How fear steals your potential.
By Brian Sullivan
In sales – especially in medical distribution and manufacturing – every moment counts. A single decision, a single call, a single handshake can change your entire trajectory. But what happens when you hesitate?
Not when you make a bad decision. Not when you fail. But when you pause too long. When you overanalyze. When you let a moment pass because you were waiting for the “right time.”
Hesitation isn’t harmless. It’s a slow thief.
It doesn’t steal your success in one swift motion. It bleeds it away, one opportunity at a time.
It forces you to watch from the sidelines while someone else – maybe someone less qualified, less experienced, and less prepared – steps up and wins.
Not because they were better.
But because they moved while you hesitated.
Fear in disguise
Sales reps often justify hesitation with logical-sounding excuses:
- “I don’t want to come across as pushy.”
- “Now’s not the right time – they’re too busy.”
- “I should wait until I have the perfect message.”
- “I’ll reach out next week.”
Let’s call it what it is: fear in a suit.
Fear of rejection. Fear of hearing “no.” Fear of looking unprepared.
Here’s the problem: you can recover from a bad decision. You can refine your approach after a failed pitch. You can tweak your messaging after a tough call.
But you can’t recover from the chances you never took.
Because the opportunity is gone.
What hesitation really costs you
In medical sales, hesitation is a killer. While you’re “waiting for the right time,” your competition is:
Following up with the doctor who was “too busy.”
Sending that second email after being ignored.
Walking into an office without an appointment – just to say hello.
Closing the deal that should’ve been yours.
The best sales reps don’t wait for perfect conditions – they create them.
Real-world example: The follow-up that never happened
A medical distribution rep recently told me about a surgeon he’d been trying to reach for months. The surgeon showed some initial interest but never committed. Instead of pressing forward, the rep hesitated. He figured he’d “circle back in a few months” when the timing felt better.
A few months later? The competitor’s product was in the OR. The surgeon moved forward – with someone else.
Why? Because the competitor followed up. The competitor didn’t wait. The competitor took the risk of being a little annoying. And it paid off.
Hesitation wasn’t just a missed opportunity. It was a lost customer.
The compound effect of inaction
Hesitation doesn’t just cost you one deal – it creates a habit of inaction. Every time you hesitate, you reinforce the idea that waiting is the safe option.
The result?
- You start rationalizing why you shouldn’t make the call.
- You talk yourself out of bold moves.
- You settle for “good enough” instead of pushing for great.
And in a market as competitive as medical sales, that mindset is a recipe for mediocrity.
The more you hesitate, the easier it becomes to do nothing. But the more action you take, the easier it gets.
Momentum works both ways.
The mindset of top performers
What separates top salespeople from the rest? They act before they feel ready.
- They don’t let “maybe later” become “never.”
- They don’t talk themselves out of opportunities.
- They understand that discomfort is the price of growth.
They know the biggest regrets in sales aren’t the deals lost … but the ones they never fought for in the first place.
Think about the biggest successes in your career. Were you 100% ready for any of them? Probably not.
But you jumped in anyway.
That’s what separates top performers – they trust action over hesitation.
How to overcome hesitation and take action
So how do you break the habit of hesitation?
1. Recognize when you’re hesitating. Pay attention to the moments when you start to second-guess yourself. That hesitation is a signal – an opportunity is in front of you.
2. Take action. The longer you wait, the harder it becomes to act. Adopt the 5-second rule – when you feel hesitation creeping in, count down from five and then take action before your brain talks you out of it.
3. Reframe failure as learning. The fear of failure is what drives hesitation. Shift your mindset – failure isn’t a dead end; it’s data. Every “no” gets you closer to a “yes.”
4. Commit to speed over perfection. Success in sales isn’t about having the perfect words – it’s about being present, persistent, and proactive. The perfect moment is the one you create by taking action.
The bottom line
Sales is about momentum, not perfection. Every time you hesitate, you make it easier to hesitate again. But every time you act, you make it easier to act again.
The next time you catch yourself hesitating, do this:
- Make the call
- Send the email
- Walk into the office
- Ask for the meeting
And do it before you talk yourself out of it. Because in the end, it’s not failure that haunts us. It’s knowing we never really played the game.
Brian Sullivan, CSP, is the author of “20 Days to the Top” and a leading voice in the field of sales training and development. He believes in the potential of every salesperson to achieve their best and continually challenges sales professionals to reach new heights. Visit him at www.preciseselling.com.