FEAR, or False Evidence Appearing Real, can be both good and bad.

Our instinctual fear can alert us to dangers in the world and provide us with time to react and plan better courses of action. It can also cause us to freeze and inadvertently make a choice to “do nothing” in the hopes the problem will just go away.

We face many fears each and every day of our lives:

The fear of failure?

The fear of poverty?

The fear of rejection?

The fear of flying?

The fear of public speaking?

The fear of approaching the prospect?

The fear of asking for the order?

The fear of going to a nursing home?

What are some of your fears?

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All you have to do to diminish your fear is to develop more trust in your ability to handle whatever comes your way.

Susan Jeffers, Ph.D.

Mastery of Fear

We usually find ways to overcome our fears. We take on that project and find a way to succeed. We struggle with our budget and find a way to pay our bills while saving something for tomorrow. We ask that special girl for a date and she becomes our wife. We get on the plane, close our eyes and hope the pilot had enough sleep. We even step up to the microphone and make that speech, more relieved than amazed at the resounding applause.

We have other strategies for coping with our fear. We don’t take chances. We stay in mediocre positions that bore us to avoid the risk of succeeding. We refuse to travel to see the world or share our thoughts publicly. We avoid calling that prospect because they might say “no” to our request. We conclude “it won’t happen to me” and fail to take responsibility for our financial risks.

Fear of making a mistake is your prospect’s greatest obstacle to the purchase

Your prospect is afraid of going to a nursing home. They are afraid of being a burden on their family. They are afraid of running out of money and going on welfare. They are afraid of being sold a product that they don’t fully understand and that may not pay for the care they need.

They are afraid of spending their money on a product they may not need. Your customer will not buy if you do not remove his fear of making a mistake. Most of all, they fear you, the sales person. They do not trust you and they don’t know how they will make you “go away” when you keep trying to close the sale.

Your fear of rejection is the second greatest obstacle to purchase

You may be afraid of using the telephone to get an appointment with the prospect. You may be afraid of approaching the client. You may be afraid of asking questions about the prospect’s health or financial situation.

You may be afraid of discussing the price of long-term care insurance. You may be afraid of asking for the order. All of these fears are a result of your fear that the prospect may say “NO.” You can not sell if you do not overcome your fear of rejection.