Have you ever wondered why “trust your gut” is such a commonly used phrase in sales and business?
You’ve been around for a lot of years, so there’s absolutely no way that you can remember every single event and experience that has ever occurred in your life. However, your gut / instinct / intuition (whatever you want to call it), has been paying attention. It has been observing and tucking away all that information you’ve received, and will use it to help you form better and stronger decisions.
So, when you begin to have inklings that the decision you’re making is wrong, or the client you’re working with could be a huge boost to your business, don’t ignore it. That’s almost always your gut telling you what you should do or should not do.
If you feel unsure, my advice would be to take time to sit with your options. The options your gut is telling you! If you’re someone who journals, maybe consider journaling through what you’re thinking and feeling. If you don’t journal, just let your brain roll with the thoughts in your head, take the time to reflect and make a sounder decision you’ll be happy with.
Are You Invisible?
Holding yourself back, despite experiencing nudges from your gut to move forward with a prospect or a sales goal, can leave you feeling invisible.
Some people have so much fear or resistance around putting themselves out there, fear that people won’t care what they have to say, fear that they’ll never make it because they’ve experienced other failures, all of this will keep you feeling invisible. It will hold you back from experiencing what your gut knows is your destiny.
My guest on Success Unfiltered, Kate Erickson, experienced just that. She had been working at a bank for 3 ½ years doing the exact same job. She wasn’t necessarily miserable, but she was ready for a change, so the next promotion within the bank that came up, she went for it and applied!
She was practically guaranteed the position by the hiring manager, but after going through the entire hiring process, Kate was notified that they decided to hire from outside the company.
It was at this time that Kate woke up!
She was completely disappointed with the bank’s decision and she was ready for a change. She’d been doing the same thing for so long and was ready to quit her job and become her own boss.
She was afraid, and this fear had kept her stuck and invisible in her position for years.
Kate would not stand for this any longer! She gave herself 6 months to work hard, and save up, before she would quit her job. And, almost 6 months to the day, Kate left her J-O-B at the bank she had been at for years!
(If you want to hear Kate’s whole story of how trusting her gut lead her to success,click here.)
Don’t Overanalyze Your Decisions
How often do big decisions come up where you feel completely paralyzed with the decision making process?
You’re overwhelmed with fear because you don’t know which decision is the “right” one, and you worry that if you make the “wrong” one things could go horribly wrong.
Many entrepreneurs waste so much time going back and forth with what or how they should sell. Is the price right, is the client the one they should be working with, should I hire that coach for help with my sales techniques?
These are the things that run through our minds (YES! I have definitely been there). But, if you ever pause those rapid fire thoughts, and really dig into what you are feeling deep down, you’ll find the answer that you’re seeking.
If you have a feeling in the pit of your stomach that you should (or should not) do something, go with whatever that feeling is saying. Stop letting fear win! Trust your gut!
Your Intuition Can Help Boost Sales
We all want to be able to read minds, right? Well, at least those of us in sales would.
If we were able to find a window into what someone was thinking, we’d be able to give them the guidance they need to make a decision on our product or service.
Maybe you’re selling a high-end coaching package that has a price tag of $30K a month. You’re an amazing coach, you know this and your clients are happy to back this up. There’s no question on whether you’re worth it or not!
You begin pursuing new clients and you happen upon someone who is very interested but has some hangups on the cost or what I like to call, the investment to work with you.
A lot of times, people aren’t willing to openly share their thoughts or concerns surrounding their hang-ups, so you need to use your “gut” or intuition, to uncover what’s holding them back from making a positive decision.
You can use things like their body language, or other non-verbal signals that they’re making in order to determine their hang-ups.
And remember, you want to be empathetic to their needs and not push them into a decision until they’re ready.
Conclusion
So let’s think about it… What major decisions have you been avoiding regarding your sales process or clients that you want to work with?
What is the feeling you get when you think of the person or situation? THAT’S your gut telling you what to do.
NOW go take action!
When you do, please report back in the comments below.
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Michelle, thank you SO much for inviting me on the show. I hope that my lessons and experiences will help you listeners – even if it’s just one little thing they take away.