Have you ever wondered why some seemingly “barely competent” people make a great living in sales while others who seem to be near genius level fall flat on their face? So many go into sales thinking, if this guy can do it, I can run circles around him. There are many relevant explanations for this phenomenon.

Perhaps the “smart” person does not have good people skills or perhaps they don’t work hard enough. However, there are plenty of smart people who work hard and still don’t succeed in sales. The reason? Most often it is because they are overcome with call reluctance. Call reluctance is the road-block that keeps many from succeeding in sales. If call reluctance is hurting you–then it is time you do some-thing about it.

First, understand that everyone has some sort of call reluctance. We all find reasons not to make a particular call. For some, this is a momentary lapse which they overcome. For others, it is a daily battle, causing each day to pass without true productivity. Therefore, the question is not do you have call reluctance, but is your call reluctance strong enough to keep you from performing the way you desire? In other words, all sales people will be able to benefit from the advice contained within this article.

Here is the good news. Call reluctance can be overcome. For some it will take hard work. But if you are willing to put in the time and effort, you can be successful. The first step is recognizing that you have call reluctance. There is no way that you can overcome an obstacle unless you recognize that this obstacle exists. The key here is being honest with yourself. Is your call reluctance negatively affecting your results?

If you are truly not sure of the answer, you must look for signs of call reluctance lurking like a vulture over your objectives–

• At the end of the day, did you find that you did not get to your calls as you took care of “administrative functions” such as organizing or answering mundane emails?

• Do you purchase leads or make cold calls instead of talking to previous customers or others with whom you have close relationships?

• Are you consumed with planning, taking classes or creating an image, to the detriment of not getting through your marketing objectives?

• Do you make “excuses” as to why you do not make certain calls or undertake particular marketing activities? For example, do you predispose a negative result of a call? Do you ever think like this–If I call, they may get mad.

These “clues” are pretty easy to see–if you are not entranced in your everyday life. It is always harder to see the “forest from the trees.” If you have a problem seeing the forest–you need to ask others around you who can view your situation from another vantage point.

It is also important to understand that there are different forms of call reluctance. Some are reluctant to call those with whom they are close while others are reluctant to use the phone but have no problem meeting people face-to-face. Obviously, nailing down your specific reluctances will make it easier to fashion a solution.

The next step in the process would be to go deeper and more specific within the situation that has affected your performance. It is not enough to say, I am not comfortable calling people over the phone. Are you uncomfortable calling in all situations? Is it cold calling you are uncomfortable with or warm calling? Do you have a problem calling present customers who are “in process” to give them updates, or is it just sales situations? Are you more comfortable with emails because you won’t necessarily hear or see the response?

Once you have nailed down the fact that you have call reluctance which is impeding your results, you know what specific reluctances are most profound in your situation and you have drilled down to the details of your uncomfortable feelings, now you are ready to fashion some solutions. In the next segment we will continue with ideas for you to overcome your reluctance. There are no magical solutions. Solutions will require work. However, you will find many times that the solutions are far less severe than the fears that have been holding you back from making simple calls.