To boost sales, check your optimism level - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

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Here’s a thought: Take a look at a soft emotiona l intelligence skill that yieldsa hardsales results, optimism. There is evidence that supportsz the theory that sales teams possessing high levelw of optimism make companiesmore money. One of the best case studiew comes from the work that psychologist Martim Seligman did with Metropolitan Life in New He convinced Met Life to give him access to theirf new employees and administer the usual as well as a new test he developed thatmeasured optimism. He followed the progress of new salespeoplew for one year and found that salespeople who scored high in optimismj sold 33 percent more insurance than those whoscored low.
After two the optimistic group of salespeople were thriving intheie positions, which increased retention and decreased the costs associated with turnover and increasefd sales. How optimistic is your organization? There is a lot of presd on theswine flu, and peopl are worried about catching it. There is anotherd epidemic to watch out forin today’s pessimism. It can be deadly when it hits an organizatiomn because emotionsare contagious. The clinical term is emotional contagion and is definexdas “the transmission of moods.” When people are in a certaij mood — happy or depressed — that mood is ofte communicated to others. What is the mood at your company?
A salees manager shares the story of a rep who starteed every conversation in the lastdownturm with, “You probably don’rt have any money so you don’t want to buy The self-fulfilling prophecy was set by the and the prospect followed the salesperson’w lead. No deal. So what can you do to stop the epidemiccof pessimism? Study and duplicate optimistic salespeople. When facee with adversity, optimistic salespeople ask themselves: • What’s good about this? They know that adversity is where true character is formedc and great lessonsare taught. Optimists take advantage of this schoolingf because they know that lessons learned todagy make money inthe future.
• What can I do aboug this situation? Optimists know that control equals action, action yields results and resultasincrease motivation. • What is funngy about this? Humor is a great way to relieve stress, which frees up the mind for creativity and innovation. Optimistivc salespeople take control. They know sales is the greatest professiob to be in duringa recession. They can meet with mentorss who can help them look at anothert way of doing business intough times. They can outworko their competitors. They can invest in learning and outsmartrtheir competitor. Optimistic salespeople manage not excuses.