Super-secret Soviet recovery strategies for a stressed-out sales team

Salespeople today have become notorious for mouthing off mindfulness, meditation, and butchering the definition of Angela Duckworth's Grit, all in the name of high-performance and well-being.

But I get it. We're all looking for a way to maintain that edge. A way to drink from that proverbial fountain of youth to keep us grinding for that next deal, that next commission check, that next high.

Hence, the reason for this article.

Our goal for this article is to introduce sales leaders to some of the super-secret Soviet recovery science used in proffesional sports teams today.

Why?

Because like we mentioned before, talking about bald monks meditating and Wim-Hoff ice-cold showers while you snack on the grass-fed, grain-free, paleolithic bovine liver is cool and all, but it's missing context.

It's missing a framework that gives you insight on how to apply recovery strategies in real-time that work best for you.

The autonomic nervous system is typing.

The autonomic nervous system is referred to as autonomous because it is responsible for vital processes such as breathing, digestion, metabolism, excretion, body temperature, blood pressure, and heart activity, which function without voluntary control. 

It's controlled by higher-level centers in the brain and the hormonal system, through hormones including; adrenaline, noradrenaline, and cortisol.

We can only influence the autonomic nervous system indirectly, e.g. through breathing, biofeedback, or relaxation techniques. 

Feelings such as fear or anger are accompanied by changes in the autonomic nervous system.

The autonomic nervous system consists of 2 parts:

• The sympathetic nervous system is responsible for responding to stress.
• The parasympathetic nervous system is responsible for relaxation and energy building.

When we talk about recovery, what we are talking about is influencing the branches of the autonomic nervous system to trigger a recovery response.

But here is the kicker; recovery and high-performance concepts are based on maintaining a balance between these two systems.

If one is too dominant, this will lead to factors that influence burnout and work-related mental health issues. (in a specific way)

‍

‍

So let's talk about how we maintain that balance.

I want to discuss a framework for understanding the system which is stressed, how that can impact performance, and what you can do to influence recovery and high performance. 

How to know when the sympathetic branch is fatigued: 

Sympathetic fatigue is associated with high amounts of extreme stress, and short-term lack of recovery.

In addition to performance decrements, sympathetic fatigue may be characterized by unusual restlessness or excitability, disturbed sleep, weight loss, accelerated resting heart rate and delayed recovery. 

This is what most of us refer to when we say we are stressed out.

For a sales rep who is experiencing sympathetic fatigue, you want to employ recovery techniques that help shift the autonomic nervous system towards the parasympathetic branch. (remember we want to balance the two)

How to know when the parasympathetic branch is fatigued: 

Parasympathetic fatigue is associated with long term, high volume of extreme stress. This concept is what we would refer to as chronic burnout.

Symptoms of parasympathetic fatigue include depression and decreased heart rate, in addition to fatigue and decreased performance. 

Opposite to sympathetic fatigue, those suffering from parasympathetic fatigue often sleep too much and suffer from a mental health standpoint.

For sales reps experiencing this type of fatigue, you would want to focus on recovery techniques, which help shift the nervous system towards the sympathetic branch.

TL;DR: 

• Short-term stress is driven by the sympathetic branch of the autonomic system. An example would be a challenging day or week.
• Long-term stress is driven by the parasympathetic branch of the autonomic system. An example would be a challenging quarter or year.

Your job is to assess where you are at, how you are feeling, and what is best for you to bounce back and recover.

‍

‍

Recovery techniques for sympathetic fatigue

• Breathing exercises using this Playbook.
• Stimulate appetite through alkaline foods (Milk, Fruit, Fresh Vegetables)
• Avoid stimulatory substances (coffee), small quantities of alcohol are permitted
• Mindfulness and meditation
• Cold showers in the morning with brisk toweling
• Take an active recovery day using this Playbook
• Light massage, yoga, or stretching.

Sales activities to do while experiencing sympathetic fatigue

• Focus on less stressful activities
• Account research
• Lead sourcing
• Social posting and connections
• Learning and Development

As a whole, you want to think about higher volume, low-intensity stimuli.

Recovery techniques for parasympathetic fatigue

• Favor acidifying foods, cheese, meat, cake, eggs
• Low volume, intense exercise
• Alternate hot showers (3 minutes) and cold showers (1 minute) repeat this 3x
• Sauna at medium temperature, alternated with short, cold showers
• Intensive massage

Sales activities to do while experiencing sympathetic fatigue

• Low volume, high-stress activities.
• Cold calls and demos
• Role-playing and coaching

As a whole, you want to think about lower volume, high-intensity stimuli. In short, go close!

Where do we go from here?

Understanding the right stimuli, at the right time, to the right person is the key to high-level recovery and performance. Use this guide as a tool to help you understand what is best for your health and your wallet.

Reference:

Budgett, R. (1998). Fatigue and underperformance in athletes: the overtraining syndrome. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 32(2), 107–110.

Budgett, R. (1990). Overtraining syndrome. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 24(4), 231–236.

James, D. V. B., Munson, S. C., Maldonado-Martin, S., & Croix, M. B. A. D. S. (2012). Heart rate variability: Effect of exercise intensity on postexercise response. Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 83(4), 533-9.

Kreher, J. B., & Schwartz, J. B. (2012). Overtraining Syndrome: A Practical Guide. Sports Health, 4(2), 128–138.

‍