Lie Back and Relax

LIE BACK, RELAX

AND SELL And more resilience when it comes to bouncing back quickly after a big loss? Or better still, meeting the never ending challenges of spending more time listening to their customers, talking Sales hypnotist JON CLARE says hypnosis offers less and asking good questions? In combination, the presence of these core a simple solution to many of the problems sales behaviours – and no doubt there are also a commonly faced by sales professionals few more – creates high performing salespeople. So when it comes to improving core behaviours like these, what’s the most effective, fastest and

We all want our salespeople to exhibit a range of specific behaviours to help them operate as high performers. For example, we want them to easiest approach to achieving lasting change? Believe it or not, it is hypnosis. MODERN HYPNOSIS For those people still mentally stuck in the 1960s, hypnosis may conjure stereotyped images of be motivated, savvy, determined, empathetic to swinging watches and spiral disks (yawn...). customers’ needs and robust to the stresses of But for those more up to date with modern meeting targets. We want them to be creative in performance psychology, utilising the power of forming propositions around customer needs, tell hypnosis is a growing area of interest for sales engaging stories of product benefits, and persist leaders in their quest for sales team optimisation. in the face of regular rejection. Hypnosis in general is a very safe, credible way In addition, what about them having to produce behaviour change. So safe, in fact, more discipline in using the CRM system? that it has been tested and approved for use in the NHS as a gold standard treatment. There are no side-effects and the state of hypnosis is simply a naturally occurring phenomenon, which is achievable by almost everyone. Much like a combination of focused attention, daydreaming and meditation, the hypnotic experience is similar to the kind of absorption you get when you are intently watching a film or reading a book without noticing things going on around you. Whether for performance enhancement or simply stress reduction, when provided by an experienced hypnotist, everyone can gain benefit from using hypnosis. More broadly, hypnosis for performance enhancement has come a long way towards wide scale credibility and many of the world’s most recognised high performers, particularly in sports, have regularly and publicly leveraged hypnosis for its behaviour change and performance enhancement capabilities. In football, they include stars like David Beckham and Wayne Rooney, in golf, Tiger Woods, and in basketball, legends like Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal. All have gone on record as using hypnosis to up their game and gain an edge over the competition. They have each used the flexibility of hypnosis to address specific challenges for their own unique needs, unblock stubborn

WHAT SALESPEOPLE SAY Sales professionals who have undergone hypnotherapy – or who have put their team through such a course – comment:

“I feel more determined, motivated and excited to get out there and sell than I have for a long time” Lee, sales executive, online advertising agency “After seeing the initial results of sales hypnosis with three of our sales team, we are now considering deploying this approach to all our salespeople” Simon, owner and sales director, estate agent chain “My team have all had sales hypnosis sessions and some of their day-to-day changes and improvements to performance have been really amazing” Nathan, sales director, new media company

Source: Jon Clare

behavioural sticking points and embed new, lasting and more effective habits. There is a reason why most of these sporting greats have had longer careers at the top than most – and some of their success and longevity may have something to do with their use of hypnosis.

HYPNOSIS FOR SALES So what is hypnosis for sales performance and how does it work?

Hypnosis is a pleasant state of mind, where the recipient chooses to relax and switch off their critical thinking. Contrary to public perception, they remain in total control throughout the session and the hypnotist exerts no mystical power over them. Simply, it is a well tried and tested process that calmly assists the recipient to drift into a day-dream like state, much like the experience just before going to sleep. Although hypnosis is not sleep, it is a state of altered awareness, with the primary focus on the hypnotist’s voice and the suggestions given.

For sales hypnosis, the hypnotist will have a solid understanding of sales, the sales process and the behavioural characteristics required for successful selling. Often the hypnotist will be an ex-salesperson themselves, now trained to help using hypnosis.

The process starts with a discussion and exploration with the salesperson – and perhaps even with their manager – of what might be holding the salesperson back or what might benefit them. One or two key behavioural change goals are defined and agreed.

Then the hypnosis session begins with a combination of relaxation, breathing and attention-focusing exercises, each designed to

JON CLARE is an independent sales hypnotist who partners with the London College of Clinical Hypnosis (LCCH) to deliver ‘Hypnosis for Sales’. Email: info@lcch.co.uk with the reference: ‘Hypnosis for Sales’ help enable the participant to become less aware of their external surroundings and more aware of their own internal sensations, thoughts and feelings. Once in a calm, focused state of mind, the hypnotist delivers suggestions for positive behaviour change on the sales behaviour topics agreed beforehand.

After a short while, the hypnotist instructs the recipient to slowly awaken and return their awareness back into the present moment, feeling refreshed, motivated, enthused and subconsciously ready to implement the new behaviours. The structure of these sessions is repeated with the salesperson a number of times to ensure that the behaviours are embedded and that the desired progress is being made. Repetition supports and embeds sustainable behaviour change, confirming the old adage, “You get what you focus on.”

In addition to the work done in the session, the hypnotist will also suggest self-hypnosis exercises to strengthen the behaviour changes over time.

“For everyone who tries hypnosis, for whatever reason, the most frequent feedback is that they are pleasantly surprised at how enjoyable the experience is”

These exercises might be completed at home using mobile technology or may be behavioural anchors that are used in the office. Anchors are physical actions like a finger and thumb squeeze, which are connected to reminding and bringing the new behaviours to the front of mind.

Hypnosis can also involve group sessions, where it is explained to the whole sales team and self-hypnosis exercises for motivation, stress management and self-discipline are trained.

For everyone who tries hypnosis, for whatever reason, the most frequent feedback is that they are pleasantly surprised at how enjoyable the experience is. Plus, when they get back to selling, the results can be very impressive.

MAKE A DIFFERENCE Using a proportion of your sales development budget to provide sales hypnosis could prove to be a wise investment. Start small, perhaps by trying it yourself first. Then work with a test group and watch the results. See how powerful it can be to do something different that really gives you a sales edge over the competition.