Do you feel that a fear of rejection is holding you back in your network marketing career? It’s very possible that it is, because this is perhaps the most common obstacle to “getting traction” with your business and starting to sponsor people and make money.
After reading many motivational and self-improvement books over time, there is one truth I’ve seen stated in various ways, but it always means the same thing.
Human behavior is heavily influenced by a desire to avoid pain, or a desire to gain pleasure, or some combination of both.
Does that make sense? A fear of rejection is definitely a reflection of an internal desire to avoid pain. If you’re trying to avoid the pain of rejection in your network marketing business, you may find that you are putting a lot of time into certain actions for your business.
Are you….
- studying and reading network marketing success articles all the time
- constantly tweaking your action plan to get it just right
- attending motivational seminars and events for inspiration
- spending your time doing things like this instead of prospecting
There is absolutely nothing wrong with working on your attitude by reading success and motivational material, creating and adjusting your action plan when needed, or attending inspirational meetings and events. The problem is when these things become your actual primary business activities, to the exclusion of making new contacts and talking to people about your opportunity.
It’s tough when you approach someone and they tell you NO. Pro marketers learn to develop an attitude of “I don’t care” when it comes to people saying NO. They learn to love the NO’s – for example “statistics say that I have to get twenty NO’s for each YES, so bring on the NO’s!!”
Now that is a great attitude to have, and your goal should be to develop it. But, for right now, how do you get to that point if fear of rejection is destroying the potential of your network marketing business as we speak? You have to change your way of thinking about rejection.
Bear with me, I know you’ve heard this before, but think about it. Again and again. A “NO” or “not interested” response to your opportunity is not a personal rejection of you. If you tried to recruit your mom into your business, and she was content with her life and income and told you “not interested”, would you consider it personal rejection? Would your mom reject you, her favorite son or daughter, as a person over a business offer? Of course not. It’s not about you, it’s about the business.
Remember the last time you went to a professional baseball game, or maybe a big music event held in a stadium? You’ve probably seen the people walking up and down trying to sell souvenir programs. A lot of people tell them NO and they just keep on going. An hour later, the same people walk up and down selling beer. Some of the same people who told them NO to buying a program say YES to the beer. So, there was never any personal rejection, was there? It was the offer.
Make sense?
Same thing in your network marketing business. Work your way through the fear of rejection. It isn’t about YOU, it’s about your business opportunity. No matter what opportunity you choose, there will be lots of people who don’t find it appealing and will say no. If you have the most perfect MLM business in the world with a product that literally everyone wants, lots of people will still say “no” or “not interested” to the business, whether it was you or anyone else in the universe offering it.
Think about it.
Did you get some value from this post? If you did, I would really appreciate you sharing it with others! And, your comments are welcome below!
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About Eldon Beard
Hello Eldon, there’s a lot of people in the world who are not interested in doing any kind of business. So, if we get upset when someone’s not interested, it’s a waste of time, as you say.
Your post is great they way you explain why people shouldn’t be afraid of rejection and what to do about it! It happens with a lot of new network marketers, but they can easily get over it, by taking up your suggestions.
bye for now, Julieanne
Hi Julieanne, you’re right, fear of rejection is something that can be overcome. It isn’t easy, necessarily, but sometime the best thing is to just jump in and face the fear head on without looking back.
Really excellent advice Eldon – “it’s not about YOU” … you know, that goes for so many things in life. We get ticked off thinking someone has been rude or ignores us – except that chances are it has absolutely nothing to do with us. Also, while there are certainly many of us who strive for the freedom that comes from having our own business, there are still plenty of people in the world who are quite content with their 9-5 jobs.
Absolutely Marquita – I know a lot of people who prefer the routine and perceived security of a 9-5 job, and that’s perfectly fine. I think most people would say they want to make more money, but not all want a business to do it. Some are fine with working a few hours extra somewhere on weekends.
Good points Eldon. I am not in MLM though but somehow I can easily relate with this. Just because someone says no today does not mean they will say no tomorrow. Our job is to build and maintain relationships without being attached to an immediate outcome. People all work at different paces and have different needs.
Jeff
I agree Jeffrey. Thanks!
Hello Eldon, I agree, fear a rejection is one behemoth obstacle not just in Network Marketing but in just about every aspect of our life.
As you say, it comes from a defense mechanism that we have embedded into our core and the trick is well to trick these layers of protection. Takes effort but it works.
Once we start to view each rejection as a step in the right direction, a necessity so to speak before we can achieve our goal then it becomes less of a rejection and more of a necessity if we want to move along.
Keep the Smiles,
Stevie
Hi Stevie, I agree that fear of rejection is a huge obstacle in just about every aspect of life. Some people don’t seem to care and don’t take it personally, but I believe the majority of us have to work to overcome it.
Often “no” really means “not now”. Imagine how many in today’s economy are interested in new opportunities who weren’t a few years ago when jobs were abundant. Thanks for your perspectives! Karyn
Karyn, right now, interest in home business opportunity is perhaps at an all-time high. People are scared and don’t have the job security they used to. Not everyone will step out and start a home business, but many who would never consider it in the past are looking.