From Pain Point to On Point: Transforming Sales Challenges into Wins

In this episode of "From Pain Point to On Point," host Britt explores the critical role of effort recognition in sales leadership. Discover how acknowledging 'almosts' can boost motivation, enhance sales team culture, and foster resilience. With insights from psychology and neuroscience, learn how to implement strategies that drive sales success and elevate team performance. Join us as we redefine sales success and empower your sales team to thrive.

Best Moments

(00:00) Introduction to Effort Recognition: Britt introduces the concept of recognizing effort over outcomes and its importance in sales leadership.
(03:00) The Science of Motivation: Explore the psychological and neuroscientific insights that support effort recognition as a motivational strategy.
(06:00) Implementing Effort Recognition: Learn practical strategies for integrating effort recognition into your sales leadership approach.
(09:00) The Impact on Team Culture: Discover how effort recognition can transform team culture, fostering resilience and engagement.

Creators and Guests

Host
Brittney Moseley
Go-To-Market Director
Producer
Ellen Young
Marketing Campaign Manager

What is From Pain Point to On Point: Transforming Sales Challenges into Wins?

'From Pain Point to On Point: Transforming Sales Challenges into Wins with Gamification' is the podcast where we dive deep into the common challenges sales managers face and explore innovative gamification solutions to overcome them. Hosted by SalesScreen’s Go-to-Market Director Brittney, every two weeks, we'll bring you expert insights, real-world stories, and actionable tips to help you turn your sales pain points into on-point victories.

Britt:

Hi, everybody, and welcome back to another episode of from pain point to on point. I'm your host, Brit. And today, we're talking about why celebrating the almosts is just as important and possibly even more important than celebrating the actual wins. Because, listen, we all love wins. There's energy.

Britt:

We get to celebrate. There's that dopamine rush. But way more often we have the almosts the deals that slipped, the calls that flopped, the week where the effort was there but the scoreboard just didn't light up. And those moments are really tricky. As managers, we want to keep standards high, but we also don't want our teams burning out or giving up when the outcome doesn't match the effort.

Britt:

So today we're going be diving into a different kind of recognition one that's more about progress than perfection and why recognizing effort even when there's no win to celebrate is crucial for long term motivation, learning, and team culture. And as always, we're bringing some science with us, so let's dive in. Let's be honest, most companies are obsessed with results. We see this all the time in sales screen. Leaderboards, quotas, KPIs, screams outcome.

Britt:

But if you only ever recognize results, you're teaching your team that effort doesn't count unless it converts. And that is a fast track to disengagement, especially for your middle performers or for new hires who are still learning the ropes. Psychologist Carol Dweck, famous for her work on growth mindset, found that when we praise effort rather than innate talent or end results, people become more resilient and perform better over time. When we praise only outcomes, people actually become less willing to take risks or try hard things. Because why bother if you're only gonna get credit for the wins?

Britt:

And it's the same thing in sales. If you only celebrate closed deals, you miss the learning, the experimentation, the persistence, persistence, persistence that makes those wins possible. You think about it this way, if you only clap at the finish line, don't be surprised when nobody wants to run the next race. This is actually especially timely because we just had the New York Marathon, and the best part about the New York Marathon is how everybody lines up throughout all of the boroughs to clap and to cheer and push all of the runners over the finish line. It really is not to be too corny really is about the journey.

Britt:

Anyway, effort recognition works because it feeds It feeds the part of our brain that creates progress. In 2011, Harvard researchers Theresa Amabile and Stephen Kramer studied over 12,000 work diaries and found that the number one motivator at work wasn't money, perks, or even praise. It was making progress in meaningful work. They called it the progress principle. So when you recognize effort, not just the win, you're reinforcing progress.

Britt:

You're saying, Hey, I saw how much effort went into that. And that tiny acknowledgment can reignite momentum in moments where motivation naturally dips. There's also a cognitive angle here. Neuroscience studies show that dopamine spikes not just when we achieve a goal but when we get the feedback that we're getting closer to it. That means effort recognition literally fuels the brain to keep going even when the outcome isn't there yet.

Britt:

So no, you're not just handing out participation trophies you're running a neuroscience backed motivation experiment. Look at you. Very scientific! Now if you're thinking, yeah, but I don't want to lower the bar, you're not alone. Most managers struggle with effort recognition because it feels like you're rewarding failure.

Britt:

But the goal isn't to praise the miss, it's to praise the method. So, for example, we didn't get the deal, but the prep you did for that call was top tier. Let's reuse that deck next time. That's not lowering expectations. That's reinforcing the process.

Britt:

And that's the process that's going to eventually create the win. The other reason managers skip effort recognition is bandwidth. It's easy to notice wins because they show up in reports. Effort is a lot harder to measure. It means you have to be paying attention.

Britt:

That's why you have to build systems to notice progress, not just results. Have to be asking questions like: Who showed persistence this week? Who is improving a specific skill? Who tried something new even if it didn't work perfectly? Those questions surface the invisible work that actually drives performance.

Britt:

And if you want a data point, companies with strong recognition culture see 31% lower turnover and 12 times higher engagement. And that's to Gallup. And that is not fluff. Is ROI, baby. And here's where it gets even more interesting.

Britt:

Recognizing effort, especially when it's attached to a setback, rewires how your team experiences failure. So research from Stanford Neuroscience, Carol Dweck, we mentioned before, and psychologist Joe Bowler shows that when people view mistakes as information, not identity, their brains actually light up more. They learn faster, they retain more, and perform better in future attempts. When a manager acknowledges the effort behind the miss, it helps reframe that experience as part of growth, not defeat. Something like, know that that deal fell through, but the way that you handled objections this time was miles better than last month.

Britt:

That one sentence can change how somebody stores that memory instead of I failed it becomes I'm improving and that's the kind of motivation that compounds over time. So let's talk about execution. How can you actually do this? Because great effort just isn't going to cut it. That's empty praise.

Britt:

It's transactional praise and your team is going to see right through it. So here's how you can make it real and resonant. One, be specific about what you noticed. Something like you took a big risk trying that new outreach approach and even though it didn't land, it was creative and worth testing. It's specific and it's sincere.

Britt:

The second thing is you're going want to focus on improvement, not perfection. So something like you're getting sharper with your discovery questions. I saw a big shift in how you handled those last two calls. It's the difference between good job and I noticed your growth. Third, tie it to future success.

Britt:

That follow-up timing didn't work this time, but the strategy was solid. Keep that structure for next week. It's forward focused, not consolation. Fourth, make it private first, public later. Publicly appraising effort can be great, but when it's tied to a loss, start with a one on one.

Britt:

It protects psychological safety and shows genuine care. Fifth, celebrate learning loops. When someone applies feedback, highlight it. That's reinforcement for resilience, the most underrated sales skill on the planet. So you don't need a gamified platform or a new process.

Britt:

You just need intention. And there are a few simple ways that you can bring effort recognition to life this week. One fun way is the behind the scenes spotlight. So you can pick one rep each week to highlight for the unseen effort behind a really big initiative, the prep, the creative idea, the teamwork. You'd also do the try something new challenge, celebrate the person who experimented regardless of the results that builds the innovation muscle.

Britt:

This is also really great for your explorers out there. This type of effort recognition is so good for getting them involved and engaged because they're always doing this. Your explorers are always going out and trying to do something different, come at something with a new angle, learn something new that's going give them an edge. And sometimes that works and sometimes that doesn't, but their engagement and their desire to try something new is absolutely worth recognizing because it leads the path to maybe a better process for the entire team. You definitely want to reinforce how important that is.

Britt:

You can't deposit praise in a bank account, but you can build a culture that pays emotional dividends and that's worth way more. And here's a mindset shift to leave with: Recognizing effort isn't about lowering the bar it's about widening the definition of success. When you celebrate the behaviors that lead to outcomes, you're reinforcing systems thinking. That performance isn't one big moment it's a series of small, intentional actions. It's what psychologist Angela Duckworth calls grit: sustained effort toward long term goals.

Britt:

And grit thrives on recognition. So yes, of course, celebrate the wins. Ring the gong. Throw the confetti. But also celebrate the persistence, the learning, the refusal to quit.

Britt:

That's where consistency lives. And that's where great teams are built. So here's your challenge for the week. Pick one non win and recognize the effort behind it. Maybe it's a deal that didn't land or it's a rep that's experimenting with messaging or someone just really grinding through a tough patch.

Britt:

Acknowledge the work not the outcome. You'll be amazed at how that one small gesture can change someone's drive to try again. Because motivation doesn't live in victory laps it grows in the effort that it takes to get there. So if you enjoyed this episode, share it with another manager who's figuring out how to balance accountability with empathy. And as always, gamifying.