Fear of rejection is one of the
biggest
inhibitors for people in sales and Business Development roles. This
occurs
because these individuals equate their Business Development role
performance to
their self-worth. In doing so, they are inherently risk adverse and
extremely cautious
in executing a process, reluctant to call on senior level individuals
and will
avoid pushing decisions if there is the possibility of a "no." They do
this because
they equate "no" to failure not only in the role of Business
Development, but they
translate this role failure as a personal failure. What these
individuals have
done is put their self-worth and self-respect on the line along with
the sale
and therefore must close the sale in order to validate their self
worth. Getting
a "no" is a rejection of not only their efforts in Business
Development, but a
rejection of themselves personally and this negatively impacts not only
their self
esteem but also their ability to perform the role effectively.
Business Development is not a role in
which you try to validate your self-worth. You have intrinsic value as
a person
which is totally separate from your performance in this role. Your
success or
failure here is a function of your choices in the role, the training
you have been fortunate to obtain, and the
amount
of psychological limitations you bring to it.
