Sometimes, no matter how busy your work may be, or how much you love what you do, you can start to lose your motivation. Once you’re in this frame of mind, it can be very difficult to get out of it and you can even start to lose sight of what you and your team are trying to achieve.
Motivation is the key to success in any task, but especially in a sales environment. So, how can you stay motivated when you’re at work? And how do we avoid stagnation and procrastination in our working day?
Read on for our favorite tips and tricks to help you stay motivated in sales.
1. Simply Get Started
When you’ve already started to lose motivation, beginning a new project can be the last thing you want to do. But paradoxically, throwing yourself into a new challenge is often the most effective way of re-energizing yourself. Sometimes deep diving into a new project and stepping away from your daily tasks will help you re-engage with your work and increase those motivation levels.
2. Remind Yourself of Your Long-Term Goals
Remember to keep in mind the reasons why you want to succeed in your career and your long term goals and aspirations. Are you going for promotion? Do you want to be in the top three salespeople in your team? Whatever it might be, it’s important to remind yourself of these goals in order to get back on track.
Create visual reminders for each of these and keep them close by. Don’t lose track of why you do what you do.
3. Make a Plan, Break It Down, and Stick to It
Getting yourself organized and making an in-depth plan can initially feel quite daunting. However, once complete, it truly can be the best way to keep your motivation levels high. Breaking down your project into a measurable step-by-step plan can help you escape the feeling of being overwhelmed.
Each time you complete these smaller steps, you’ll feel like you’re making progress and will have clearer sight of what you have left to accomplish. Making your tasks more manageable will give you a better chance of successfully completing them one-by-one. As salespeople know, nothing motivates better than the feeling of success.
As long as each individual element has a measurable outcome, achieving these small goals can give you the impetus and momentum to complete challenges that at first seemed unwieldy and intimidating.
Starting a weekly planner is an excellent way to achieve this. Having small rewards for completing each section can help you to feel motivated and give you something to work towards that still seems in sight, a proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. All your small actions and successes add up in the end.
4. Remember You’re Not Alone
As we all know, sales can often feel like a competitive, individualistic pursuit. Just remember you are part of a team. Talk to your colleagues. They can often be your greatest untapped resource when you are lacking motivation. Surround yourself with positive people, trade stories and methods, and find out what works for them, as it may well work for you, too.
Don’t be afraid to approach mentors and top salespeople and soak in their success stories. Cut yourself off from negativity and surround yourself with motivated colleagues. You’ll be surprised how easily it rubs off.
5. Don’t Procrastinate
Procrastination is your worst enemy. The only way to escape its clutches and achieve your goals is to get on with your tasks. This doesn’t even have to be your main project, as movement of any kind creates progress.
Answer those emails you haven’t got round to answering yet, complete any pressing admin, update client information, or complete those smaller daily tasks you normally don’t have time to do. Get the ball rolling in any way you can. Motivation is all about momentum and completing tasks will get you feeling like you’re firing on all cylinders again.
6. Shake It Up!
Sometimes, our brain just needs a hard reset to re-focus. When you can’t stand staring at a screen anymore, make a change. Go for a brisk walk. Get some fresh air in your lungs. Stretch your body, not your brain. Exercise. Just do anything to allow your mind to reset. Studies show that going for a walk can boost energy levels by up to 20% and as an added bonus, improve creativity substantially. Don’t be afraid to vary things to reboot your brain and approach a problem or project with a fresh mind.
7. Remind Yourself of Your Last Big Win
Make note of your big successes. Were you the top salesperson of the month? Did you win a client off your biggest competitor? Whatever your last big win might have been, remember this feeling. That way, the next time you’re stuck in a rut, the memory of this feeling will carry you through.
8. Get the Balance Right
We have all had to adjust the way we work over the last couple of years. With the rapid rise of hybrid or dynamic working, people are working from home more than ever before. For many, the comfort and convenience of working remotely has provided an environment much more conducive to productivity; many others have come to realize the importance of face-to-face contact in an office environment.
Moving forward, finding the right balance between working from home or in the office can be a massive help in increasing productivity. Increased productivity will inevitably lead to a sense of achievement, which in turn will help you feel more motivated.
What’s Next?
With any luck, these 8 tips will help you get motivated and stay motivated! Only you can truly control your drive to hit those career goals and succeed in the competitive sales market.
However, if you’re finding that no matter what you do, your motivation levels just keeping dropping, then perhaps consider your current job just isn’t for you. We all go through little bumps in our career, but if your heart isn’t in your role, it can be hard to maintain a passion for your work. Why not consider looking for a new role with us?
Submit your resume today to find your next dream role and a career your truly love.
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