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BDR

Valued Contributor
Good Citizen
Fire Starter
+1

Getting over coldcalling anxiety

Hi everyone,


Since day one, outbound cold calling was a struggle for me, as it made me extremely anxious to call strangers. Now it has got heaps better and anxiety's mostly manageable. There are some moments, however, when it gets over my head. Therefore, my question:


How do you manage anxiety before or during cold calling sessions? Any successful techniques?

📞 Cold Calling
🙏 Mental Wellness
🤗 Self-care
29

36 comments

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poweredbycaffeine
WR Lieutenant
19
☕️
I dial, take a deep breath, and realize the ABSOLUTE worst thing that is going to happen to me is I get hung up on. The best thing that could happen is someone gets to listen to my pitch. Low stakes, high rewards.
Kinonez
Celebrated Contributor
7
War Room Enthusiast
Practice is key, you’ll loose that anxiety sooner or later, in the mean time, have your intro ready, know it by heart, so you start strong! The first 30 seconds are worth gold! 

I like to stop with an open ended question so they start talking ASAP, so I can focus on listening to them and start looking for pain points. This makes my call flow a lot easier and with close to no stress. 
CuriousFox
WR Officer
6
🦊
Maybe take a 5 minute break for a short walk to get blood flowing a little. Call a friendly voice for the 5 min break to put you in a happy frame of mind.

Anyone else want to chime in?
bendandsnack
Politicker
3
Account Exec
I like to bump music & sing in my apartment for 2 reasons - 

1) to warm my voice up(I've croaked on the phone after not speaking all day while WFH) 

2) pump myself up, people can hear your anxiety in your voice

Maybe not the most kosher advice BUT if you're working from home & don't have any meetings make it fun & have a mimosa or something beforehand.  Don't make a habit of it but trying it while you're getting your feet wet might help you break the ice.  At the end of the day, cold calling is like prank calling for adults, have a little fun with it. 

& if someone is rude to you, HANG UP ON THEM FIRST. 
CorpSheep
Good Citizen
0
Sales Rep
LOL to thinking of a croaked voice mid cold call
justatopproducer
Politicker
3
VP OF SALES -US
Stand up when you talk, power pose, tell yourself you’re the man/woman and know you can help and add value to whoever picks up. I tell myself that-ish everytime i start a block. If they don’t want/need my help, no sweat ask if they know anyone else who does and thanks for the time.
UrAssIsSaaS
Arsonist
3
SaaS Eater
I think the first thing to acknowledge is that this is SUPER normal. Just about anyone that has cold called has had some form of anxiety around it. So you're not alone in feeling this way.

For me, I felt less anxious the more confident I was. My confidence came with strong prep before each call. I would now exactly how I was going to build rapport, how I would get the prospect to take a second to hear me out, and how I would position my solution for their specific problem. 

Obviously its a called call and it doesn't always go according to plan but when I was winging it, I was anxious. When I was well prepped I felt like I could sell to anything.  
Incognito
WR Officer
3
Master of Disaster
🙋🏻‍♀️ I struggle with this 

I just start saying a few things out loud, get my flow. Have the number dialed ahead of time, and hit send. They’re just a person, much like you. You’re having a conversation, not saving the world. 

Also - avoiding it doesn’t make it easier. I’m totally guilty of that. I’m looking at it as an area where I am weak, therefore I want to get better. I already know I’m killer in person, so this helps my end goal of being a closer in any situation. 
ColdCall
Valued Contributor
2
Account Executive
I find not knowing if they will connect the biggest issue. I don't want to call numbers and wait 5-10 mins to get put through, it kills momentum. 

Try getting a list of direct numbers to call and just make 10 calls from that- and see what the outcome is. 

Also, you won't make a sale or book a meeting on the first call. You mainly want to verify they are a person and if lucky discover some pain or an issue they have. 

Don't beat yourself up either, it can be awful and the most difficult part of sales. But, when you have a great cold call- you feel like $1,000,000! 
TheRealPezDog
Notable Contributor
2
Account Manager
Call on speaker phone, I call this "big timing" a prospect.  I don't know why it works I just know that it does.
Mothy
Politicker
1
Account Executive
Im gonna have to give this a shot this afternoon.
friendlyginge
Politicker
1
Account Executive
I do something similar, I hold the phone away from my ear so I can still hear it but it feels less threatening lol
BlueJays2591
Politicker
2
Federal Business Dev Director
Care less. Just don't give a shit about the end result. They'll either say no, tell you to piss off, or they'll say yes. Doesn't matter which. Just say what you know you're supposed to say. If your emotions are tied to the end result, you're going to get anxious and not say what you know you're supposed to say. Easier said than done. Take a couple shots of whiskey before you start a cold call sesh. I promise it works.
ColdCallFartBoy
Celebrated Contributor
1
Business Development Representative
Completely emotionally detach yourself from everyone you call. If someone gives you a swift uppercut while you’re talking take it like a champ and call the next prospect.
poweredbycaffeine
WR Lieutenant
4
☕️
This may make you come across as cold or unenthused. I'd suggest not completely detaching, but rather remove the risk of someone not liking you as a potential outcome. Who cares if they don't?
someoneinsales
Tycoon
1
Director of Sales
Make it a game! Make it fun. I treat my cold calling anxiety like the pregame jitters. Walking onto the field with a little nerves in the stomach knowing it’s do or die and you need that win. Once you get into the game the nerves go away and you get into the flow Just like with sports, warm up before cold calling. Do a few practice pitches then blow the whistle to get the game started.
vicomtesales
Opinionated
1
SDR
I'm in the same boat as you. My anxiety has gotten loads better since I first started cold calling, but some mornings it does slap me in the face. I find it's like getting in a cold pool and the best way to do that is to jump right in. If I'm feeling anxious that morning I make sure all my tools and resources are in front of me and dive right in. If I beat around the bush too much by procrastinating then my anxiety will just build. I know what I'm doing and if I just dive into dialing I know my anxiety will be pretty much gone within the hour. 
BmajoR
Arsonist
1
Account Executive
Call some low hanging fruit first thing. A receptionist, or someone you can just get the jitters out with. 
Sheriff
Politicker
1
Sales Trainer
I started in sales cold calling construction contractors and had to get their social security numbers. I have been called all the names in the book, been told to do a number of anatomically impossible acts, and several inventive ways to kill myself. At the end of the day what they say or do doesn't matter, sooner or later you'll find someone that needs what you're selling and you'll make money. No one on the other end of the line can do anything to you. Laugh it off, tell the war room about it and call the next person. You get better with every call.
RealPatrickBateman
Politicker
1
🔪Amateur Butcher🔪
Best advice I ever received in this regard (Very similar to @poweredbycaffeine's take) "It's already a NO, so whats the worst that could happen"... seriously, whats the worst that could happen? lol
Goku
1
Director of Sales
The anxiety may be from the fear of not knowing what will happen.   -  detach yourself from the outcome. Treat it like a sport, not every shot you shoot is going in the bucket, nor is every hit a homerun. 

First practice hitting consistent dials. Then work on turning those dials into convo, then meetings, and then closes. Don't rush your success but make sure you are disciplined enough to hit your dial count. Practice and make calling prospects as easy as brushing your teeth. 

not sure what industry you're in, sometimes I make it a mission to hit 100 dials before the day or week ends, it's extremely tough in my business but worth it. Hope that helps 
TheMatador19
Member
1
Head of Sales
Just jump right in.  You'll get through 10 calls and realize it's not as bad as you envisioned.  Just like public speaking. 
CorpSheep
Good Citizen
1
Sales Rep
Think of the phone as your cash register
mitts2
Politicker
0
Account Executive
Most salespeople have gone through this so know you are not alone. Set up time to do mock cold calls, nothing is harder than getting challenged by your teammates. They feel awkward and weird but it will make actually calling real people easier. Lastly, and most people have said it already, its about confidence. Believe in yourself that you know your product / your abilities and your confidence will come through. 

SMILE AND DIAL!

PS. I find it way better to stand and call. Helps relieve the stress.
RedLightning
Politicker
0
Mid-Market AE
Don't think of the prospect as a Decision Maker at a company. You'll mentally put them on a pedestal. Treat the intro as if you were explaining what your company does to a friend or relative. That will also have the added benefit of taking out the marketing lingo that is used to pitch VC's and simplify what you do, giving them the floor to ask clarifying questions.

Detach from the outcome. If you get hung up on, it's not you. They are likely rejecting the concept of a cold call.  Personally, I'm a big fan of the "my name is X and this is a cold call/sales call. Do you want to take it" approach. It weeds those out and lets me see what is/isn't resonating with people who will give me time of day.
Stratifyz
Big Shot
0
Account Executive
Just do it. There’s a small % that someone is gonna answer anyways. Let it rip and grow.
artofsales
Good Citizen
0
Sr. Director of Enterprise Sales
PICK UP THE PHONE AND DIAL. it's a human on the other side that you never met. What do you have to lose? You have everything to win.
Sales_Bot_V1000
0
Sales Coach
Few push-ups - and get at it. Like others have said make few thousand dials and you will be over it and gained a new muscle :)
hh456
Celebrated Contributor
0
sales
I remind myself I'm doing them a favor. They're interested, they need it and I'll never meet these people and most likely never hear from them ever again. It's not as bad as we make it out to be.
GrindingSales
Politicker
0
Account Executive
If I'm really in a crunch, I know I need to get in the zone and anxiety will just take me all the way out of the game.  Therefore, on those days, I will call a current customer or even sometimes my Dad and just have a quality conversation with them about how their business is doing and how life is going.  It settles my nerves, I get the fumbled words out of my system and settle in. 
cw95
Politicker
0
Sales Development Lead
That person...

On the other end of the phone...

...Is just another person. 

You don't know them, they don't know you, hence the coldness. 

It's mad as fuck but are you ever going to bump into them? 

They are expecting it one day or another. 

As others said, take a breather, dial the number and think 'It's just a geezer on the other end that may give me a minute'

If you worry about the dickheads that are horrible, they are in the worse place. You will go away and tell everyone - this bellend has said this - and this means that numerous people now know that the people at that company aren't nice.

If you worry about interrupting people and all the other reasons to why people wouldn't want to speak...they will forget you in a week. And then it's all game on after that!

you'll be fine, easier said than done. crack it out and think 'it's just a person'. Dr Pepper - What's the worst that can happen. 

After my rant here, what I do is I tend to put my phone on speaker and have it on the desk whilst I fiddle with something so it makes the convo feel natural and not so strict. 

I also tend to try and add humour however you can 'good Morning...oh haha it's the afternoon, wow it's been a long day, anyway'. 

good luck mate.
spicy
Good Citizen
0
Account Executive
The key is to admit it's going to suck and that you probably aren't going to get any bites today, but find a reason to do it anyway. Maybe it's because you feel better after putting in a good day's work, maybe it's because you want to develop the skill of talking to strangers and being rejection proof, maybe you know that if you can develop the skill to painlessly cold call you'll never be out of a job, or maybe, let's face it, it's humiliating to be afraid of calling strangers in our culture (even though almost everyone is) and we want to be 'real men'. It doesn't matter how ridiculous your motivation is. The path to being brave in everything is to assume you're going to fail in the worst possible way, and find a reason to do it anyway. Even on days when I've made 100 calls and gotten nothing, I still feel good because I've achieved that other purpose.

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