Forget About Quota

Focusing on quota is one of the worst things you can do for your productivity and mental state.

Why?

Because you don’t control your quota.

If you focus on things you don’t control, you’re going to be anxious and unhappy all the time.

When you fixate on quota, you worry about hitting your number when you’re behind. (And everyone falls behind eventually.)

So you feel anxious, angry, unhappy, and afraid.

Same thoughts.

Same feelings.

Same results.

What if you changed your measurement of success to only things you can control?

You don’t control how people interpret your message.

You don’t control when or if people buy.

You don’t control if people schedule a meeting with you.

You DO control the amount of time you cold call.

Your only metric to measure?

Did you do what you said you would do for the time you committed to without distractions?

For example, time block your calendar to cold call for one hour.

Let go of assuming everyone you talk with is a fit—no expectations for the number of meetings you book.

Instead, focus for one hour without getting distracted—no LinkedIn. No Slack. No texting. No TikTok. No searching for leads in your CRM. Prep the list in advance.

With every completion of a time box, you’re reprogramming your brain day after day. Month after month. Year after year.

Instead of seeing yourself as someone who’s missing (unhappy), you see yourself as someone who’s succeeding (happy).

You’re succeeding because you’re able to focus without being distracted (rare).

Here’s the best part.

Ironically, salespeople who focus consistently without being distracted for a set amount of time outperform those who fixate on quota.

Different thoughts.

Different feelings.

Different results.