5 Ways to Avoid Sales Burnout and How to Recover From It

Find out some of the telltale signs of sales burnout, how to prevent it in the first place, and how to bounce back from it.

Sales burnout is a very real problem within any sales industry. It can happen at any time in one’s career, though typically crops up after periods of intense work stress. The first key in avoiding, preventing, and recovering from sales burnout is knowing what it looks like.

What are some of the signs of sales burnout?

• You find yourself becoming grumpy or negative with your customers. Is your glass half-empty more often these days?
• You lose focus on attention to detail. Has your supervisor or colleague corrected more mistakes or errors in your work?
• You are feeling fatigued no matter how much sleep you get. Is your 2 p.m. coffee no longer helping you get through the afternoons?
• Sales metrics are dipping month over month. Have you missed your sales quota for the past few months?
• You no longer care about professional development opportunities. Are you consciously or subconsciously avoiding signing up for the next conference or workshop?
• You no longer enjoy what you’re doing. Are your Sunday nights filled with more angst and sadness while anticipating the upcoming work week?
• Your coworkers are bugging you more than usual. Does everything (and everyone) seem to be grating on your nerves at the office?

If you’ve answered yes to any of these questions, there’s a good chance you’re experiencing sales burnout. But don’t worry! You can reverse this! Before getting to how to recover from sales burnout, let’s review how to avoid it in the first place.

5 ways to avoid sales burnout

1. Get a work mentor.

This doesn’t have to be a direct supervisor. Find someone in your office or industry that you can trust to be your work confidante. Someone whose opinion you value and someone with the experience to guide you through moments of stress and frustration. Keep a regular appointment with your mentor, even if it’s just a quick 15-minute check-in. Choose your mentor wisely. Remember, the goal of a mentor isn’t to become best friends. It’s to learn, grow, and challenge yourself with the guidance of someone with more experience than you.

2. Improve systems and processes. Make processes more efficient.

Take a step back from your day-to-day work tasks for a moment. Jot down the different types of tasks and operations you accomplish each day and the systems used to complete them. Notice any redundancies? Are there ways to improve a documentation or communication process in order to improve efficiencies? Brainstorm with your colleagues on ways to take advantage of technology or batch processing in order to free yourself from more mundane tasks.

3. Build a healthy work/life balance by setting healthy boundaries.

With remote working, mobile phones behaving like mini-computers, and cloud technology, people really can work from anywhere. The problem with working whenever and wherever is that sometimes people don’t know when or how to pivot out of their professional workday into their personal life. This can lead to major sales burnout. Make a conscious effort to set boundaries that will help you unplug from your work. You may consider removing your work email from your mobile device and alert your colleagues that if they have an urgent matter after 6 pm, they should text you. Emergencies come up, so it’s helpful if there’s an alternate way to get in touch.

4. Revamp your work schedule.

Block out times for different tasks and schedule 10-minute or 15-minute breaks that allow you to stand up, get a glass of water, or even just practice some deep breathing exercises. Test out different time management strategies that allow you to devote your most energetic self to more difficult tasks.

5. Use your PTO.

If part of your compensation includes paid time off, use it. Go away for a long weekend, or better yet, book that week-long vacation. Having something fun to look forward to helps prevent sales burnout. Not to mention the refreshed feeling you’ll be able to inject into your workday after some time away from your desk.

How to recover from sales burnout

Sales burnout will undoubtedly happen at one point or another. When you notice it happening, there are things you can do to recover. Here are a few ways to reverse sales burnout and get back to business.

• Get more sleep. No really, make sleep a priority (and not binge-watching another TV show past midnight).
• Limit your screen time. Find ways to unplug from your day and give your eyes a break.
• Build a plan with your supervisor. This may include a more flexible work schedule or more regular check-ins. Part of your supervisor’s job is to support you. Let them.
• Take advantage of your benefits. Aside from using your PTO, does your agency offer any additional perks? Some companies will have an Employee Assistance Program that can offer numerous resources to help with various stressors like mental health, legal assistance, childcare, and eldercare. Look at your employee manual or reach out to your supervisor to find out what benefits may be available to you to help recover from sales burnout.
• Spend time with people outside of the sales world. Socialize with friends and family who aren’t in the sales industry. Being around people with different jobs and passions is refreshing and allows your “sales brain” to take a much-needed break.

Sales burnout doesn’t have to derail your career. Take a moment and with the help of your supervisor, support systems, and resources, come up with a plan to get back on track. Give yourself more time for this important work by letting HBW Leads take over your lead generation needs. The experts at HBW Leads can provide you with double-verified exclusive leads so you can use that time practicing a healthy work/life balance.