Confidence.
It is such a precious trait to have in business and in life.
When we feel confident, nothing gets in our way. We can tackle anything.
- Presentation to a large group of buyers? No problem.
- Cold call to a potential buyer you have been targeting? No problem.
- Follow-up conversation to upsell an additional service to a new customer? No problem.
When the levels are high, we feel unstoppable.
And yet (or if it’s all the time) when confidence levels are low, the whole world feels like a challenge let alone having conversations with buyers.
As a business owner or someone who sells for a living, you don’t have a choice. You have to try and show confidence. You know that if you don’t, your buyer will take advantage. The lion will bite you if you show fear.
Not only will they take advantage but as I shared in last week’s email, they won’t respect you either.
And with little respect comes lower chances of winning business.
So we have to, in some way develop our confidence.
How though?
What can you do to build your Sales Confidence? What can you put in place that will help you build the strength you need to achieve the results you want?
Take a look at the 5 ideas below and pick one, two or maybe even all of them to implement this week. I’ve also given you a bonus one to think about at the end as well 
They work.
Tip 1: Write down your achievements
In order to feel confident, we need to look back and see what we have achieved.
Too often in our lives, we think we haven’t done anything but when you spend time writing down your top 20 achievements, you realise what you have achieved. Whether that is passing your driving test, giving your first presentation, giving birth or achieving a personal challenge, writing down what you have done is vital.
Spend a few minutes writing down on a pad of paper what you have achieved in your life that you are most proud of. When the list is complete, read it out. Remind yourself what you have done. Keep a copy of the paper near to you and when you are feeling low, go back and look at it. It will give you a boost.
Tip 2: Link something you can carry around to past successes
Our brains are funny things. When we link key successes and times when we felt confident in the past to something we hold on our person, our brain connects back to that moment and it can give you a short confidence shot there and then. Let me explain.
I have a small blue casino chip which I carry in my car. I won it one night when out with friends where I felt at my confident best. I have (through repeated action) trained my brain to remember that moment when I hold the chip in my hand. When I do, I smile and remember back to the night out, how good I feel and I get a boost of confidence.
You can achieve the same feeling. Find an item that means something to you, hold it, think back to the confident feelings you had at the time and visualise how it felt. Keep the item with you and keep holding it and remembering back. In a short space of time, your mind will connect the item to feeling confident and that can give you the feeling of confidence when you need it most.
Tip 3: Re-read customer testimonials and positive things people have said about you and your company
We all need to be reminded of the good work we do. Positive testimonials are a great way to do just that.
When I feel a bit low (and it does happen) I tend to look at videos like this from clients that help me regain that belief in who I am and what I do. They reinforce to me that I am of value and that I am important. You should look to do the same thing.
If you don’t have a video, dig out old case studies or even comments from customers on emails. They are great to flick through and remind ourselves of the impact we have made. They help us see that we have the skills and knowledge to achieve and these feelings help build a sense of confidence.
Tip 4: Repeat your pricing
One of the big issues around confidence with those who sell is that they dont feel comfortable discussing their price. Price and what someone wants to pay is such a key point in the whole sales conversation.
We get nervy about saying what our price is and then proceed to talk all over the price or rates after we have said them. Or we say the figure with a whimper. Solve this by continuing to repeat your price over and over and over again.
‘The price for my service is £2500. The price for my service is £2500. The price for my service is £2500.’
It may seem like a mad idea but once again it’s a brain trick that works and builds confidence. I have repeated my price countless times whilst on walks, whilst in the shower, whilst in the car on my own. I’ve done it thousands of times and so now when I get asked, it comes out naturally and confidently.
I say ‘The price for my service is £2,500. How does that fit within your financial plans?’ with total confidence. If you are uncomfortable about discussing pricing and money, it will show. It’s an area where you will leak confidence. Solve this by repairing your price. If you do then it will just become a natural part of what you do and say.
Tip 5: Practice
We become more confident through practice and repetition. It’s that simple.
As with Tip 4, the more we do of something, the better we become. The very best at anything in the world are confident in the way they deliver their art/music/sport BECAUSE they have practiced. They have done ‘the thing’ so many times that when they are called to do it in a pressure situation (where they may not have had confidence) they just remember back to their practice and what they have done before.
If you don’t practice (and I share more about this in my podcast this week) then you won’t improve and you will feel unsure about how to act. Which will create doubts which create a crisis of self-confidence.
Solve that by spending time mastering your craft.
And the bonus tip? Still feeling low on confidence? Hire a mentor! I know a good one 
In all seriousness, much of the work that I and other mentors do is to build confidence in good people.
Sue Rees is a customer of mine who openly admitted that she had lost her confidence and mojo. For whatever reason, even though she was good at what she did, she was suffering from a lack of self-confidence a few years ago and knew that she had to take action.
She did. She hired me and a few years later, she is back with a great business achieving great results.
Sometimes when we can’t find it ourselves, we need to bring others in who can help us see who we are and what we can achieve. It’s what coaches and mentors do for a living.
This is not a pitch for me and my services. That’s not my style.
But it is a good way to build confidence if yours is low.
Whichever route you take and whatever you decide to do, just ensure you are taking the actions on a regular basis to build confidence. Winning deals is hard enough in tough economic times without having self-confidence crises!
Take the action you need to build yourself up to be strong, be focused and be driven to achieve the success you want. It’s in your own hands and can be achieved with a belief in yourself. Go and make it happen.
