BY TAMARA DORRIS

Whether you cold call on prospects or fancy yourself more of a relationship-building type of person, let’s face facts. We all have to pick up that big, hairy beast that, at times, seems like your mother-in-law on steroids. If we’re honest with ourselves and each other, we will admit the times when our intentions were as pure as the driven snow (”I’m going to call 10 FSBO’s and 10 Expired’s before 10 AM”). But then, there we sit, staring at that beast, all but sure it is staring back at us…down to our very soul it seems! Then there are those of who refuse to acknowledge that they face any kind of fear whatsoever.

In fact, I recently heard from an agent who fit into this school of denial…she said, “I’m not afraid of the phone,” she informed me, “it’s just that I don’t have time for it.”

What?

You sell houses for a living and you don’t have time to call people? Like to see her numbers. Anyway, these darlings-in-denial tend to say they just have so much to do that they can never fit in phone time (I know these are the same people who rent the season series of Desperate Housewives and Nip Tuck). But people, let’s be real. WE ALL NEED TO CALL PEOPLE TO STAY IN BUSINESS! That being the case I want to shift gears and provide five ways you can turn your fear into power and pick up the phone with the same gusto my dog Sage barks at the wind (sure that someday she will catch it!).

1. Plan. First of all, we all respond better to taking actions if it’s pre-planned. I know many of us do this, starting out the day with every intention of calling past clients, or whomever, but since it’s uncomfortable, we don’t do it. After all, it’s not like Coach Tamara is watching (or is she?). Setting your intention in writing and on your calendar, noting the block of time that you’ll make your calls suddenly makes your intentions more tangible and improves the likelihood that you’ll follow through. If you can’t be accountable to yourself, who in the heck can you be accountable to?

2. Turn your fear into power. As I always tell my students and clients, fear feels the same as excitement. In fact when people are hooked up to wires and heart monitors, it’s literally impossible to tell the physical difference between fear and excitement. Your heart beats, your pulse increases, you might get light headed, etc. So how do YOU know you’re really afraid? What if, in fact, you are so darn excited to make some serious, long over-due connections that you just think you’re scared?

3. Feel the Fear and do it anyway. Believe it or not, you and only you are in charge of moving through self-doubt and fear and just putting the metal to the petal and pick the darn phone up! Fear is nothing more than misplaced worry and procrastination is the same thing, but you haven’t yet identified what you’re afraid of. Big bears in the wood, yes; increase interest rates? maybe, but telephones, never. No reason. The worst thing that can happen is that you get hung up on (you’ll survive), you catch someone at a bad time (you’ll call back), or you get a voice mail (lucky dog).

4. Plan your reward. Decide ahead of time something nice you will do for yourself once you’ve made your calls. While I’m not advocating a pint of Ben & Jerry’s, maybe giving yourself a few minute to chat on Twitter, clip your toe nails, or pet the dog, reveling in your success will do. For me, if I’ve been a good girl and talked to at least 5 brokers on “call day,” I get to enjoy a glass of good red wine with dinner. Hence, I’m always a good girl.

For an extra treat, I’m including a short video that will hopefully inspire you to get busy and get calling!

This article was contributed by Tamara Dorris a.k.a.Tamara “The Real Estate Therapist” Dorris.Tamara has been quoted as a personal development expert in such publications as, Seventeen, Woman’s World, O Magazine, Woman’s Day, Arthritis Today, Weight Watchers.com, Wall Street Journal.com, Zest for Woman, and many more. She’s also been a guest on numerous television and radio shows all around the world and a local keynote speaker for numerous events and functions.She’s written seven personal development books (including two that are real-estate specific) and numerous published articles, e-book and reports.(read about her new book here!)