Cold Calling Sucks – But Do It Anyway
There are many activities in business that are not pleasant. One of the activities that most salespeople (and entrepreneurs who must also prospect as salespeople) HATE is cold calling. I’ve never spoken to a sales person who actually likes to cold call. I’m sure you’re out there though! I’ve found that nearly all salespeople who are successful use cold calling as part of the way they grow their business. It’s not easy to pick up the phone and talk with a stranger, try to find out if they have a need for your product or service, and then set up a pitch or presentation. It’s especially not easy when 10, or 20, or 50 people have told you “no” they are not interested. Most of us don’t like rejection. But successful sales people cold call anyways because it’s an activity that leads to growing their business.
Life is Not Always Fun & Games
Cold calling is not the only business activity that is not pleasant. Every business has many things that are necessary, but not necessarily fun. Some of these activities can include; following up, paperwork, bookkeeping, planning, cleaning your office, driving to and from appointments, and public speaking. Everyone is different and has things they like to do and things they don’t like.
Ultimately, if you own your own business, or are a sales professional, you have to perform daily, weekly, and monthly activities to achieve your goals. In most cases, the upside potential far outweighs the tasks that are unpleasant and just not fun to do. Also, it’s not enough to do the unpleasant activities one day and then not the next. You have to be consistent.
7 Tips to Help You Complete Unpleasant Tasks That Will Move You Towards Reaching Your Goals
- Create a strong WHY – Our WHY is the reason we are working so hard at our business. Our WHY is the driver that helps us get up in the morning ready to go. What is your WHY?
- Create a list of must-do activities – I’m sure you know what they are for your business; Cold calling, warm calling, follow-up, inspirational reading, studying a mentor, creating blog content, creating social media content. Create a list of the right mix of activities to grow your business.
- Start small – Don’t set activity goals that are too big. If you set too lofty activity goals from the start, then you might get disappointed when you don’t achieve your goals and quit. Start small and build from there.
- Be consistent – I used to hear it said that it takes 21 days to form a habit. More recently, I’ve read that the number is 66 days. Create your activity goals and then be consistent EVERY DAY with hitting your activity goals. Do this for at least 66 days and the activity will become a habit.
- Time block – Once you create your activity goals then set aside time every day to work on each activity. Block out time during your day where you only work on that activity.
- Limit distractions – When you are working on your daily tasks and activities make sure to block out distractions. No Facebook, Youtube, or Yahoo News during your work time.
- Take breaks – Just as it’s important to set work times, make sure to plan for breaks. 5-10 minute breaks during your day can help to take the stress away. This is when you can make personal calls, check Facebook, or even read a book. You can get a lot of personal things done if you plan for them during the day.
Hopefully you can use some or all of these tips to get through whatever mental blocks you have about completing hard to do tasks, whether it’s cold calling or organizing your office.
Was this helpful? If so, I’d really appreciate it if you leave a comment below or share on Facebook or your favorite Social Media!
Michael Hurd, Executive Coach
Email: mike@hurdmarketing.com
