I had an interaction at the end of the day today that really opened up my eyes to the power of encouragement. I work in a sales environment, and there is a group of newer sales agents that have been on the phones for only a couple of weeks. They are going through the normal learning curve you'd expect for anyone new on the phones or to a certain type of sales. About a week or so ago I started talking to them more and just throwing out statements to them to like "you'll get one today, I can feel it" or complementing them on a particular thing they said well. Keep in mind also I'm not their trainer or anyone "above" them. I'm one of them; a fellow sales agent. I was talking to one of them at the end of the day today, and over the last several days he had gotten a sale every day after having a period of not getting any. I was giving him congrats, and he made a comment back to me giving me credit for them. I was thrown off a bit and asked him how so. He brought it back to the encouragement he had heard from me, that it had helped him to be able to make those sales. Now, I'm not taking any credit for the sales that he made; and I'm not saying he gave me all the credit. He was the one on the phone that closed the sale. But somehow my words of encouragement, my consistent reminder that he had what it took to make it happen, had had an effect on him and, as he saw it, was at least part of the reason he has had a streak of sales.
Encouraging words go a long way in building people up. It's easy to get down, especially in a sales position where you face constant rejection. Whether you are a leader by title or a fellow co-worker, be encouraging to those around you. You never know what kind of an impact you may have.
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