“Doubting yourself is normal. Letting it stop you is a choice.”
– Mel Robbins
Self-doubt is an inherent part of the human condition. Every one of us—even the most successful leaders, including presidents, scientists, writers, and artists—has heard that vexing internal voice convincing us that we alone suffer such savage second-guessing.
However, if you take a step back to understand why you feel this way, you can put it in a healthier perspective and flip the switch from self-doubt to self-confidence. Consider these dos and don’ts the next time you feel the urge to be overly self-critical as a business leader.
Don’t worry about what other people think
Some of the most successful entrepreneurs were scoffed at and told their ideas wouldn’t work. Block out any external negativity and stick to your vision for your company, as they did.
Don’t get lost in negative thoughts
While you may face mental slings and arrows from other people, more often than not, they actually come from the mirror. Feeding yourself negative thoughts can lead to second-guessing, decision-making paralysis, and even depression about your abilities. Pump up your positivity by immersing yourself instead in the wisdom of motivational leaders such as Mel Robbins.
Don’t underestimate yourself
Being in your position, you have a high level of knowledge about your industry. But that can also lead to the Dunning-Kruger effect, which posits that the more you know, the more likely you are to doubt your competence and vice versa. This can also open the door to self-awareness about how much you don’t know (which can lead to the next mental hurdle).
Don’t fall prey to imposter syndrome
Have you ever felt like what you’ve accomplished is one big lie or that you’ve pulled the wool over everyone’s eyes with your success? If so, you may be experiencing this condition, which is more prevalent than ever thanks to social media. However, you’re where you are for a reason—you’ve earned your achievements.
Don’t compare accomplishments or traits
It’s been said that comparison is the thief of joy, and that is also true in business. Getting preoccupied with someone else’s $200 million business can distract you from running and growing your own successful $100 million business. Likewise, your peers may be more polished or exude more confidence, but that doesn’t negate your value as an entrepreneur. Focus on yourself, and you’ll achieve your goals for growth before you know it.
Don’t fear failure
Nobody wants to fail, but dreading it can cause your business to lose momentum and never reach its full potential. The best leaders see failure as an opportunity to both learn and grow. For example, many people consider Michael Jordan to be the greatest athlete ever, and yet even he revealed, “I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”
Don’t focus on what went wrong
Every business experiences bumps and potholes on the road to success. It’s up to you to determine whether those obstacles become roadblocks that halt your company’s growth or challenges you can use to make it even stronger.
Do know that everyone has doubts
You’re not the only one who doesn’t know everything. Actually, nobody does—it’s that simple. As a leader, you should strive to be a lifelong learner so you can ensure you continue to improve and develop your skills.
Do remember your “why”
Always keep your purpose for doing this venture top of mind, as well as any other prior successes you’ve had. You’re not in this position of power by accident, after all.
Do surround yourself with the right people
Assemble a team of trustworthy cohorts. Such people are invaluable because they can both lift you up and offer constructive—not destructive—criticism when appropriate. Their expertise also means that you don’t have to be the go-to for everything in your business. And when you don’t have to stress about holding all the responsibilities, your self-doubt will melt away.
Do be patient
Successful businesses are usually built slowly from the ground up. The same often holds true for building confidence, so take it step-by-step, enjoy the journey as much as the destination, and celebrate each victory—big and small—along the way.
Do be realistic
It may be in your entrepreneurial nature to want to control everything, but such a goal is simply not possible (and it never will be). Thinking otherwise can lead to self-scrutiny of your leadership skills. Focus instead on what you want to accomplish and the best ways to lead your team there.
Do be authentic
As a leader, the temptation is to put on appearances, especially that you’re infallible, unflappable, and all-knowing. But it shows more leadership, not less, to admit you don’t have every answer—and that if that’s the case, you’ll find it. Such authenticity and vulnerability will be well received and reciprocated, and you’ll feel great about yourself and your abilities.
Confidence can conquer insecurity, even if the latter never disappears entirely. When you can control your self-doubt instead of letting it control you, forge a healthier mental perspective, and readjust your thinking to focus on your strengths as a leader, your self-assurance will flourish—and so will your business.
TAKE ACTION:
Take ten to fifteen minutes to write down all your strengths as a leader, and keep the list handy during times of doubt.
The elevator pitch is an age-old practice where you attempt to condense your company’s entire mission into thirty to sixty panicked seconds (or longer if you chose a tall building or a very slow elevator) and present it in a confined space to a possibly disinterested audience. It’s a great exercise in confidence, memory retention, marketing, and quick thinking. But in an increasingly digital world that subsists on storytelling and instant dopamine hits, the elevator pitch needs to be revamped for a new audience. Read on to discover ways to overhaul this classic business strategy and maximize its effectiveness.
As the popularity of TikTok and Instagram Reels clearly illustrates, the new attention span is shorter than ever. According to a Microsoft study, people have an average attention span of eight seconds, down from twelve seconds fifteen years prior. This means you need to capture your audience in the first several seconds if you want to convince them to listen to the rest. Nail down a fifteen-second pitch that will hook them; if you sense it’s going well, you can then pull out the one-minute version from your back pocket.
A one-size-fits-all pitch will reveal to an audience that you aren’t considering who they are as individuals. And if they don’t feel like you are in tune with their needs, they will tune you out. Research your ideal clients, and tailor your pitch to their specific goals and challenges so you can meet them where they’re at. Are they all on a specific social media platform? Take your pitch there. Do they have certain lingo and particular ways of interacting? Use that to your advantage by choosing language and expressions that will feel familiar to them.
When you only have a short time to pitch, you need to be crystal clear about your mission and the problem you are solving. Be specific about how you are planning to help potential clients and what you are promising to accomplish for them.
In a time when visual content is almost mandatory and design and video apps are more accessible than ever, it’s a no-brainer to incorporate this type of content into your pitch. People receive and process information differently, and for visual learners, providing images, graphs, or charts can amplify their understanding. Images can also be extremely evocative, helping to create a lasting connection between your potential client and the idea you are broadcasting. Be intentional about which aspects of the pitch you translate into visual content, and make sure they support your message.
Today’s elevator pitch reaches far beyond the confines of a four-walled moving box. Online platforms, such as social media, websites, and video-sharing outlets, can facilitate a much broader reach for much less work. You are no longer limited by time or physical location. In fact, a video version of your pitch can accrue views and gain traction while you are sleeping!
In general, humans are wired to respond to storytelling and emotion. Incorporating a personal anecdote that resonates with your target demographic can give your pitch staying power. This is especially effective if you are putting your pitch on social media. People are much more likely to share something that is relevant to them and their audience than a generic presentation.
It can be tempting to use fear to get an emotional reaction and scare potential clients into working with you, but this tactic is far more likely to turn them off instead. At the very least, it will prevent you from forming the foundation of trust necessary to build a long-term customer relationship. To truly connect with a client, focus on ethical sales practices that educate rather than frighten.
No one wants to listen to how great you think your product or offering is. They want to hear what it will do for them and how it will make them great. Keep potential clients as the focus of your pitch, explaining how you can meet their needs and improve their lives.
The elevator pitch of today has broken out of its time and space restrictions and now lives everywhere that your prospects are. If you can meet them where they’re at with the information and solutions they are seeking, you will gain big a leg up on your competition.
TAKE ACTION:
Review your pitch tactics to see if you need a more modern approach.
For your marketing to be effective, you need to target the right people with the best message at the perfect moment. However, this can be difficult if your audience spans the age spectrum, as the generation an individual was born in can affect how they view the world and which method is best for reaching them. Currently, the big four consumer groups are baby boomers, Generation X, millennials, and Generation Z. Consider these marketing tactics to better hit your prime demographic—and tailor your marketing to appeal to all of them.
A baby boomer who grew up reading newspapers before the dawn of the internet may react differently to a marketing campaign than someone from Generation Z who’s always known smartphones and spends hours online daily. Your marketing will be more effective if you understand the basic characteristics of each main consumer age group.
Baby boomer
These individuals were born after World War II through the mid-1960s, which means Google and smartphones didn’t exist until they were in their thirties, forties, or even fifties. As consumers, they hold the most spending power, especially as many are retired from the workforce.
Generation X
This generation, which has fewer members than those before and following it, was born between the mid-1960s and early 1980s. They spent their formative years without the internet but began adopting it as young adults. They are in their prime spending years and are likely busy with their homes, families, and careers.
Millennial
Born from the early eighties to the mid-nineties, this age demographic, also known as Generation Y, is more familiar with the internet than boomers and Gen Xers and is currently the largest group of consumers. Because most started their careers around the time of or after the Great Recession of 2008, they generally have less disposable income than previous generations did at their age.
Generation Z
This group was born between the late 1990s and early 2010s. They are digital natives who grew up with the internet and spend a significant amount of time online; while some are only preteens, others are married and raising young families. They are the best-educated generation to date and, along with millennials, are the most ethnically and racially diverse. They also tend to be socially minded and more anxious and pessimistic than previous generations—some attribute this to the isolating effect of the COVID-19 pandemic and the omnipresence of social media in this group’s formative years.
Since every generation has, in essence, experienced a world unlike that of the generation before, a one-size-fits-all approach won’t be incredibly effective and could even damage your brand. Whether you’re looking to market to a single age demographic or all four, you’ll find the most success by creating targeted marketing campaigns whose content appeals to each one’s individual characteristics, preferences, and values.
To reach baby boomers, for example, you might want to tap into their appreciation for a healthy and active lifestyle and highlight popular hobbies such as domestic travel to trendy urban locales, visits with friends and family, and raised-bed and container gardening. Add a hint of nostalgia as well—memorable topics such as rotary phones, Woodstock, and reading the Sunday funnies may all connect with this demographic.
Gen Xers might also respond well to nostalgic themes, though for them, focus on memories such as growing up as latchkey kids, making mixtapes, and playing video games in an arcade. Meanwhile, millennial and Gen Z consumers tend to look forward and support environmental and social causes, so be sure to promote your company’s eco-friendly and community initiatives. The better you know what makes the different generations tick, the easier it will be to hone your marketing campaigns.
Each generation uses media differently, which means that if you want to reach consumers from a variety of age groups, you should utilize various content types, including print ads, social media posts, and YouTube videos. For instance, baby boomers and Gen Xers, who both grew up reading newspapers, may respond well to direct mail marketing such as postcards and coupons. However, these generations are also online; good platforms to target them on include Facebook and YouTube.
Generally, print materials aren’t as effective with millennials or Gen Z, so be sure to direct your attention to online efforts for this age group. Millennials tend to appreciate informative content and may be better reached by inbound marketing like blog posts, YouTube videos, and other how-to information. Gen Zers, meanwhile, spend many hours on TikTok, though Instagram is also still a favorite with this generation.
While everyone is an individual and nobody is guaranteed to fit the common characteristics of their generation, tailoring your marketing campaigns to the age group you’re targeting will make it much more likely that you’ll see success.
TAKE ACTION:
Determine your prime age demographic, and customize a marketing campaign for that group.
As unpleasant as denials may be, they are innate experiences in the business world. Even seasoned professionals occasionally see their best pitch receive a cringe and a shrug. But you don’t have to have ice in your veins to be able to steel yourself against the word “no.” Your best strategy is to employ steadfast confidence and continue pursuing your aim. After all, successful individuals don’t shy away from a “no’” but address the root of it head-on. Apply these techniques for overcoming objections and rejection in three chief types of business relationships to help you better navigate any unpleasant situation.
There is no understating the consequences of denied deals. Experience too many, and your bottom line, career, and organization’s future may all be on the line. But as any talented salesperson knows, just as one failed sale doesn’t terminate their vocation, a declined offer isn’t the end of all contact with a lead—even if they are discourteous about it. The solution in this scenario is to persist.
Instead of reacting emotionally to a decline, pivot to address it. What reservations does the lead have with your product or service? Ask for details, listen intently to their response, and identify the category of their objection. The most common are:
Your sales team should have a playbook for identifying and addressing these and other objections. Include responses with established success at redirecting a “no” to a “yes.” However, if the lead still won’t budge, the conversation is not over—even when all seems lost, you can always request a referral. As J.C. McKissen of LinkedIn writes, “A referral is often the fastest path to a closed deal.”
It can be particularly frustrating when you experience pushback from within your own team. Perhaps you pitched a solution to low turnover rates or requested to participate in a project only to have your input cast aside. Even when these responses are cordial, they can feel like a punch to the gut.
In these cases, simply don your salesman hat. Remember the previous advice for addressing sales rejection? These tips apply to internal meetings as well as customer interactions. At its root, just about every proposal you make in the business world is a sale, so tackle your teammates’ objections the same way to overcome them.
First, immediately yet politely request the reason for their denial. Try asking “What reservations do you have with this idea?” or “Do you have any feedback for me?” This will not only help you clarify their concerns but also position you to address them directly. For instance, if they found your concept too difficult to execute or inconsistent with the organization’s branding, pivot to a discussion about ways to simplify or modify it. You might be able to come to a collective consensus and take the first steps on a modified strategy as a team.
Then, as with in sales, be persistent. Take your teammates’ advice, rework your idea, and follow up with them about it. Even if you still face objections, requesting further constructive criticism can help you reframe future pitches—and increase your chances of earning their agreement in upcoming meetings.
Forming business partnerships adds roots to your professional network, broadening your potential leads and ultimately tipping the scales of success in your favor. Suppliers, subcontractors, and affiliated professionals within your industry can all be valuable assets for fostering referrals and brand awareness. But what happens when they decline to connect?
The steps to overcoming a rejected partnership resemble those to bypassing a sales objection—skilled persistence is key. Think of it this way: a partnership should be mutually beneficial, and whatever benefit you claim to offer your intended partner is your value proposition.
As Deborah Sweeny suggests in Forbes, “Make a proposal on how the two companies can partner together while mutually benefiting both parties involved as well as the customer. Be organized and come with a plan.” If you face a denial, follow up in the future and propose tactics that you are ready to execute immediately, like cross-promotion on social media or a shout-out in your email newsletters. When a potential referral partner can directly visualize what’s in it for them, they will be hard-pressed to say no.
TAKE ACTION:
Name five individuals or organizations that have recently rejected your proposals. Practice persistence by arranging follow-up conversations with each of them.
