The term baggage is definitely an overused pop psychology term in our culture. We use it to describe the excesses and useless junk we carry around with us from our worst childhood memories to when our romantic relationships went bad to all manner of past problems we can't seem to shake or get rid of.

It's as if we've packed away tightly all of these sorrows and frustrations and grief and resentments into metaphorical suitcases which we continue to carry around with us and which continue to define us and impact our belief systems through the lens of what we believe about the world.

Wow. What a huge bummer, right? Well, fret not, persuasion experts-in-training. This is easier to repair than it might seem on the surface.

First: I'd suggest some tapping and if you've never heard me talk about tapping stay tuned for an upcoming article about that.

Another thing you should try: How about having an intense, exploratory conversation with yourself (or write it out if you don't want people to think you talk to yourself)? Some questions to focus on are as follows: What is your belief about persuasion? What are your beliefs about sales people? What are your beliefs about prospecting? What are your beliefs about closing sales?

These questions are designed to help you set up the frame of how you view persuasion. It is so important that you start this analytic process because only by defining it will you be able to change it (if necessary).

'The thing always happens that you really believe in; and the belief in a thing makes it happen.' -Frank Lloyd Wright.

As a persuader, what do you believe? When you respond to the questions I recommend you start your statements in the following way: 'A persuader is someone who. . . A sales person is someone who. .. A prospector is someone who. . .' and write them all down.

If they're negative, you're impacting your clients with your baggage, with your garbage. And until you get clear on it, there's not a whole lot that you can do to overcome it. If you're doing that, you are always going to be sending negative intentions towards people and that's quite a problem.

When we have our beliefs about what we are, what we are aiming to accomplish, what our desired outcomes are, etc., we're clear and open to the process of persuasion.

Anton Chekhov wrote, 'Man is what he believes.' Do you believe that persuasion is manipulation? Do you believe that sales people are high pressure?

If that is the other than conscious frame you have in place, you are doomed to fail.

Reframe immediately.

Remember this: You are what you believe.