Most sales advice is garbage. You don’t need another pep talk or script. What you need are the unspoken rules the top 1% of earners use daily without telling anyone. I learned this the hard way after getting laughed out of my first 50 sales calls.
The Confidence Myth That’s Holding You Back
Confidence isn’t something you “build” – it’s what happens when you stop doing these three things:
- Pretending you have all the answers (you don’t)
- Memorizing scripts (they sound robotic)
- Caring more about closing than helping (it shows)
The HVAC rep who outsells everyone in our company? He starts every call with: “Look, I’m not sure if this will work for you – let’s figure that out first.” Brutal honesty disarms people.
Your New Sales Playbook (Steal These)
1. Become a customer historian
Not just case studies – dig up the messy details. Like how our SaaS client tried 3 competitors first and what exactly went wrong. Those specifics? That’s what makes prospects lean in.
2. Practice getting rejected
Seriously. Once a week, I call leads I know will say no. Why? It takes the sting out. Now when a real prospect hesitates, I stay cool instead of panicking.
3. The 10-Second Rule
Before any meeting, glance at these three notes:
- One client win this month
- My product’s best feature
- What I’ll do if this goes south (usually “laugh it off”)
Takes the pressure off every time.
When “No” Becomes Your Best Friend
That prospect who ghosted you last month? Text them this:
“Hey [Name], circling back – if this wasn’t a fit, would you mind sharing why? No pitch, just want to improve.”
You’ll get answers that transform your approach. One of these messages got me:
“Your price was fine – we just didn’t get how it worked.” Changed our demo forever.
The Real Secret Top Performers Know
Stop selling. Start diagnosing.
Our best rep asks just four questions:
- “What’s the biggest headache here?”
- “How long has this been going on?”
- “What have you tried so far?”
- “If we fixed this, what would that do for you?”
Then shuts up. 80% of the time, they sell themselves.
Try This Today
- Find one ugly client story (why they almost didn’t buy) and memorize it
- Call your worst lead first to get rejections out of the way
- End every meeting with “What’s one concern you have?”
In 30 days, you’ll dread calls less and close more. Not because you became some sales god – but because you finally stopped faking it.
Real confidence comes from knowing your stuff cold and caring more about helping than hitting quotas. The rest? That’s just noise.