© Kevin Renes | Dreamstime.com

All salespeople know that making a sale involves much more than a simple conversation with a prospect. In fact, the number of things the average salesperson has to do to close a deal can be staggering. There’s prospecting, information —gathering, research, cold and warm calling, sending emails and traditional marketing materials, doing pitches and demos, performing follow-up, and a host of other activities. As a result, it’s easy for salespeople to get burned out and unmotivated.

But success in any type of sales environment depends on having the proper mindset, and that includes being motivated, inspired, educated, and pumped up to perform all aspects of the sales cycle — even the parts you don’t like. So how do top salespeople keep the proper mindset to continually outperform their peers? Often, it all comes down to the messages they feed their brain.

Let’s face it. Success in sales is 90 percent mental. If you can keep your mindset positive and stay motivated to do the things you need to do every day, you’ll not only make more sales, but you’ll also enjoy doing it. If you’re ready to take your sales career to the next level, then it’s time to create your personal sales success soundtrack. Following are the elements to include in your soundtrack so you can stay motivated and sell more.

Music to Motivate

Realize that music is much more than just background noise. Studies conducted by sports psychologists have determined that music has a great impact on an athlete’s performance level. In fact, Dr. Costas Karageorghis, a sports psychologist at Brunel University, found that synchronous music (music that has a clear and steady beat) elevates a person’s performance by 20 percent, whereas asynchronous music (melodic background music) calms the nerves of people by as much as 10 percent. If the right kind of music can help improve athletic performance (which also requires a lot of mental stamina), it can certainly help improve sales performance as well.

Therefore, create a playlist for all aspects of the sales cycle. For example, prior to a prospecting meeting, listen to “Let’s Get It Started” by The Black Eyed Peas. When you’re about to do demo or a sales pitch, listen to Survivor’s “Eye of the Tiger.” Immediately after closing a sale, listen to “Party Rock Anthem” by LMFAO. And when you’re feeling low and unmotivated to do anything, listen to Eminem’s “Lose Yourself,” a song about putting your best self out there, being a serious risk-taker, and overcoming your fears of failure. Pick a few songs that motivate you for each aspect of the sales process and listen to those songs at the appropriate time so they anchor you in the moment.

Stay Inspired

Staying motivated is certainly important, but sometimes you just need some inspiration to keep your spirits high. This is when listening to uplifting stories, religious and spiritual verses, or inspirational quotes can help. Inspirational stories and messages give you mental discipline and can help you sort out tough business challenges by giving you a fresh perspective.

You can find many inspirational books in audio format so you can listen to them on the go, as many salespeople are these days. You can even find many “classic” inspirational sales messages in audio form from well known greats like Zig Ziglar, Tony Robbins, and Dale Carnegie. The options for inspirational messages are virtually limitless.

Educate Yourself Often

Would you want to send your loved one to a doctor who graduated from Harvard Medical School in 1971 but who hasn’t done any continuing education since then? Of course not! You’d want a doctor who not only went to a prestigious school, but who also stays abreast of the latest medical innovations and technologies. Your clients expect the same level of continuing education from the salespeople they work with.

But sales education doesn’t always come from a classroom. For busy salespeople, education can come from listening to “how to” type sales trainers, tuning in to business radio and podcast programs, and downloading audio books on sales and general business topics.

And when it comes to educating yourself, remember that not everything is digital. One good technique is to listen to an audio book and read the printed book at the same time. As you hear things that resonate with you, you can highlight it in the printed version and bookmark certain pages you want to reread later. The key is to never stop learning. Experience can’t always come to you; sometimes you have to go out and seek it.

Winning the Greatest Game of All

The sales profession can be stressful and challenging — but it can also be rewarding and profitable. No matter what you sell, you have to be able to respond to clients and be spontaneous. You have to be able to think outside your box and be able to add value. It’s definitely a profession that requires sharp mental agility, so that means you have to continually keep your mind in tiptop shape. When you listen to music, inspirational messages, and educational subjects on a daily basis, you’re keeping your mind well-fed and well-rounded so you can always be at the top of your game. And that’s where you’ll find the real success and profits in your sales career.