Need for approval is one of the major weaknesses that a salesperson can have. While it is the second most powerful weakness salespeople can have it is the most difficult one to correct.

What are the consequences of Need For Approval? When the need to be liked is greater than the need to go to the bank sales people won’t ask people to make decisions. Sales people who have this issue will not close effectively. They will find it difficult to ask tough questions because they’re afraid that their prospects may become upset.

They tend to be non-confrontational. They will waste time with prospects that lie rather than ask prospects why they were being misled. They are likely to accept “maybes” instead of “no’s” because to them a “no” means that they didn’t get their prospect’s approval. And they will waste time and have an unnecessarily longer sell cycle!

Salespeople who suffer from need for approval need to be reminded on a daily basis, that it doesn’t matter what prospects think or say about them. What they need to do is to get their prospects to respect them rather than needing their prospects to like them.

While this weakness will affect a salesperson’s ability to close, it’s also is a frequent companion to the prospecting component of selling. A salesperson with this weakness often suffers from call reluctance and fear of rejection. A salesperson with this weakness can become 35% more effective once they have corrected this issue.