In the sales profession, we have a very high exposure to failure (in fact, in many selling jobs we will fail to make the sale more often than we will win the sale...how's that for ruining your day?).
Most successful salespeople have developed (or were born with) a high tolerance for weathering the storm of a selling failure. They have high bouncebackability; they get back up on their feet and keep moving forward.
But on the other end of the spectrum are sales representatives who get mired in the failure part of selling. They've developed post traumatic sales disorder, my terminology for someone who gets stuck after a selling set-back and has difficulty moving forward.Individuals with PTSD may need some extra therapeutic coaching from a sales manager.
Think of this as mental health therapy for the ill salesperson. These individual may need hand holding, advice, and a step-by-step plan to help get the salesperson out of the funk. At it's worst, PTSD can end sales careers, but usually some helpful coaching can prevent that step.
Here's how to identify a salesperson with post traumatic sales disorder:1. They've had a significant sales set-back (perhaps recently, but not necessarily). 2. They seem fixated on this failure and talk about it well after it should have been cleansed from their psyche.3. They are visibly down. This may be in the form of depression, low energy, lack of drive, missing work, etc.4. Their sales performance is suffering. PTSD isn't just about the initial sales set-back, it's about the other sales that are lost while in the throes of PTSD.
If you like this post (or don't) please leave a comment. Skip Anderson is the Founder and President of Selling to Consumers Sales Training. He works with companies and individuals who sell to consumers in B2C, retail, in-home selling, and the financial, real estate, and insurance markets.
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