Resilience in Sales: Overcoming Rejection and Bouncing Back Stronger

Let's talk about the one thing that can make or break an in-home salesperson, resilience. In the in-home sales game, rejection is as common as Monday traffic.  Resilience is what separates the winners from the whiners.  This quality not only elevates the mental strength of a salesperson but also shapes their ability to navigate through the waves of “Nos” and uninterested prospects. In an environment where you get more “Nos” than “YESs”, an undeterred spirit and the capacity to bounce back become the foundation in which successful sales careers are built. It's not merely about enduring rejection but transforming it into growth, fostering a mindset that views every setback as a setup for a comeback. The game of in-home sales you may be surrounded with obstacles, but with resilience, each hurdle becomes a steppingstone towards a sale.

Imagine resilience like a bouncy ball. No matter how hard it hits the ground, it always bounces back up. For someone trying to sell things, that ball represents never giving up, always wanting to do well, and being stubborn about reaching your goals. It means moving forward, learning from each “no thank you”, and always being ready to try again even when it feels like everyone is turning you down. It’s all about hanging in there and finding new ways to get to your goal, seeing opportunities where others just see a closed door.

Getting good at bouncing back or building resilience, isn’t something only special people are born with. Anyone can learn to do it! It's all about not taking “NO” too personally and using each one to get better at your job.  Use every “NO” to look at what you’re doing and see how you can tweak it. Maybe you change your word tracks a bit, make your offering sound more exciting, or find a new way to present one of your steps. Each “NO” is a chance to learn and get one step closer to hearing “YES” next time.

Using resilience means understanding that hearing “NO” in the close is just part of the process and doesn’t mean your they are not buying. When someone says “NO”, I always think they really mean “NOT YET.”  You may have not given them enough information to feel comfortable to make a decision. Maybe they had a knee jerk reaction to your offer.  Perhaps you did not get the proper commitments earlier to be able to close.  Regardless, you have to, you must, keep asking for the business.  Be resilient and don’t give up so easily.  Find ways to keep asking for the business and get several “NOs” before you leave. Practice your close, it’s a very important part of your presentation! 

When you get a “NO” and you cannot overcome, that’s when it’s an opportunity to try something new and get better at selling. It’s about finding the hidden nuggets in every “NO” and using your new ways of overcoming the objection in your next sale. Remember to stay cheerful, stick with it, and think about what went well and what didn’t so you can do better next time. Stay resilient and close more deals, more often.