Overcoming Presales and Sales Imposter Syndrome

Imposter Syndrome is a psychological phenomenon in which people doubt their success or competence. This syndrome and how it impedes progress or impacts performance is a topic of great debate in both the post-pandemic workforce and mental health space. Where individuals feel they are underqualified or unsure of their competence, performance suffers. In presales and software sales and leadership, have we always suffered from this? Are there times in our lives when this is normal, or even an advantage?  

Selling and presenting software, working with a team, delivering complex solutions, filing quotas, and trying to compete with increasingly complex technology can cause natural anxiety. These high-stakes situations can induce imposter syndrome-type feelings in most people. However, the degree to which it negatively impacts your career depends on how you recognize the feelings underlying imposter syndrome, shift your inner dialogue, and train to increase the effectiveness of your conversations and build a connection with your audience. 

In this blog, 2Win explores imposter syndrome and how it may be experienced in sales organizations. We teach and recommend tactics for overcoming it, shortening sales cycles, and winning more deals. 

What is Imposter Syndrome 

Imposter Syndrome is the perception that one is unqualified, unprepared, or in the wrong position. It is often a preoccupation in thought and can negatively impact performance. This is one of many psychological factors affecting your ability to communicate effectively and purposefully in sales.

Regardless of your role, it's natural sometimes to feel like you won't measure up. Imposter syndrome is born from fear. As world-renowned trainers and thought leaders in presentation training and sales training, we have some tactics for each role to overcome the fear that results from not meeting imagined or real expectations. 

Imagined Expectations 

Before we discuss the mechanisms for overcoming expectations, it is important to qualify an expectation as real or imagined. Where a monthly number needs to be met, that is a real expectation. And where a team is relying on your expertise to advance a deal, as in account executive and presales positions, these are also very real expectations. When it comes to facing the fear that you will not have the right answer to objections clients raise or that you do not possess the requisite expertise to respond and advance the deal, these are not unreal, but they require a mind frameshift. 

Overcoming Imposter Syndrome 

To overcome imposter syndrome, you need to properly identify if an expectation is real or imagined prior to the sales engagements so you can prepare to meet the real obligations. This requires a two-pronged approach. We recommend a mental check-in and then tactical training to effectively overcome imposter syndrome.  

Shifting Perspectives 

One way any person, in any selling capacity, can overcome imposter syndrome is to shift perspective. Your internal talk track may be causing poor performance or, at the very least, contributing to doubts you may have prior to customer engagements. How do you shift perspective and change your internal talk track?  

One way is to consider the bigger picture. If you are in presales, for example, and you are going into a demo, remember that there are only a handful of people in the whole world who have your knowledge and have access to the solutions you will be presenting. Focus on how you will be communicating rather than potentially not being an expert on the industry you are presenting in. This single shift is very powerful. Remember that both sellers and buyers are ultimately looking to make an accord. 

Grow Your Confidence In Executive Interactions

Practice Makes Perfect 

As leading global sales trainers, if there is anything that is, above all else, proven to be true, it is that practice in sales scenarios does indeed make *almost* perfect. When you remove mistakes that can take place from inexperience or because you are delivering something new, you start to really be able to present solutions. The more you have practiced your talk track, the more you are able to watch, engage, and respond to your audience. That is where you really excel in sales presentations. It also has the benefit of reducing imposter syndrome, because you know what you are doing and have done it many many many times. 

In addition to personal practice, we recommend also practicing as teams. How a well-organized and experienced sales team runs a meeting is fantastic. They can read their audience, they come across as confident and knowledgeable, and they can close and sell, without the audience feeling like they are being sold to. Creating an experience like this can take decades of experience or can be the result of sales training programs like those offered by 2Win. Whether your team is looking to perfect a software demonstration or improve discovery, this is where we can make a big impact, offering a forum and skills for teams to excel and overcome fear associated with imposter syndrome. 

Narrowing Your Use Case 

If you are new in sales, and you find yourself in a situation where you feel in the weeds in a sales conversation, this tactic is excellent for overcoming imposter syndrome. Narrow your use case. If a buyer wants you to explain the various scenarios where your product or feature solves their problems, and you might not have the expertise in the field to diagnose one, ask the buyer to provide one. This puts them in a position where they offer one of the common issues they face, and you are able to solve it. If it isn’t immediately clear, drill down into whether you can answer the question confidently. It takes some practice to be confident in asking questions, but it is a wonderful way to generate goodwill and build authority with your audience. 

How 2Win Training Helps Overcome Imposter Syndrome 

Imposter syndrome is overcome by developing an internal talk track that aligns with your real talent and expertise, a talk track that your team all understands and is aligned with, and being able to truly speak with authority to objections and use cases in your presentation. What else is there to a presentation? That’s where 2Win comes in. 

Demo2Win is one of the most acclaimed software demonstration training programs in the world. Is that because we are experts at all new software and technology? NO! We are experts at showing value between buyers and sellers, and we give you the keys to communication in these business engagements. We take your expertise, personal or collective, and personalize training so that you are prepared for engagements and are able to focus more on the audience and building relationships, than on perceived expectations. 

Contact 2Win Today.