I almost quit at 2 PM today.
And if I had, I would’ve missed the best sales day of my life.
This morning, I walked into my fundraising job feeling unstoppable.
I heard a few motivational talks on YouTube, arrived early with a fresh haircut, and mentally prepared for success.
By 2 PM, that confidence was destroyed.
When Everything Goes Wrong
Person after person walked past my booth. Some people acted like I didn't exist. Others were rude. A few pretended to be on a phone call to avoid me. Lol!
I felt discouraged standing there.
The voice of self-doubt in my head was getting louder: "You're not cut out for this. Just give up and go home, back to your comfort zone!"
Then I remembered something Jeffrey Gitomer wrote in The Little Red Book of Selling:
"Don't panic. Don't press too hard. Don't get down on yourself. Don't get mad. And above all - don't quit."
I had a choice. Listen to the weak voice telling me to quit, or trust the process and put in the best reps I could.
I chose to go hard for the rest of the shift.
The Turn
Instead of being sad about rejections, I treated each one as practice for the next conversation. The no's didn't feel personal anymore.
I just kept pitching—giving my best energy, enthusiasm, focus, and smile.
I told a few jokes to make people laugh.
I gave honest compliments.
And at 4 PM, everything changed.
I got my first yes. Then another. By closing time, I had 6 new donors—beating my personal record of 4 in a day.
Why This Matters to You
You may be facing the same choice with your email marketing now.
Most of your emails will get ignored. Some people will unsubscribe. Others will never open anything you send. The temptation to quit grows stronger with low open rates and conversions.
But you must train your mindset to not get discouraged. Every email sent teaches you a lesson and gives you data to get better.
Your subscribers are like the people walking past my booth today. Most will keep walking (when it comes to buying your products). But if you stay in the game and keep improving your approach, eventually someone will say yes… maybe a few people!
Closing thoughts:
Every email you send builds trust with your subscribers.
We tend to buy from people we trust.
People usually buy things to solve painful problems.
Write to one reader, even though you may have a list of hundreds or thousands of subscribers. When I'm pitching donations face-to-face, I focus on the person in front of me… not on anyone else. I'm talking to this new person, and it's just me and them having a conversation. Email works the same way—each subscriber should feel like you're speaking directly to them, not broadcasting to a crowd. Do you see how I am talking to you?
“Kick your own a$$” as Jeffrey Gitomer says. It’s easy to create excuses when results don’t come through. So, you've got to push past excuses and work hard to get the results you want.
Alright, it's time to create value, sell solutions, and get paid to serve people well.
Write your next email!
Share this newsletter with a friend if you enjoyed it.
Talk soon,
DJ
