I had a conversation this week with a Sales Leader who is moving into a new role. She’s intelligent, highly skilled and has the proven ability to transform people to achieve higher levels of performance. She’s super excited about her new role and is looking forward to planning her strategy to take the UK sales force to greater heights.
She confided in me that even though she knows she has all the skills to create success, she’s also a bit nervous and was concerned that she felt that way.
This is such a common emotion for Sales Leaders…in fact all leaders. You get recognised for having outstanding skills for a more challenging position and when you get the role you start to wonder if you’re good enough to pull it off.
It can also happen when you’ve been in your role for a while…normally when you know you’re not dealing with a situation in the best way.
Is your nervousness a sign of potential weakness?
It might be but what it’s more likely to be your body’s reaction to something new, which is exactly what it’s meant to do.
When you’re either doing something new…or the situation is new to you, you’re embarking on a trip outside your comfort zone. Your body goes into a stress response and starts to release adrenaline and cortisol to get you ready for fight or flight. As situations in the workplace are rarely life-threatening this reaction is actually an over reaction but there is a message in it which you need to take notice of.
Your body is warning you to have your senses on high sensitivity so that you notice the important information you need for success…specific criteria, personalities involved, levels of commitment and motivation…in fact anything that could become crucial to the achievement of your desired outcome!
Once you know…
…that your nerves are simply your body’s way of telling you to be super alert because you’re outside your area of confidence, you can take the steps you need in your information gathering process to determine your next steps.
Nervousness is a sign that you’re stepping into your learning zone, you’re growing as an individual and to take the time to enjoy your new adventure!
Until next time,
