A day after receiving my second Covid vaccine shot, I started feeling mild side effects. Of course, I went online and did my research – how bad were things going to get, how long was it going to last, what does it mean that I’m having symptoms, etc.? I probably read bits and pieces of six or seven articles, and they all had one statement in common: “If you’re having symptoms, then you know the vaccine is working.”
This statement stuck with me and forged a simile that I wrote down to share one day on my blog: Experiencing side effects from the Covid vaccine is like experiencing rejection / anxiety / frustration / exhaustion from a career in sales. Summarizing all these emotions as “pain”, I think it’s a logical conclusion that if you’re a sales professional and you’re feeling pain, then whatever you’re doing is working … you’re on your way to success.
Like with vaccines, pain is an indicator of future success – which is exactly why most people are not successful. Look around. How many people do you see with very little bodyfat? How many 20-year marriages do you see in which both people are still happy? How many independently wealthy people are there? Most people aren’t in these positions in life because it’s painful to exercise and turn down excessive calories; it’s hard to lean into raw feelings and have vulnerable conversations with your spouse (or anyone); and its hard work and emotionally scary to do the things necessary to create wealth.
These things are hard. They’re painful. But they’re worth it.
I don’t know where you are in your sales career right now, but I bet you can relate to the rejection / anxiety / frustration / exhaustion clause above. My hope with this post is that somewhere along the way when you feel like you’re at the bottom – maybe after receiving that horrible email or phone call or taking a dejected five-hour flight home to bring the bad news to the office – I hope you know that you’re on the right track. You’re fighting. Today you might have lost, but you’re fighting. All I do every day is think of cool new ways to sell more stuff in the modern world of b2b buying, but I still believe that the great ones have to keep fighting.
If you’re feeling pain, my friend, then you’re on your way to success.
