One of the hardest things to do when you are a salesperson is to control yourself when someone, or something really, really peeves you off! There’s no more fulfilling fantasy than allowing yourself to blow up and take along the customer or situation along with you. Mushroom clouds are so beautiful, aren’t they?
Back to reality. If you want to ruin your business, fly off the handle easily and it won’t take long. In the meantime, here’s 5 tips that work for me:
1. Smile. It’s the last thing you want to do, but really, you can’t get very angry when smiling. If you have to, consciously relax your jaw, forehead and lip muscles…then grin.
2. Think ahead: decide whether the situation will matter in five minutes, five days or five years. My rule of thumb, if it don’t matter in 5 years, I will not let it derail me now.
3. Take charge of your emotions. That sounds trite, but you literally have to tell yourself that you are choosing not to get angry. Or you can choose to express your anger. By telling yourself it is a choice keeps you in control. I have chosen to express anger in a number of situations, and it was a heck of a lot more effective when I felt I could ‘stop’ at any moment.
4. Accept imperfections and imperfect people, aka be more flexible. Accept that things will not always go as you wish, accidents happen, people screw up, and usually not done to purposely upset you.
5. Consider the consequences. Crap happens! If you blow up at someone over something that in the long run is not so important, think about the harm that you may cause. This is how angry cycles just keep perpetuating. Decide it will end before it even starts.
Big, big P.S.! Controlling your anger is especially important in emails and online (like Facebook and other social sites.) Written words are permanent and every time someone re-reads them, they reignite that emotion over and over again.
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Rina Valan, President and Founder of Fantasia Home Parties
