Fear of "Selling"? - By Zoe Routh

Whether you run a business, or are an employee, or manage a family – you are always 'selling' something.

Selling is the art of exchanging value. In the commercial world this is a simple equation – money is given in exchange for a product or service.

In the office, 'selling' might happen when you try and convince others of your proposal, or negotiate a pay rise.

On the home front, you are constantly 'selling' ideas to your kid (or spouse!) about what is in their best interest.

Surprisingly, considering how much we actually do selling, a fear of selling is a pervasive experience.

If you've got a 'I don't-want-to-be-a-slimey-salesperson' fear of selling, then there's never been a better time to knock that block on its head.

Here are three main reasons to deal with this issue now:

1. If you don't sell, your business (or personal life) suffers – that's obvious.
2. If you don't sell, your confidence suffers – that's obvious too.
3. If you don't sell, you can’t help as many people. Obvious, but not always remembered.

Why do people feel resistance to selling? You might recognise yourself in one of these situations:

You love to buy, but you hate being 'sold'. You might have had that sleazy car salesman experience where the subtext is – ‘they don’t care about me – they just want my money'. Like a dog sniffing a skunk, you can smell 'desperate' a million miles away.

You believe all salespeople have a touch of 'snake oil' deceit about them. Somewhere along the line, from your parents, friends, school, or daily life, you’ve linked salespeople with ‘insincere, dishonest, just out for themselves, just trying to screw the little guy, cheaters, liars’ and so on. No one likes to buy from selfish people!

Fear of being rejected:
If you make an offer you're afraid of people saying ‘no’. It's the cold sharp knife of rejection. Or you’re afraid that people are going to think YOU are the slimey salesman!

These are all clues that you’ve got some limiting beliefs about selling and what you have to offer.

How to get over your resistance to selling:

Step 1.You need to reframe your concept of 'selling'. Selling is an exchange of value. For example, if I give you something, you give me something in return of equal value. I give you two cows, you give me three bushels of hay. I give you my product or service, then you give me a certain amount of money. There's giving AND receiving.

Step 2. You need to believe in your product or service heart and soul –regardless of whether people buy it or not. You would rave about it even if you weren’t selling it. This is called the 'raving fan syndrome'.

If you don’t have the 'raving fan syndrome' about your product or service, here are some questions to consider: How do you feel about the price of the product/service? Is it a no-brainer/sensible investment?

Do you use it or have used it before yourself?
If you weren’t selling it, would you still use it or rave about it?

Unless you answer ‘yes’ to each of these questions you will have an ‘out of integrity experience’ in your selling – and you will give off that shonky used-car-salesman vibe.

Step 3. Practice this mantra: “the customer is more important than the sale”. You may not make the sale this time, but if you focus on offering value and helping people with their needs, rather than serving your own, you will build a lifetime fan. And that will mean more 'sales' over the long run.

About the Author:
Law of Attraction Block Buster Coach Zoe Routh helps busy professionals and business owners turbo-charge their personal effectiveness. Zoe has paddled 30 weeks by canoe, run 6 marathons, hiked hundreds of kilometres in Australia’s outback, bellydanced at festivals, written a book, survived cancer, married a fair dinkum Aussie bloke, and wrestled a 6 meter crocodile. It’s all true, except for the crocodile part. Sign up for more Law of Attraction Block Busting Tips and your free Law of Attraction Checklist in Compass Bearings at www.innercompass.com.au