Biggest Challenges Faced By An Account Executive At Asana
Sara, an Account Executive at Asana, identifies the biggest challenge in sales as dealing with numerous external factors outside of one's control, such as the economy, new competitors, internal strategy shifts, or marketing spend cuts; despite these uncontrollable elements, revenue goals must still be met, making "emotional regulation and resilience super important." Constant rejection is also a significant hurdle, as one gets told "no" a lot, which can be initially difficult but becomes more manageable with experience.
Sales Challenges, External Factors, Emotional Regulation, Resilience, Rejection Handling
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Sara Kramer
Account Executive
Asana
University of San Diego
n/a
Business Management & Admin
Manufacturing, Operations & Supply Chain, Technology
Sales and Client Management
Honors Student, Scholarship Recipient, Pell Grant Recipient, Took Out Loans
Video Highlights
1. External factors like the economy, new competitors, and internal leadership decisions significantly impact sales roles, despite sales representatives being measured on revenue generation.
2. Emotional regulation and resilience are crucial skills for navigating the unpredictable nature of sales and focusing on controllable aspects.
3. Dealing with frequent rejection ('hearing no') is a common challenge in sales that can be overcome with experience and a shift in perspective.
Transcript
What is your biggest challenge in your role?
There are many challenges with being in sales. The main thing it boils down to is that there are a lot of external factors, things that are outside of your control.
This ranges from the macro, like how the economy has been tough on tech sales recently. There are also new competitors, which you obviously have no control over when selling into particular industries.
Internally, your leadership team might change strategy, implement new tools, or cut marketing spend, all of which impact your job. You are still measured on your ability to produce revenue regardless of these external factors.
That's why I talk about emotional regulation and resilience being super important. You have to learn to focus on controlling what you can, which is all you can do at the end of the day. I think it's a great life lesson that you get to practice daily at your job.
It's also very unnatural. For me, when I was younger, I didn't feel like I got rejected or heard "no" a lot. Being in a position where you're constantly hearing "no" is challenging and likely turns many people off from sales.
They don't think they would like or be able to handle it. But once it happens a few times, you realize it's not as big of a deal as you might have originally thought.