NOTE FROM JEFF – We received some good economic news this week: 3rd quarter GDP actually grew after shrinking in the 1st and 2nd quarters. Nevertheless, many economists are worried about next year. In preparation for what appears to be coming, my friend and colleague Jeb Blount has written a new book designed to help selling professionals succeed in a stressed economy.
The book dropped earlier this week, so I am sharing a guest column today from Jeb…
By Jeb Blount
When the economy turns sour, fear is palpable. In vain, amid the relentless stream of bad news, people search for certainty where there is none.
For sales professionals the stress and anxiety quickly exact a toll. Your retirement account is rapidly shrinking. People around you are losing their jobs. Commission checks get smaller as customers cut back on services and orders. Fewer prospects are buying. Compensation plans shrink.
Competition becomes brutal as everyone scrambles to sell to the few customers that are still buying. To make things worse, you may be walking on eggshells wondering when the next wave of job cuts could leave you out in the cold.
However, to sit around all day, wringing your hands over what-ifs, doom scrolling, and reacting to rumors on social media changes nothing. Worry is a miserable, debilitating waste of energy that holds you back.
Jim Rohn once said, “Wherever you are, be there.” You can’t change past decisions. The future has yet to be written. All you have is now, the present. Right now.
RIGHT NOW is the only thing that is real. Right now, you have two basic choices. You can wallow in worry or you can take action – and not just any actions – RIGHT NOW actions.
If you want to survive and thrive during this economic downturn, you’ve got to be RIGHT NOW. Unlike worry, the actions and decisions you make in this moment, RIGHT NOW, have the potential to change everything:
- What actions can you take RIGHT NOW that will contribute to your company’s top or bottom line?
- What actions can you take RIGHT NOW to build your pipeline?
- What can you do RIGHT NOW to retain your customers?
- What can you do RIGHT NOW to close more business?
- What can you do RIGHT NOW to adjust the way you sell to connect with more prospects?
- What can you do RIGHT NOW to leverage technology to gain a competitive edge?
- What can you do RIGHT NOW to ensure that you are in a position to win once the recession is over?
- What can you do RIGHT NOW to bring additional income to your family?
- What can you do RIGHT NOW to get the boss to notice that you are valuable and essential to the health of the company?
- What can you do RIGHT NOW to help another person?
- What can you do RIGHT NOW to enjoy life and the ones you love?
Consider this your wakeup call. In an economic crisis or any other crisis, you cannot stick your head in the ground and hide your way out of it. You cannot worry, complain, or cry your way out of it.
What you can do is to mind your mindset, put your chin up, move forward, and climb your way out of it. RIGHT NOW.
About the Author
Jeb Blount is the author of 15 definitive sales and sales leadership books, including his latest, Selling in a Crisis. He is among the world’s most respected thought leaders on sales, leadership, and customer experience. Through his global training organization, Sales Gravy, Jeb and his team train and advise a who’s who of the world’s most prestigious organizations. His flagship website, SalesGravy.com, is the most visited sales-specific website on the planet.
