nearly impossible to move forward if the wrong actions are always holding you back.
Tomorrow, try recording every action you take throughout the day each hour. This includes everything from brushing your teeth, scrolling LinkedIn, to watching a clip on YouTube. Beside each action, record whether they made you feel better, neutral or worse.
Then try replacing some of the actions that made you feel neutral or worse, with actions that might make you feel better the next day.
Are one of the three reasons above holding you back from taking the right ACTION you need to start THINKING and FEELING better today?
If you found this exercise helpful, try exploring our training services because they are packed full with tactical strategies like this to help you perform your best in sales.
About The Author
Jeff Riseley is currently the Founder of the Sales Health Alliance and Mental Health Advocate. With over a decade of sales experience – Jeff understands the importance of Mental Health in achieving peak sales performance.
Jeff combines his sales and Mental Health expertise to improve sales performance through mental health best practices. His strategies have helped sales teams become more motivated, resilient and better equipped to tackle stressful events within sales.
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