Beating Phone Fear – Not For Everyone
Most everyone can overcome phone fear. But not everyone is suited to beating a severe case of phone fear.
In your job, if you experience any of the following when you attempt to cold call or phone prospect:
Chest pain or discomfort
Dizziness or faintness
Fear of dying
Fear of losing control
Feeling of choking
Feelings of detachment
Feelings of unreality
Nausea or upset stomach
Numbness or tingling
Palpitations or pounding heart
Sensation of shortness of breath
Sweating, chills, or hot flashes
Trembling or shakingA psychology professional will suggest you probably have panic disorder.
If you suffer from any of these when preparing to cold-call or prospect or make difficult customer service calls, etc:
Difficulty concentrating
Difficulty controlling worry
Excess anxiety and worry that is out of proportion to the situation most of the time
Excessive sweating, palpitations, shortness of breath, and stomach/intestinal symptoms
Fatigue
Irritability
Muscle tension — shakiness, headaches
Restlessness or feeling keyed up or “on the edge”
Sleep disturbance (difficulty falling or staying asleep; or restless, unsatisfying sleep)Doctors will most likely say you have generalized anxiety disorder.
While I serve up ideas and suggestions for overcoming the effects of phone fear, I acknowledge that in cases where a person has these deeply embedded disorders and suffers excruciating symptoms, the idea of pursuing a career that depends on overcoming phone fear is probably not a good idea until intervention by a doctor has stabilized the disorder. These disorders require professional help and all the powerful suggestions and sage advice in the world will not work, until the cause is diagnosed and treated professionally and successfully.
I am as positive about the prospect of overcoming phone fear as anyone. I’m convinced that almost all stable people (using the Big Five Personality Traits as defined in contemporary psychology) have the wherewithal to use methods, techniques and courage to move past phone fear to attain whatever goals and ambitions they aspire to. Absent a relatively stable personality, overcoming phone fear is an uphill battle.
In summary, there are 3 fundamentals a person will do good to possess if s/he is to overcome the effects of severe phone fear, especially when considering a career that depends on calling:
Desire - You have to want to succeed. You, not someone else speaking for you, must want desperately to succeed. You have to dig deep and ask yourself if you have the stamina, the need, the discipline and the courage to do what it takes to beat the beast.
Endurance - Your personality, your character must be able to withstand the negatives sure to pepper you with bolts of self-doubt and derision as you attempt to step up and face your demons.
Attitude - You DO NOT harbor persistent negative feelings and are not excessively emotionally reactive and vulnerable to stress.Possessed with these characteristics your chances of beating back the phone fear are excellent.
Chet Baker is a veteran in the career field. With experience in recruiting for over 10 years and resume writing and consulting for 5, he founded the Denver Resume Builder, for resume writing, IT recruiting and career advice.
A speaker and writer he admits to a passion for pushing the limits of his clients. He has a book in the works, “Overcome Your Phone Fear,” due to be published in early 2010. His blog Phone Fear, http://nophonefear.wordpress.com/ is a collection of periodic posts on the subject. They are glimpses of selected chapters of the book.
He works from his home base in Denver and loves his Colorado Mountains to ski, hike, and bike.