I was totally unprepared for the physical effects of cold calling.

If you’re even slightly like me, stress is a trigger, that makes me eat.   Don’t get me wrong. I don’t munch away whilst on my calls, but if I’m on a call for a long time, and I begin to lose focus, I get stressed, and think about food. Years ago, I’ll admit it, I was a smoker, and although that demon is long gone, that same Tasmanian devil now propels me to the kitchen. When I began in the B2B lead generating business, I was unaware of what can happen if someone says 1) “sign me up,” or 2) “not interested.” And, it’s always one or the other. What’d I do? I headed straight for the fridge. Bear in mind, I work from my home office – so my all access pass had me at my stainless steel top-of-the-line, French-door Goddess of the Goodies -  A LOT! Whatever was there, as long as it was bite-sized, I’d grab it. Believe me, it took me quite a while to realize that it mattered not what I reached for – See’s chocolates, pieces of cheese, or pieces of raw veggies. I was either feeling happy that I had succeeded at my mission or crummy because I (not really) was turned down. One day, there I was, staring into the light of the fridge, reaching for something I had no desire to eat, that I realized that I’d gone and developed a Jones. At first, I said to myself that at least I was not the person who kept a bottle in my desk drawer to take a nip every now and then. Nor was I like the gentlemen from Mad Men and their office cocktail de-stressers. But the munchies, for me — exactly the same – a crutch. You know what they say? Recognizing that there is a problem is half the battle. I embraced my new habit by acknowledging it. Oprah or my shrink – (maybe both) had given me permission to do this, and I started to smoke again. JUST KIDDING!

That’s it. Just watch for these triggers, and remember to go for the carrots.