Today, I want to talk to you about how to be mentally tough in network marketing.
Owning any type of business is not for the faint at heart. As an entrepreneur you will deal with rejection, mean customers, people with bad attitudes, ignorant people, setbacks, frustrations, disappointments, and countless other things. To survive, and build a thriving business, you must learn how to be mentally tough.
Network marketing is no different. One of the major reasons people give up and quit so easily in our industry is because they can’t handle the rejection, setbacks and disappointment. I can speak from personal experience, because I struggled with this for years myself. Fortunately, I have since learned how to be mentally tough and become “unstoppable.”
What is Mental Toughness?
If I was to define mentally touch in layman’s terms, I would describe it like this.
Be mentally tough is being so focused on your goal that nothing can stop you.
It is the ability to have tunnel vision toward your goal and let all of the negativity, obstacles, fear and rejection simply bounce off of you.
Yes, it’s much easier said than done. And no, it won’t always be easy to be mentally tough network marketing. We all have bad days and tough times. But you have to realize something.
Anything worth accomplishing in life comes with a price. Nothing worth accomplishing is fast, easy or free. Anything and everything in life that you have accomplished, that is worthwhile, took time, hard work and persistence.
I truly believe that if you want something bad enough, you will find a way to make it happen. On the other hand, if something isn’t a priority for you, you’ll come up with an excuse to give up or quit. The saying is true, “you can make excuses or you can make money, but you can’t do both!”
How to Be Mentally Tough in Network Marketing
I believe that anyone can learn how to be mentally tough in network marketing. It won’t happen overnight, but there are a few simple things you can do to improve your mental toughness.
First off, you need to have a crystal clear vision about what you want with your life and your business. Spend some time and write down your goals. Set some short-term and long-term goals and spend some time to identify your WHY. Ideally, you want a why that makes you cry; something that will keep you working hard day in and day out. Without a strong why, you will give up when things go sour.
The next thing you need to do is come up with a game plan. Identify which steps you must follow to reach your goals in the time-frame you desire. Having a game plan that you can follow is what will turn your dreams into reality. Without a written game-plan, it’s easy to get frustrated and give up.
Next, you must ask yourself if you are willing to pay the price to reach your goals. All success comes with a price. If you’re not willing to pay the price, I highly doubt you will ever become mentally tough in network marketing. If you aren’t willing to pay the price, you will give up at your first sign of defeat.
Once you make the decision to “do it” and be “all in” the negativity and rejection and objections won’t bother you nearly as much. You’ll be so focused on what you want to accomplish that these other things won’t matter to you at all. You’ll realize that temporary failure, rejection, fear, setbacks and disappointments are all part of your success journey.
Another tip I have for you to become mentally tough is to determine how much a NO is worth to you. For instance, if you talk to 10 people to sponsor one person and one new rep is worth $100 to you, then each person you talk to is worth $10 ($100/10).
Does that make sense? Knowing how much a NO is worth is very helpful and you will discover that it’s fun talking to people, even if they say NO. Every NO is one step closer to a YES. This is known as the Go for No mentality!
It also helps to have a mentor who has been there and done that and is willing to coach you. When you have a good support system, mentor and coach in place that you can check in with whenever you are feeling down, it really helps a lot. My coaches are one of the most important things in my business.
As crazy as it sounds, I also encourage you to lose some weight (if needed), get healthy, and work on your self-image. Work on your inner and outer health by exercising, eating right, and developing your own personal development program. Read books, listen to tapes, attend events, find a mentor and exercise daily. This will give you added confidence and posture.
Another tip I suggest you to follow to be mentally tough in your network marketing business is to track your progress each month.
Keep track of how many people you talk to, how many presentations you give, how many appointments you set, how many people you sponsor, etc.
Keep all of this information in a simple spreadsheet, update it once a month, and compare your progress month-to-month and year-to-year. When you see the activity and growth in your business it will keep you focused and motivated.
Another tip is to have ZERO EXPECTATIONS of everyone you talk to and everyone you sponsor. As my mentor says:
The only way to be disappointed is if you have expectations of others. Expect the worst and hope for the best, and you will never be disappointed in your business.
My final tip to be mentally tough in your network marketing business is to do something every day to build your business.
Never let your emotions determine your actions. Instead, let your actions determine your emotions. Remember that action cures fear. If you are busy every day, you won’t have time to be down and out. Instead, you’ll be busy building your business and working toward your goal.
Final Thoughts
The bottom line is that you have to be mentally tough if you want to succeed in network marketing or anything else in life. You have to spend some time working on you, improving your own skills and working on your own belief, posture, value, and confidence.
No, it won’t happen overnight, but if you follow the advice in this post, I know that within two or five years you can totally transform the way you think about yourself and your business.
What are your thoughts? What do you suggest people do to be mentally tough in their network marketing business? Leave a comment below to let me know what you think. I look forward to hearing from you.
Chuck Holmes
20+ Year Network Marketing Professional
Top Earner & Top Recruiter
Email: mrchuckholmes@gmail.com
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