Whether you’re a recent graduate, a career-changer, or simply intrigued by the potential of commissions and career growth, many people are drawn to the fast-paced, people-driven nature of sales careers, but getting your foot in the door—and thriving there—entails more than just ambition. It demands resilience, strategic thinking, and a high tolerance for rejection.
Fortunately, mental toughness is a skill that can be developed. This article will teach you how to get into sales and cultivate the mindset needed to flourish in such a competitive industry.
What Sales Really Is
In sales, it’s not just about pushing products or closing deals. It’s about solving problems, building relationships, and delivering value. Successful salespeople act as consultants, understanding the clients’ needs and guiding them to the right solution.
There are multiple types of sales roles:
- Inside Sales: Working remotely via phone or email.
- Outside Sales (Field Sales): Meeting clients in person.
- B2B Sales: Selling to other businesses.
- B2C Sales: Selling to individual consumers.
- Direct Sales: Selling face-to-face, often in real-time.
The first strategic step is identifying which type aligns with your personality and strengths.
Qualifications and Skills: What You Need
Sales is one of the few industries where formal education may take a backseat to performance. That said, the following skills are highly valued:
- Communication: Clear, confident, and persuasive verbal and written skills.
- Active Listening: The ability to truly understand client pain points.
- Problem-Solving: Offering solutions instead of just pushing products.
- Resilience: Handling rejection without internalizing it.
- Time Management: Managing pipelines, follow-ups, and prospecting efficiently.
Degrees in business, psychology, or communications can be helpful, but many top performers never studied these fields. More than credentials, hiring managers want to see grit and initiative.
Getting Into Sales With No Experience
If you lack direct sales experience, don’t panic. Many started in unrelated roles.
1. Start With Entry-Level Sales Roles
Look for titles like “Sales Development Representative,” “Business Development Associate,” or “Account Coordinator.” These roles often involve prospecting, qualifying leads, and scheduling meetings rather than closing deals—making them ideal for beginners.
2. Leverage Transferable Skills
If you’ve worked in customer service, retail, teaching, or hospitality, you already have relevant experience. Highlight times you handled objections, educated people, or upsold products.
3. Practice the Fundamentals
Enroll in online courses on topics like cold calling, CRM software (like Salesforce or HubSpot), and email outreach. Demonstrating initiative impresses hiring managers.
4. Get Comfortable With Rejection
Start making cold calls to local businesses as practice. Even if you don’t have a product to sell, offer a free survey or informational call. The goal is to desensitize yourself to hearing “no.”
5. Design Your Resume for Sales
Use action verbs such as “influenced,” “negotiated,” and “presented.” Quantify achievements when possible (e.g., “Increased customer satisfaction scores by 18%”).
Building Mental Toughness: Why It Matters
The sales can be a brutal industry. You may face days where every call goes to voicemail, every email is ignored, and every deal falls through. This is where mental toughness becomes your greatest asset. Mental toughness is the ability to remain focused, confident, and resilient especially when faced with obstacles.
In sales, this often means overcoming rejection, staying calm under pressure, and maintaining enthusiasm even when results aren’t immediate.
How to Build Mental Toughness in Sales
1. Reframe Rejection as Feedback
View every “no” as a learning opportunity. Ask yourself:
- Did I listen actively?
- Did I qualify the prospect correctly?
- Did I tailor my pitch?
Reframing rejection reduces impact and turns each setback into a skill-building moment.
2. Develop a Resilient Morning Routine
Start your day with structure. Mental priming techniques like meditation, journaling, or goal-setting exercises improve emotional stability and clarity.
Sample morning routine:
- 10 minutes of meditation
- 5 minutes of gratitude journaling
- Review the top 3 priorities for the day
- Power statements or affirmations (“I handle challenges with ease”)
3. Use the Rule of 100
Commit to making 100 attempts—calls, emails, walk-ins, or DMs—before you evaluate your success. This will take your focus off each individual result and put it on the process, which will build consistency and detachment from rejection.
4. Track Wins, Not Just Deals
Even if you don’t close, record small victories:
- Getting past the gatekeeper
- Securing a follow-up call
- Handling an objection gracefully
This reinforces progress and keeps you motivated.
5. Embrace Physical Resilience Training
Sales burnout is real. Incorporate physical activity into your routine to build stress tolerance. Exercise—weightlifting, running, or martial arts—teaches discipline, mental grit, and recovery.
Field Sales: Where Mental Toughness Is Established
In field sales (face-to-face or outside sales), you often deal with unpredictable schedules, rejection at the door, and fast-paced decision-making. It can be exhilarating and exhausting.
To survive and flourish in field sales:
1. Master Your Pitch and Adapt On the Fly
Your environment is constantly changing. You may meet a busy executive in the morning and a skeptical homeowner in the afternoon. Learn to adjust your tone, message, and body language.
2. Protect Your Energy
Pacing is everything. Use travel time between appointments to decompress. Listen to motivational audio or review notes. Don’t rush from one failure to the next without resetting.
3. Develop a Field Toolkit
Carry everything you need to stay focused:
- Water and healthy snacks
- Extra copies of sales materials
- Notepad for observations
- Emergency list of affirmations or encouragements
4. Celebrate the Grind
Field sales toughens you because it exposes you to frequent, raw feedback. But it also allows for rapid growth. Each rejection teaches you more than success ever could.
The Power of Mentorship and Peer Support
Sales is often a solo sport, but you’ll go further with a team. Turn to mentors, whether formally through your company or informally through LinkedIn groups or networking events.
Benefits of having a mentor:
- Real-time feedback
- Emotional support
- Strategic insights
Don’t underestimate peer-to-peer encouragement either. Join communities of aspiring or current sales professionals to swap stories, vent frustrations, and share wins.
Tech Tools That Can Sharpen Your Sales Game
Technology can be your ally in building both skill and confidence. Consider mastering:
- CRM platforms: Track interactions and schedule follow-ups.
- Email tracking tools: Know when your email is opened.
- Sales enablement platforms: Access pitch decks, case studies, and templates.
- AI coaching software: Get automated feedback on your tone and delivery.
These reduce mental clutter, streamline outreach, and give you more control over your process.
How to Build a Long-Term Sales Career
1. Specialize in a Vertical
Develop deep knowledge in industries like tech, finance, real estate, or healthcare. Specialization makes you more valuable and harder to replace.
2. Aim for Closing Roles
Graduating from a Sales Development Rep (SDR) to an Account Executive (AE) puts you in charge of managing deals from start to finish, with higher pay and responsibility.
3. Pursue Leadership
Sales management could make sense if you love coaching others and process optimization. Leadership requires even more mental toughness as you shift from performing to enabling.
Main Takeaway
Getting into sales is only the beginning. The real journey is becoming the kind of person who can absorb rejection, learn quickly, and stay optimistic. Mental toughness is for anyone who chooses to show up, day after day, and put themselves out there. While the field won’t be easy, it is one of the most meritocratic, rewarding, and transformative paths you can take.
Turn Rejection Into a Superpower
Did you know Liberty Consulting and Management offers some of the best sales jobs with no experience required? You will learn to handle objections, build rapport, and create long-term client value. Most importantly, you’ll do it in an environment that fosters personal growth, celebrates effort, and teaches you to treat every “no” as one step closer to a “yes.”
Join our team to start turning setbacks into your greatest strength!
