Common Sales Objections and How to Overcome Them

Summary

EntreLeadership Podcast Summary

Episode: Common Sales Objections and How to Overcome Them

Date: June 1, 2026
Host: Dave Ramsey
Guests: John Felkins (EntreLeadership Head Coach), Chris Campbell (Senior Vice President)

---

Episode Overview

This episode is a deep dive into the psychology and practicalities of handling sales objections. Head coach John Felkins and senior vice president Chris Campbell uncover why sales conversations feel daunting to so many business owners, how to get comfortable with rejection, and what processes help close more deals. Through real stories, actionable advice, and memorable moments, listeners gain tactics they can immediately use to drive more confident, effective sales conversations.

---

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Psychology Behind Sales Fears

• Rejection Is Universal:
  • Fear of hearing "no" is common in sales, especially for business owners who didn’t set out to be salespeople.
  • Quote: "If you're afraid of rejection, you'll never get good at selling. And if you aren't good at selling, your business is going to stall out, period." – Dave Ramsey [00:05]
• Making Sales About the Client, Not Yourself:
  • Moving the focus from personal fears (ego, paycheck, discomfort) to solving the client's problems lessens anxiety.
  • Quote: "When you're saying, I don't like sales or I'm afraid of sales, guess who you're making it all about? You." – Chris Campbell [03:17]

2. Rejection Therapy – Building Confidence through Exposure

• Chris's Team Challenge:
  • Inspired by Jia Jiang’s “100 Days of No” TED talk, Chris challenged his sales team to shoot for 100 rejections in a month for a $500 prize.
  • Reverse Psychology: As they sought "no's," they actually got more "yes's," because they weren’t afraid of rejection.
  • Quote: "When you lose the fear of rejection and no one likes it, but when you lose the fear of it and you understand you ain't gonna die, and you actually put a little goal towards it...let's go hunt them down. Let's ask the questions." – Chris Campbell [06:36]
• Learning from Rejection:
  • Even if you rack up rejections, it teaches you about your pitch, offer, or approach. It's a fast feedback loop.

3. Driving Clarity in the Sales Conversation

• When You're Stuck in a “Maybe”:
  • If a conversation isn’t leading to a clear yes or no, go back to their original problem. Ask clarifying questions that bring focus back to their needs versus just listing product features.
  • Quote: "I bring it always back to their problem or why they're reaching out to me. I don't go back into solution mode and feature and benefit mode." – Chris Campbell [08:37]
• Avoid Over-Explaining:
  • Most salespeople talk too much, overcomplicating things and talking themselves out of a sale. Instead, ask more questions and listen well.

4. The #1 Sales Call Killer: Talking Too Much

• Active Listening and Inquiry:
  • Success in sales is about asking questions and listening, not presenting a monologue.
  • Quote: "They talk too much. Very simple. They talk too much. One of the biggest misconceptions is, man, that guy can talk to anybody…That's usually the worst salesperson." – Chris Campbell [11:28]
• Control through Questions:
  • “He who asks the questions holds it all.” Ask intelligent questions; let the client do most of the talking.
  • Biblical Example: Jesus was asked 183 questions and directly answered only three—cultural proof that powerful questioning trumps overexplanation. [12:01]

5. The Value of a Written Sales Process

• Systematize Success:
  • Top salespeople use checklists, notes, and reminders throughout calls. Reviewing your process helps you spot where conversations break down and become a stronger salesperson.
  • Quote: "Some of the best salespeople…have reminders. Do this reminder to say this, say it this way, don't say it that way. Why? Because they're that good. It's their craft." – Chris Campbell [15:36]
• Coaching with Metrics:
  • Having a written process allows managers and salespeople to review and improve their approach, just like reviewing game tape in sports.

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Fear of Sales:

  • “Confidence is the result of doing something. It isn’t a requirement to start.” – Chris Campbell [02:28]

• On Rejection Therapy:

  • “I brought that into my team…first one to get to 100 no’s by the end of the month, I’m going to give you $500…And three days into it, they go, this is a trick, because I’m asking people and they keep saying, yeah. I’ll never win that $500!” – Chris Campbell [04:28]

• On Getting to Yes or No:

  • “If I'm not getting a yes or no, I've got to go back and revisit the problem that we started with.” – Chris Campbell [07:55]

• On the Dangers of Overexplaining:

  • “More deals are lost after the fact. 'Have I told you about...' and whatever that is. You know what? Now we're reopening the thing. I've seen that happen to myself, to other people.” – Chris Campbell [11:36]

• On Writing Down the Sales Process:

  • “If you're following a process, you can start figuring out where the leak in the bucket is. Man, I'm breaking down right here…It's a visible reminder of what's going on. Because if we leave it up to their feelings or their memory...you're going to have a problem.” – Chris Campbell [16:11]

---

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:05 – 01:42: Introduction and exploration of why business owners fear sales
• 02:04 – 03:41: Focusing on client problems vs. personal fear
• 03:50 – 07:31: The role of rejection, “rejection therapy,” and hunting for "no's"
• 07:34 – 09:58: Driving sales conversations to clarity and handling objections
• 11:21 – 13:26: Killing sales calls by talking too much; power of questions
• 13:26 – 15:30: Root causes of overexplaining and the importance of process
• 15:30 – 17:07: The necessity and benefits of writing down the sales process

---

Final Insights

• Sales is a Skill: Like leadership, selling is a craft refined through repeated practice.
• Rejection = Feedback, Not Failure: Use every “no” to sharpen your pitch.
• Ask, Don’t Tell: Customers rarely buy because you list every feature—they buy because you listened and solved their main problem.
• Process Over Personality: Written processes, reminders, and metrics build consistency and confidence for you (and your team).

Memorable Send-off:
"Rejection isn't failure. It's feedback. It's how you refine your message, sharpen your offer, and serve people better. So don't let no hold you back. Get out there, make the sale, learn as you go." – Dave Ramsey [17:09]

---

For further growth: Book a free 30-minute consultation with an EntreLeadership coach to identify what’s blocking your sales success.

This episode is highly practical for business owners and managers seeking to demystify sales, turn rejections into learning moments, and build a scalable sales process that drives ongoing business growth.

Transcript

[A]

Let's talk about the word no. When you're just starting out in business, that word can mess with your head. You put your heart into something, you believe in what you're offering, and then someone shuts you down, says, no, not interested, too expensive. A lot of business owners will hear that and take it personally. They get discouraged. They pull back. Some even start discounting their prices just to avoid hearing no again. But here's the deal. If you're afraid of rejection, you'll never get good at selling. And if you aren't good at selling, your business is going to stall out, period. You've got to stop letting fear run the show. In this episode, Entree leadership's head coach John Felkins sits with senior vice president Chris Campbell to talk about how to get over the fear of rejection. Hone your sales skills and. And handle customer objections with confidence. Let's get to it.

[B]

Chris, thanks for being here today.

[C]

Absolutely.

[B]

We talked a lot of times about sales. And you've been in sales pretty much since your first day here, right?

[C]

Absolutely.

[B]

How long ago was that?

[C]

Heading towards 18 years.

[B]

My gosh.

[C]

How old are you, man? I'm in my 20s. So, you know, you started here in the fifth grade. Yeah, that's exactly right.

[B]

I love that. So, you know, the folks that watch our show, the entre leadership show, they're business owners and there's a lot of them that got into their business, got into doing what they're doing, not to be in sales. They got into it to be into whatever it was they were good at, right?

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

But you and I know sales have to happen.

[C]

Absolutely.

[B]

But there's a lot of fear around sales. People are afraid of it. And I'd love for you, as a veteran, world class sales guy, okay. Talk about why that is. Why is it so scary for people and what do you do about that?

[C]

Yeah, absolutely. Well, let's just say that's normal. Okay. It's normal if you feel that you're what's known as human. Okay.

[B]

That's good to know.

[C]

You know, you said something as you were setting that up, hey, these are people who became really good at something and there's. There's something behind that. What do you mean you got really good at something? If I was coaching somebody or helping somebody, or even if I was trying to sell to a client, they usually have some sort of problem or something spurred this on for them. And whatever that is, that joy, that, that excitement, whatever that is, you can bring that into a sales conversation because obviously if you're good at something and you have a business going, you're getting somebody results. So you have the ability to talk about those results to somebody and how it solves problems for folks. So, you know, confidence is the result of doing something. It isn't a requirement to start doing something. And so that fear that somebody would have where they're like, oh, my gosh, I don't know if I'm any good at this. It's like, hey, dude, you have results, you're making money, you're doing something like that. What is that? What is driving you on that? So I would encourage you from a mental side to think like that. Now, from a process side, what we've got to be able to do is we got to make sure we're making it about the other person. And this is the simplest thing. When you're saying, I don't like sales or I'm afraid of sales, guess who you're making it all about? You. You. That's right. It's one of those things where, again, make it back about your client. What's their problem? What are they dealing with? What have they tried, and what has held them stuck in their life? The minute that you start focusing on other people, sales becomes a lot easier. When you're thinking about you, your fear, your ego, your paycheck, you should feel that way.

[B]

That just makes things worse.

[C]

Of course.

[B]

What do you think when you list those things off? Your ego, your fear, your paycheck, what do you. When you, like, really boil it down, what are people afraid of?

[C]

I would say rejection is a 1. No one likes that. I can take you all the way back to middle school when your first, hey, will you go to Valentine's Day? No. You know, oh, my gosh, everything in life is like this, right? I don't ever want to feel rejection. No one likes rejection. So I really think that's it because, man, that hits you right in your soul when something doesn't go your way.

[B]

Now you say that, but I think I have heard a story about you where you led your sales team to go get as much rejection as they possibly could. Is that your story?

[C]

Absolutely.

[B]

Tell me that story. And why did you do that?

[C]

Yeah, man, I watched this incredible TED Talk when TED talks were cool, and this thing called rejection therapy. And this guy named Jia Jiang had did this 100 days of no's or he tried to get 100 no's where he was failing in business. He had stopped working and started his own business. He and his wife agreed in six months that he was going to go launch a business. Three months into him doing that, he was like, I'm so tired of rejection. I just want to go back to work. And she's like, no, no, no. You know, like a good wife grabbed me by the helmet, no, no, no, you're going. You're going to finish this thing. And he said, you know, it's like exposure therapy. You know what I'm going to do? I'm going to go just see if I can get nose. So I don't advise this, but he went and dressed up like a soccer player with a soccer ball, knocked on a door and said, can I play soccer in your backyard? And I need to get a no today. The guy was like, yeah, yeah, go ahead, let him through the gate. He's like, what? Okay. He went up to a cop car. Don't do this one either. Cop car. Can I drive your car? Yeah. Went up to a little municipal airport. Hey, can I fly your plane? Yeah, you can get in a plane with me. You can fly this. He started noticing that as he's hunting these noes down, basically saying, hey, hit me, hit me. Let me get some rejection in my life. Like, I ain't got enough. People started saying yes because he lost the fear of a no. And so I brought that into my team and I said, hey, guys, first one to get to 100 no's by the end of the month, I'm going to give you $500. And you would have thought, like, I'd walked in and lit my head on fire. And they'd be like, what are you doing? He goes, and then, like, three days into it, they go, this is a trick, because I'm asking people. And they keep saying, yeah, I'll never win that $500. I'm like, what do you think your commission check will be at the end of the month? Oh, you lost, didn't you, buddy? You know, and it became one of those things I gotta ask you, did anybody ever get the money? No one got it. No. I'm $500 richer, John, because of that. And it's one of those things where it was a reverse psychology. It's like, hey, I'm gonna go hunt these things down. And a lot of times what it became is they started asking for the order. They started asking the questions they needed to ask because they knew they needed to get to a point to be able to say, so you want to do it? And they were like. They had this little grin on their face waiting for the no. And then it didn't come. And it was like, but that's what you do for a living. What do you do with it? You know, like, it took the fear away of it. So, you know, my advice, what worked for me, it may not work for you, but it's what worked for me. When you lose the fear of rejection and no one likes it, but when you lose the fear of it and you understand you ain't gonna die, and you actually put a little goal towards starts building the little grooves in your brain to go, let's go hunt them down. Let's ask the questions. And then we're all shocked when it doesn't play out that way. What happens if you do get to 100 no's and 100 rejections? Guess what? You're learning something about your product or about yourself? I need to say it differently. My tone's wrong, My offer's wrong. So you should be learning inside of that as well. That feedback loop, that's real fast. So that's what we did. That's how it worked. Maybe it worked for you. You know, give it a shot. A little rejection therapy in your life.

[B]

Like you said, like, I need more of that in my life.

[C]

Yeah, that's all right.

[B]

All right. So you get a lot of exposure to no's. Right. You get comfortable with that. But you don't always get a no or a yes. When you're in conversation with somebody about sales. Right. Like, it's not exactly clear.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

How do you help people drive towards clarity? When you're in a sales conversation, if you. Doesn't seem like you're getting it.

[C]

Yeah, absolutely. Usually if I'm not getting that, if I'm not getting a yes or no, I've got to go back and revisit the problem that we started with. I used to have people all the time in programs that I'd run and stuff like that. You know, they'd say, you know, like, how do I know that this is right for me? Stop for a second. What did you reach out to me for? Well, man, I was so interested in this. And you just sat back. What are they doing? They're selling themselves. I don't have to sell them anything. By the way, again, I'm not convincing them to do something against their will. They reached out to me. They're interested in something, and then they go, I've been interested in this for a while. I've been interested in solving this problem for so long or whatever it may be. And then we start asking questions again. How much is that costing you to not solve that? How much longer can you live like that? How much more can you put into this and not experience the breakthrough that you're looking for right now or whatever that is for them? And most of the time, that right there gets them back to clarity to go, you know what? I just, just don't want to do it. You know what, you're right. Let's get started. And so I bring it always back to their problem or why they're reaching out to me. I don't go back into solution mode and feature and benefit mode. I see a lot of sales teams, a lot of sales leaders. They do that, man. Somebody will come in and they'll say, here's everything that we got. And here's the problem with that, John, because price is an objection. A lot of times for folks, they'll say, well, that one thing, but these other 10, and it's like, well, it's all one package. But what if I just want that a la carte right here, I want the quesadilla, I don't want all the other stuff in there. How much is that? We don't do it that way. Now you have to. Now you're overcoming price for everything else. Instead of saying, hey, what do you need? Oh yeah, we can do that. See, right here. Got it right there in my program. I got it right here in my offer. I can do it right here with your H Vac. I can do it right here with whatever service you provide. And so many times we're either over explaining or we're not focused on their problem enough. And that's where a customer stays unclear on being able to make a clear decision.

[A]

We'll get right back to our episode. You run a business so you already know that bad information leads to bad decisions. And everyone is talking about AI. But AI is only as good as the data behind it. The best AI is built on the best data. That's why I recommend NetSuite. NetSuite is the number one AI cloud ERP and more than 43,000 businesses run on it, including us here at Ramsey Solutions. Their AI isn't bolted on, it's built in. And it connects everything that runs your business, accounting, inventory, customer data, all in one place. Because when your numbers are connected, AI actually works like it's supposed to. NetSuite's AI helps flag cash flow problems, spot inventory issues, close your books faster, and cut down on manual reporting. No more guessing, no more spreadsheet chaos. Just clear numbers and real insights so you can lead with confidence. An investment in NetSuite is an investment in clarity. If your revenue is at least seven figures, go to netsuite.comramsey for a free product tour. That's netsuite.comramsey. let's get back to the episode.

[B]

What would you say is the number one way people kill their sales conversations, their sales calls, without even knowing it?

[C]

They talk too much. Very simple. They talk too much. One of the biggest misconceptions is, man, that guy can talk to anybody. Man, that guy can sell ice to an Eskimo. Man, that guy, he's got the gift of gab. That's usually the worst salesperson. I'm not gonna lie, because you know why I've been that guy? I've talked too much and talked my way out of deals. Most people will tell you, when you get a yes, shut up, put the pen down, close the book, leave. More deals are lost after the fact. Have I told you about. And whatever that is, you know what? Now we're reopening the thing. Let's bring it back out. You know what? I don't want to do this. I've seen that happen to myself, to other people. But also, again, inside of the sales conversation, again, they're trying to cover everything. They talk way too much. Lawyers know this. Everyone knows this in the legal system. He who asks the questions holds it all. And if you want to be in control of a sales call, not controlling, but in control. Ask questions. If somebody says something, answer it back with a question. Jesus in the Bible was asked 183 questions. Only three times did he respond back with a direct answer. Why is that? What's going on with him? Oh, it's cultural that we don't do that here. Yeah, you do. How much is this? How much were you thinking it was going to be? Stuff like that, you know, you'd be like, man, people, are they going to think that's rude? No, they're going to say, well, I thought it'd be this. More information. He who holds gets the most information also is probably going to win the deal. Quit talking so much. Ask really good questions. And when you get the yes, shut up, quit talking, move on right there. The deal is over.

[B]

Why does a salesperson do that? Like, what's under that? Why do they. And I'm gonna add a little bit from my experience, right, they're over explaining. They're going to features. They're talking too much. Why does that happen in sales?

[C]

Well, number one, they're not following a process. They're doing what feels good? Don't ever do that. Don't ever just do that.

[B]

That's a good life lesson.

[C]

That's a great. You know what? That covers a lot of things, doesn't it? More than just sales. It's one of those things where, you know, they feel like, hey, number one, they want to feel smart. I want to earn my keep here on this phone call, right? They're panicking. They're not following a process. So it's like a shotgun versus a sniper rifle. It's just, I don't know what's going to stick. I'm going to shoot it all. Let's see what happens. And they're not saying it that way because they think they're actually serving somebody. Because they're thinking, well, if you knew everything about everything, you'd probably buy almost all things. And that's so far from the truth, because again, if I'm in a process and I start with a problem, that's what I'm anchored to the entire time, all the way through. And then I don't have to tell you about everything. In my offering, I need to talk to you about what's going to solve your biggest problem. It's almost like going to an er, right? You go in with a big old gash on your head or big open wound or whatever, you know, and then Dr. Looks down like, man, like, you know, yeah, but did you see my toe, too? He's like, yeah, you might want to cover that first, right? You may be 50 other things a person needs help with. Get the number one thing knocked out, you earn the right to get to other things. And so again, following the process, that will stop that. And again, you don't need to be the smart person. You don't need to prove who you are. Serve them. That will keep you out of that fear, rejection, that overcoming mindset that everybody deals with that, you know, man, I just, you know, I don't want to be salesy. Then don't be. Be consultive in your approach. You know, when people are working through

[B]

the fear, you know, let's say they're out there getting the nose. Maybe they're not dressing up like a soccer player like you were saying. Maybe that's not advisable. Or they're working through like they're at least exercising the courage to get the no's. Do you advise people to actually write their process down on a piece of paper when they're on the phone? Or you tell them, you know, they need to remember all of this? It might Feel a little funny to write something down, but I'm wondering about that.

[C]

Yeah, you should write it down.

[B]

So talk a little bit about that. Why should they write it down? And what do they write down?

[C]

Man, we are horrible at remembering things on the fly, right? And it does not make you less of a human or less of a salesperson. Some of the best salespeople I go by, it looks like a yard sale on each side of their monitor. And they have reminders. Do this reminder to say this, say it this way, don't say it that way. Why? Because they're that good. It's their craft. They're looking at ways to think about it. They go back and review game tape. They want to see what they're doing wrong. If you're following a process, you can start figuring out where the leak in the bucket is. Man, I'm breaking down right here. Every time I lose somebody, I can hear the tone of the call shift. I can see the customer's body language shift. Whatever it is right there, lean in. It's like having metrics on your business. You know, that's writing it down for me with a sales process. So I'm following it. I'm checking that off. And if I get all the way through and then someone says yes, I'm. Oh, wow, okay. That's not luck. You prepared, right? And when you see where it's starting to break down, it teaches you where to where actually to coach your sales team. Or if you're listening to a call and you're listening to your sales team doing it, and you go, man, they're missing right there. That's the difference from them staying on your team and becoming a possible rock star for you. Why would you not want them to know that problem? And why would you not want to show that to them? It's a visible reminder of what's going on. Because if we leave it up to their feelings or their memory, man, listen, your P and Ls, you're going to have a problem, brother. You're going to have a problem, and you probably ain't going to have a person very soon. I promise you. That's the way that works.

[B]

Love it. Thanks, Chris.

[C]

Yeah, absolutely.

[A]

Selling is a skill just like leadership or communication or any other part of running a business. And the only way to get better is by doing it over and over. You've got to get your reps in, because rejection isn't failure. It's feedback. It's how you refine your message, sharpen your offer, and serve people better. So don't let no hold you back. Get out there, make the sale, learn as you go. And if sales still feel heavy or confusing, we want to help. You can book a free 30 minute consultation call with one of our Entree Leadership coaches. No pressure, just a real conversation to help you identify what's blocking you and build a plan to move forward. Click the link in the description to schedule your call and if you've enjoyed today's episode, be sure to like, share and subscribe for more great leadership call content. I'm your host Dave Ramsey and this is Entree Leadership. If you're a business owner who's serious about growth, you've got to be At Entree Leadership 2027 Summit is our world class leadership conference where you will learn from the people who have influenced the way we lead at Ramsey. You'll also connect with like minded business owners who are facing the same challenges as you. To get your tickets for May 2027, go to entreeleadership.comsummit to reserve your SP. That's entreeleadership. Comsummit to reserve your spot today.