Thrive on Rejection – Don’t Let It Ruin Your Financial Advisor Career
In order to succeed you need to prospect, open accounts and get referrals. To achieve these aims you need to face your fear of rejection.
Rejection is an occupational hazard so rather than fear rejection you must find a way to thrive on it. Coca Cola sold 400 cokes in their first year. Henry Ford’s first two companies went under. They obviously learned to thrive on rejection. And if you don’t too you will halt any chance of success dead in its tracks.
Confront your fears
In the words of Henry Ford “If you think you can do a thing or think you can’t, you are right”. In other words – people who think they can succeed, can.
Life is all about confronting fears. When we first learn to ride a bike, we’re confronting our fear of falling off the bike. In order to overcome your fears you need to believe you will succeed, then you need to do it – and keep on doing it. At some point you believed you could ride the bike before you got on it. Once you mastered it this became second nature. Apply this same approach when you are prospecting and opening accounts.
It’s not you that that the client rejects – it’s your offer
Fear of rejection is fear of being disliked or not thought good enough. You want to be liked and respected which is why you fear rejection so much.
To combat this feeling remain detached from your products and services –and remember that it is they, rather than “you” that risk being rejected. Don’t take a “no” personally. While you should always be aware of the importance of being liked, don’t become overly sensitive.
Keep a balanced emotional outlook
Stay emotionally consistent. One bad day won’t lead to complete failure, so keep success and failure in perspective. In order to stay proactive and break out of a slump, set daily goals you can hit, and feel a sense of satisfaction when you hit them to keep your emotions on an even keel.
When someone says “no”, simply brush it off and hone your skills so you won’t get rejected next time. Don’t let fear of rejection bully you into submission. Make your life your own and act like top athletes who control their fears by constant practice.
Don’t blame yourself when things go wrong, don’t feel guilty – it’s impossible to get it right every time. In fact the truth is you’ll likely get things wrong around one in three times.
Don’t fear success
More people are scared of success than of failing. Not prospecting is a symptom of this.
Fear of rejection means succumbing to mediocrity, giving up and even accepting failure as standard. Failing to take on the task of prospecting is essentially self-sabotage and a form of procrastination that will hold you back from fulfilling your goals.
Fear of ‘closing the deal’ is another way to guarantee failure. So visualize your success and feel that you will not be rejected. Confidence is infectious and people warm to positive people. Give yourself the best chance of being accepted by having a ‘can do’ attitude.
Do not dwell on the possibility of failure, be self-confident, embrace rejection and realize that when you get shot down you are one step closer to success.
Do you want success badly enough?
Raw talent is not enough, you need to have ambition. You need to want success badly if you want to become an Elite Advisor. Have tenacity and purpose. Be like top sports personalities who tend to remain consistently great year after year. That’s because their goals are higher than others.
How bad can a rejection be?
Finally ask yourself what’s the worst thing that could happen should you get rejected? Essentially that your offer will be politely declined. And what’s so terrible about that? When you first met the prospect you didn’t have him or her as a client – if they say ‘no’ you still won’t have them as a client. Nothing’s changed.
Lessen your fears by becoming pitch perfect. Find a prospecting approach that works for you and perfect it. To succeed takes hard work, perseverance and practice. Like Michael Jordan relentlessly pursue perfection. Fear can cripple your career. But if you don’t ask, you can’t be accepted or rejected, so never steer yourself away from asking. Don’t anticipate rejection but look forward to success, and always stay optimistic.
Re-channel your fear into energy to give you resolve. Don’t let fear control you but control your fear.
Hone your soft skills with Don Connelly 24/7
