Sales burnout is a mental, emotional, and physical distress among salespeople due to excessive stress in sales of hitting their KPIs and quotas consistently. Before you question if sales burnout is actually true, yes, it is. It is a biological condition which is both diagnosable and curable.

It's not just sales, but burnout is quite common in the business world. Since salespeople are exposed to a high-stress environment, they are more likely to face such burnouts.

Today in this letter #1 from RogerRoger, you will get 7 handpicked, actionable tips from Jasper Pegtel, our co-founder, to prevent sales burnout without hurting your daily sales quota.

The Warning Signs of Sales Burnout

Before Jasper takes over, know that sales burnout feels different for each salesperson.

Some might experience small signs while others might confuse them with life-threatening diseases. Although sales burnout is a concerning issue, don't neglect it. Here's a list of warning signs damaging your work-life balance:

• Physical symptoms include: Frequent headaches, feeling fatigue, and losing all your energy in your body.

• Mental symptoms: Lost memory and reduced creativity. Feeling anxious or depressed.

• Emotional symptoms: Feeling frustrated and lost with no motivation or goals. Increased irritability and impatience with decreased enthusiasm to work. You no longer feel excited about sales as you used to.

If you have noticed any of those signs recently, take a pen and paper or open your notepad to take note of all the best practices Jasper shares with you today.

7 Effective sales practices to prevent burnout and build healthy work-Life balance

7 Effective Sales Practices to Prevent Burnout and Build Healthy Work-Life Balance

01. Healthy work habits build healthy sales boundaries

The quickest way to get sales burnout is to spill work into your personal life. Healthy work habits begin with the smallest task of turning off the Slack notifications at home to checking emails on your way to the office, not while sitting on the couch with your kids. Start small to win big.

Here’s how I build my healthy boundaries :

Being a startup founder, closing deals is a part of my day, and if I don't close deals or we had a bad sales day, I don't carry this disappointment home. At the beginning, it was not easy, but when I kept saying it has nothing to do with my personal life, it became a lot easier.

02. Set realistic SMART sales goals

Setting up highly ambitious goals which are close to being unreachable is a frequent problem. You cannot expect to hit 50 deals a day when you are doing 15 on average. Just set up the goal of 20, then 30, and lastly 50.

My goal setting:

I started with small, achievable numbers when I first began in sales. This helped build my confidence and allowed me to learn without feeling overwhelmed. By setting realistic goals and steadily increasing them, I've been able to continually improve my ability to connect with prospects and provide value.

03. Implement blocked-focused hours

When you're selling remotely on multiple social channels, the constant stream of notifications can quickly become distracting. They interrupt your workflow, making it challenging to maintain focus on important tasks.

Moreover, the temptation to immediately respond to every notification can create a false sense of urgency, causing you to prioritize less important interactions over more crucial sales activities.

Here’s how I do deep & shallow work :

I block a few hours on my calendar to answer prospects who are ready to close, and for those who need a little convincing, I block separate hours. I set up the energy flow for different interactions with prospects.

I use a strategic approach to manage my time and energy effectively. I align my energy levels with the nature of the interactions. Here's how I do it:

• Ready-to-Close Prospects: I dedicate prime hours when I'm most alert and energetic.

• Prospects Needing Convincing: I schedule separate blocks when I'm prepared for more challenging conversations.

• Buffer Time: I include short breaks between blocks to recharge and prepare for the next interaction.

04. Productivity hack: Take regular breaks

This might look easier said than done, but taking regular breaks is too important, especially when you are constantly staring at the screen with social selling.

Remember, taking breaks is not a sign of laziness but a smart strategy for sustainable productivity and preventing burnout in the long run.

My productivity ritual:

I tend to take short breaks throughout the day to recharge. This might involve chatting with a team member about non-work topics, sharing a recent fun experience with Peter (founder), or simply stepping away from my desk for a quick walk.

05. Focus on self-development & other creative sides

Learning should never stop. Invest in sales skills workshops, connecting with other sales professionals. If you are comfortable, attend sales webinars as well.

You don't need to spend every minute of your life doing sales, so work on your hobbies, other creative interests be it growing your plants or drawing sketches or doodles. Whatever it is, let the creativity and new ideas flow.

My creativity angle:

I never push myself hard to just do & learn sales all the time. Being a developer, my creativity flows well with writing code, so a bad sales day means writing more code.

06. Celebrate small wins that are big enough

Most teams and people encourage celebrating big award-winning achievements only, but to prevent sales burnout and never feel it again, always celebrate small wins. Those small wins are big enough to celebrate.

My small wins ritual:

From the very beginning, we have had a ritual in our team to celebrate every small win, so that's the case with our sales department as well. From the day we closed our first deal to the biggest corporate deal, we celebrate all with an equal amount of joy.

07. Develop a Strong Support System

Last but not least, sales is not easy, and a lot of times the environment gets toxic or highly stressful. Always build a strong support system. It could be meditation apps, digital journals, RogerRoger, or someone from your team or a close friend. Having a support system takes away more than half of your stress.

Here’s how my Support system looks :

At RogerRoger, we are a small but close team, so as a ritual every day, we walk outside for one hour. I share everything regarding sales that's bothering me with them. It provides a morale boost and creates a positive, encouraging environment.

Ready to respond to leads quickly and more effectively without hurting your work-life balance?

Having a unified inbox has already helped 1000+ high-performing sales people close deals efficiently with less time rushing between multiple channels on emails, LinkedIn, and WhatsApp. The good news is you get a free 14-day trial of RogerRoger with no credit card required. Start today to transform your sales now!