How to handle sales pressure?

Before we get on to the topic of stress with respect to sales, it’s important to remember that almost anything that you undertake will have some level of stress. So it’s not a unique phenomenon only for sales. Having said that, sales is usually associated with numbers and anyone new to the field often gets nervous when the talk of targets arrive, hence the topic uniquely tailored towards stress associates with the sales profession.

There are a lot of things that make the sales profession a great one. But obviously there is a flip side to it too which means that a few things can be considered a negative in the field too. One such thing that usually pushes people away from sales is, STRESS.  In this blog we’ll discuss the three main things that can cause you stress on a sales job:

1. Targets:

Irrespective of the job profile you are in, there will always be a target that you will be measured on, at the end of the year. For sales professionals, there is a target number that you live by. If you meet those numbers at the designated intervals, things look good, you make your bonus/commission, have good chances at the promotion you’ve been waiting for or get the extra salary that you were promised. Miss the target and its the opposite of all that. We all know that a lot of the people who fall in the latter category and that for a lot of folks can be pretty stressful. 

Here are a few things you should do to avoid it. Let’s start from the time when the targets are set. Talk to the concerned stakeholders about the target when they are being decided. While the management will always want lofty goals to be set (we’ll all probably do the same in that position), be clear on what’s achievable based on the pipeline you see for the said time period. Once the target is fixed, it’s up to you on how you spend your time to achieve them. While this blog won’t be enough to cover all the things that an efficient sales person has to do (some of them are listed in my previous blogs), the one thing that’ll greatly benefit you is the discipline needed to be on top of your pipeline (and generate new leads). Remember, that even the best of the sales guys can have a bad quarter/year, but in general if the sales principles are followed, there is a good chance that you’ll meet your targets. So avoid the stress by being diligent right from the start. 

2. Boss:

If you have been employed, you know that there is a boss to deal with. And it’s no secret that your boss has the biggest impact on your work and life. In fact you are better off having a good boss working for a bad company rather than the other way. A good boss should allow you to learn and grow without micro-managing your work. That’s the ideal scenario. But then there are bosses who are at the other end of the spectrum too. And I’m not just referring to one or two incidents where you have a disagreement or tiff. It’s when you feel the stress or get disgruntled with the unachievable expectations of day in and day out with a daily grind that feels insurmountable. 

So what do you do when you have a bad boss? The first thing to do is to confront your boss politely and talk about what you are going through. If that doesn’t help, talking to your superiors is a good idea (it’s not a good idea to involve the HR, unless you have made your mind to leave the group). Quite often these situations get resolved at these initial levels, because the organization realizes that the next step is not something that will be beneficial for them (assuming you are considered valuable in their scheme of things). But then there does come a point that none of these interventions work. And that’s when you should look for options beyond your organization. While this should be considered as the final resort, it is something that should be considered for sure, because living and working in a stressful environment not just causes you to under-perform but can cause health issues too.

3. Reviews:

One thing that’s part and parcel of a sales professional’s life – reviews. The thing with reviews is that, no matter if you’ve done well or not in terms of achieving your targets, it can still go either way. Due to the nature of the meeting which involves your bosses generally questioning you on everything, it can get stressful to deal with it on an ongoing basis.

Ways to prepare for it- It’s always a good idea to keep an account plan ready for the reviews that happen at a short notice. As it turns out, there will be different formats you’d need to put this data in, but it will certainly help you avoid the last minute rush and anxiety. Another thing to do is to understand the expectation of the review meeting before hand so that you are adequately prepared and armed with the right information that might arise during the meeting.

CONCLUSION:

While a little stress can be good for heightened senses and the necessary focus required to complete the task, too much of it can be crippling, not to mention the adverse affect that it can have on your health.Take for example a glass of water. If held for a few seconds it doesn’t cause any issue. When you hold it for a few minutes at a stretch, it can get painful. If you try and hold it continuously for hours, it can cause your arm to become numb and might need medication to get nack to normal. That’s exactly how stress is. While the glass of water (stress) will conitnue to remain, remembering to not consume you throughout your day is very important. Remember, if the pressure is too great to deal with, its better to seek medical advice.

The things that I’ve listed above are tips that’ll work for not only managing stress but to improve your profile as well. But of course, there are other ways that people can reduce stress too, be it by playing sports, or watching some television, or spending time with your family or something else totally. Whatever it be, make sure you have a mechanism to keep your stress levels down, as that can be a big factor in the way of your success.