The third and final myth in this series of blog posts is also one of the most important topics in sales management. It concerns performance. But it is also about change, about trying to move away from an established routine in hopes of discovering something even better. Alas…

Myth #3 – Results must be reinforced for performance to change.

A sales manager should advocate change, especially for poor or average performers. But even sales superstars need a change of style, a change of pace, every now and then if they want to grow in their respective careers.

But the above statement is a myth. A half-baked truth. If you really want to see your average sales reps grow into sales superstars, then for performance to change, progress needs to be tracked and reward for that progress accordingly. Change simply isn’t possible if you’re only interested in results and not letting the sales reps know where they stand.

The best sales managers advocate both – they track results as well as progress towards those results.

All of us need help one way or the way. And somewhere along the road to change, the journey can get tedious and frustrating for the sales rep. Its the job of the sales manager to guide them every step of the way. Remember the first myth: effective sales management is helping your sales reps learn.

Here are some tips on how you can support this change:

• Simulate a safe environment – The sales rep’s biggest account is no place to try and experiment with new behaviors. Help them select easier and smaller accounts on which they could practice their intended change. You could also tag along on the call to serve as fallback in case things don’t go according to plan.

• Reject the “baptism by fire” philosophy – This approach may work in other walks of life, but not in sales management. A top sales manager must help their sales rep create a realistic assessment of his strengths and weaknesses, and plan a step-by-step procedure on how to go about implementing their desired change.

• Pat them on a back – Confident people are more likely to succeed in everything they do. Same thing applies to sales reps. Sales managers need to constantly encourage self-trust by rewarding even their smallest efforts. See the big picture by slowly building the sales reps confidence one praise at a time.

To learn even more about sales management training, get our free ebook.

Got any other sales coaching myths to share? Tell me by leaving a comment after this post.

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