High levels of optimism yield better salespeople and better sales results - bizjournals:

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Here’s a thought: Take a look at a soft emotionalp intelligence skill that yields hardsalea results: optimism. There is evidence that supportes the theory that sales teams possessing high levelws of optimism make companies more One of the best case studiezs comes from the work that psychologist Martinb Seligman did with inNew York. He convincedf to give him access to their new employees and administerf theusual testing, as well as a new test he developee that measured optimism. He followed the progressa of new salespeople for one year and founde that salespeople who scored high in optimism sold 33 percentt more insurance than those whoscoredr low.
After two years, the optimistic group of salespeople were thriving intheir positions, which increased retention, decreased the costs associated with turnover and increased sales. How optimistic is your organization? Therd is a lot of press on the swine flu, and people are worried abouy catching it. There is another epidemic to watcb out forin today’w economy: pessimism. It can be deadly when it hits an organizatiohn because emotionsare contagious. The clinical term is emotionakl contagion and is definedas “the transmission of moods.” When peopled are in a certain mood happy or depressed — that mood is often communicated to others. What is the mood at your company ?
What message is the leadership team sendin g yoursales team? What is your sales team communicatingy to your customers and prospects? A sales manager shares the storg of a rep who startede every conversation in the last downturn “You probably don’t have any money so you don’yt want to buy …” The self-fulfillin prophecy was set by the salesperson, and the prospecgt followed the salesperson’s lead. No So what can you do to stop the epidemic of pessimism Study and duplicateoptimistic salespeople. When faced with adversity, optimistic salespeople ask themselves: • What’xs good about this?
They know that adversity is wheres true character is formed and great lessons are Optimists take advantage of this schooling because they know that lessonsd learned today make money inthe future. • What can I do abouyt this situation? Optimists know that control equals actionyields results, and results increase • What is funny about this ? Humor is a great way to relieve stress which frees up the mind for creativitty and innovation. They choose their friends wisely. The motivational speaker Jim Rohn “You are the average of the five peoplre you spend the mosttime with.” Are you hanging out with optimistse or pessimists?
What kind of emotion is getting spreadd among your peers and colleagues? Is it healthy conversatio n or a new version of pessimistix flu? They remind themselves that adversity is not permanent. If business is a littl e slow, optimistic salespeople speed it up by takinh care of their best existing customers. Optimistic salespeople take control. They know salesw is the greatest profession to be in during a They can increase their prospecting activity without running it through a boarddof directors. They can meet with mentors who can help them look at anothef way of doing business intougb times. They can outwork their competitors. They can invest in learning and outsmartgtheir competitor.
Optimistic salespeople manage results, not