Learned helplessness in sales: the silent performance killer

Are you familiar with learned helplessness?

In sales, the pressure is on all the time. And yet an invisible threat is gradually eating away at salespeople's motivation: learned helplessness. This psychological phenomenon occurs when an individual, after repeated failures, becomes convinced that they no longer have any control over the situation. The result? He stops trying. Worse still, even when an opportunity for success presents itself, he doesn't seize it. Here's a video that explains learned helplessness in a simple way.

Why is it crucial in sales?

Because this job is a constant mental test. Here are a few concrete examples:

• Prospecting produces more rejections than acceptances.

• Even if the process is perfectly executed, the sales rep has no control over the prospect's final decision.

• A sales rep can go from "hero" to "zero" in a matter of minutes, from a closed sale to a scathing rejection.

• And so on.

This pressure eventually takes its toll on morale, and that's when learned helplessness sets in. All the more so because many companies fail to take the necessary steps to curb it. Why not?

• Management that sees sales as a secondary function.

• A product culture that neglects the human aspect of sales.

• Management inherited from an outdated "command and control" model, where the well-being of teams is secondary.

• etc.

• 
  

How can you avoid acquired helplessness and protect your commercial results?

Faced with this risk, inaction is not an option. Here are five concrete levers that you can activate immediately:

1. Structured sales coaching: The role of the manager is not to micro-manage, but to coach. More than 50% of their time should be devoted to helping their teams grow. Coaching should not be focused on technical aspects and prices (which is what we see all the time), but on the efforts to be made, for example, to develop the person, to give encouragement, to improve adherence to the process, to challenge the individual, etc.

2. Train managers to motivate sales staff: We have to stop thinking that money is the only source of motivation for sales staff. Some are driven by winning, others want to avoid failure. You need to understand these levers and activate them intelligently.

3. Recruit with discernment: not everyone can be a salesperson. You need to identify those who have the sales DNA: resilience, the ability to handle rejection and the desire to succeed in sales. You can find ideas on how to build a robust recruitment here.

4. Keep a daily diary: A simple tool, but a daily diary is a powerful way of cultivating a positive frame of mind, analysing your successes and failures, and making continuous progress.

5. Promote a balanced lifestyle: Business success also depends on personal balance. A good night's sleep, a healthy diet and a physical routine have a direct impact on professional performance.

Don't let acquired helplessness sabotage your sales

Learned helplessness is a silent poison, but it doesn't have to be. As a sales leader, you have the power - indeed, the duty! - to protect your teams from this phenomenon. Structure your coaching, adapt your management, recruit the right profiles and instil a culture of resilience.