Nervous? Try this

I don’t know about you, but my career has been fraught with moments when I lacked sales confidence. When I first started selling, I’d sometimes sit in my car for half an hour before a presentation. Other times, the sales anxiety I’d feel before a big meeting literally made me sick to my stomach.

Believe it or not, the only thing that enabled me to face my customers with confidence was a silly song that I sang to myself over and over. Sounds pathetic, doesn’t it? But now there’s research that shows I wasn’t crazy!

First, a bit about that tune and what it did for me: It was “I Whistle a Happy Tune” from the musical The King and I. My mom used to sing it all the time and it brings back soothing memories.

Here’s why it worked.

When I sang it, the lyrics and the upbeat melody got me to change my posture so that I “resembled” a confident person, even though I wasn’t. In short, I faked confidence.

“Whenever I feel afraid, I hold my head erect. And whistle a happy tune so no one will suspect, I’m afraid.

While shivering in my shoes, I strike a careless pose. And whistle a happy tune, and no one ever knows I’m afraid.