
Leaders who are hiring for their open sales management positions can’t afford to make a mistake. Finding the best candidates means focusing on top sales manager skills such as self-control. Psychometric assessments can help managers learn which candidates have those skills.
While leaders should emphasize self-control in the hiring process, this behavior should also be present in their current sales managers. Here are a few questions to consider.
- How Do Individuals Exhibit Self-Control?
- How Can a Manager Improve Self-Control?
- How Can Leaders Hire a Sales Manager with High Self-Control?
How Do Individuals Exhibit Self-Control?
In a perfect world, team members and managers behave professionally. Part of that behavior includes exhibiting self-control in the workplace.
We all face setbacks. An employee may quit without giving notice. A customer may scream at us about a detail that we can’t control.
When a manager refrains from lashing out in response to these attacks, they are showing a high degree of self-control. You may want to throw a coffee mug at the wall when a sales rep gives you the bad news about losing a major account. But if you give in to that impulse, you’ll soon regret it.
The employee who witnesses your rage will likely try to avoid any situation that might upset you. In addition, they will probably tell co-workers about the incident. That is an outcome certain to erode your reputation of having good sales manager skills.
A better response is to thank the bearer of bad news for the update. In the case of a team member reporting the loss of a key account, you should be supportive. They are probably also upset about losing an account.
Instead of losing your temper when bad new arrives, turn the incident into a teachable moment. Engage your employee in a conversation about what they can do differently to retain an account in the future.
How Can a Manager Improve Self-Control?
Reacting calmly to an incident that pushes your buttons isn’t always easy. Some of us are born with the temperament that allows for more self-control. The good news is that you can improve this aspect of your personality, along with your sales manager skills.
Experts recommend several strategies.
Self-care
Regardless of the position you hold, when you are overtired and stressed, small incidents can provoke an outburst. Be mindful of self-care. Prioritize rest, exercise and eating right. Those practices will help you maintain control in stressful situations.
Triggers
Despite your best efforts to maintain emotional control, there are likely triggers that will rile you up. For some sales managers, it may be frustration about the rep who never attends the weekly meeting. Other managers may be triggered by the employee who is always late for work.
Coping Strategies
Once you identify these triggers, you can come up with coping strategies. Your strategy may be as simple as taking several deep breaths before you react. Or you may decide you’ll think through three different responses before reacting.
By slowing down your response, you take the time needed to behave professionally.
How Can Leaders Hire a Sales Manager with High Self-Control?
It’s easier to work on your own self-control issues than it is to hire a person with excellent emotional control. Candidates for your open sales manager position will tell you what they think you want to hear. In addition, they may truly believe that they have high self-control.
Using an assessment platform like TeamTrait will help you identify candidates with great sales manager skills. Self-control, the interest in developing others and the ability to gain commitment from others can make or break a team. These are qualities you want to focus on when hiring.
Research shows that having “high self-control is a critical signal of power.” Individuals in one study reported that colleagues with high self-control were more “suitable for leadership.” Surveyed individuals also gave a leadership nod to colleagues who set goals and met them. This was the case even if the goals were modest.
The importance of self-control for leaders and managers cannot be overstated.
The sales reps in your organization need a manager with the right temperament and other top sales manager skills. Reduce your hiring risk by asking your candidates to take an assessment. Then use that information to ask questions about emotional intelligence, including self-control.
Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko on Pexels.