When Motivation Doesn't Work

Sales is hard. From finding a prospect to closing the sale, the entire process is tough. Add the stereotypes of sleazy people using high pressure techniques and you can immediately see why the deck is stacked against your success. With all of this negativity working toward your inevitable failure, how can you push through?

Depending on who you ask, the answer is usually has something to do with your motivation, or how you can stay motivated. We all want to succeed, but when your success rate is low and you are exhausted, it can be tough to keep going. 

When I wrote "You're Going To Great At This!" I made a point of mentioning at the outset that it was not a motivational book. I wanted it to be more about what sales is really like, which potential landmines to look out for and offer real world tools you can use. In other words, I wanted it to be the book that I wish someone had given me when I first got started in the business. 

Even though I had done some sales in high school and college, I didn't really take the process seriously until I graduated and began working for a company selling insurance in rural areas. We were given two weeks of classroom training in which we were supposed to memorize a script, as well as a large binder full of rebuttals for all the potential objections that would come our way, and most importantly, get motivated to sell. 

The last item was ridiculously silly. Each morning we were told to stand up and perform what I remember being a weird medley of cheers to "get the blood flowing". There were a few people who bought into all of this, but the vast majority of the class rolled their eyes as we played along. 

Our instructors, and by association, the rest of the company had a giant problem in all of this because they had lost any credibility with us from the onset. As I mentioned in my book, the recruiters who hired us had been less than forthcoming about the true nature of the job. It was the third day of class when someone asked the teacher incredulously, "Is this door-to-door sales?" When the young man with the overly starched shirt leading the discussion sheepishly admitted that it was, the next week and a half were full of cynicism and doubt.

No amount of motivational speeches can overcome the lack of credibility. We limped through the next month or so of working for this insurance company, and a large meeting was planned for sales reps from all over the state. As expected, the cheer leading began at some point after lunch with several cheesy old men standing on the stage trying to spur us into action. 

One manager we had never seen before made the decision to inspire us by reciting the words to "My Way", the song made famous by Frank Sinatra. The room fell silent, more likely from the high carb meal that was offered to us at lunch than the actual lyrics. The manager looked seriously at the crowd as he got to the chorus of "More, much more than this.." when we heard from one of our guys in the second row, "I did it sideways!" at the top of his lungs. 

Laughter filled the room but was quickly extinguished by the contemptuous looks from the stage full of managers and other "dignitaries". Not long after that nearly everyone in our sales crew was gone, as they had been looking for other employment from the day of the instructor's admission that the job was door-to-door sales in the training class weeks earlier. 

Motivational speeches are great. There is absolutely nothing wrong with trying to inspire your team, but you first have to have their trust. Asking your staff to buy in when you are motivating them is only going to work if they think you are being straight and honest. 

Chris Castanes is a professional speaker who helps sales people succeed through workshops and humorous presentations. He's also the author of "You're Going To Be Great At This!", a humorous look at sales. For booking information, click here. He's also the president of Surf Financial Brokers selling life and disability insurance in several states.