Effective Communication, Emotional Labor and MLMs

What do hairdressers, police officers, nurses, airline attendants, and 911 operators have in common with someone in direct sales? Each one works with a specific emotion. Hairdressers make more money when they listen and empathize with their clients. Police officers must be compassionate but firm. Nurses need to show compassion. Airline attendants must be calm and pleasant. 911 operators work best if they remain in full control of their emotions.  What emotion is required by those in direct sales? Common emotion words within MLM circles include: passion and enthusiasm.

What happens when we don’t feel passionate or enthusiastic? In the book, The Managed Heart, Hochschild described the quandary between what one feels and must display as emotional labor.  When I am supposed to be happy in order to talk to a customer, but I am having a bad day, then I am experiencing emotional labor.  Essentially my work requires one set of emotions no matter what I may be feeling. Being paid to express emotions we don’t feel (emotional labor) is associated with job burnout, dissatisfaction, stress, and low productivity.

Does emotional labor factor into the direct sales/MLM industry? What can you do when you don’t feel like fighting the emotional fight? What about when you see those in your downline struggling emotionally? Are slogans like “Push past the fear” or “Fake it ‘til you make it” helpful?

There are no easy answers to eliciting desired emotions. However, some key findings can help us understand common conflicting emotional states. Initially, only negative findings were associated with emotional labor; not a good sign for those in sales. However, more recent research has identified positive aspects of emotional labor and its link to work.

First, many feel a sense of gratification associated with being able to control our emotions to improve business relationships. Second, a heightened ability to reason is also associated with emotional intensity and emotional control. There really are people who work best under stress. Third, ‘bad’ parts of our day can actually be pleasurable because they give us a challenge and offer variety in what can seem like a very static world.

The key to efficient emotional labor is to develop skills in listening, understanding, and negotiating feelings in order to see our choices in each situation.  We all “fake it” sometimes.  Is that bad?  Not necessarily.  The key seems to be in being able to see our choices and having choice in how we respond.  I remember doing research at a direct selling company in their call center.  Every customer service representative (CSR) said they hoped they didn’t get a “bad call” while I was listening.  At the end of the day, the bad call came.  A lot of blaming, yelling and swearing occurred.  The CSR remained calm (emotional labor).  I was talking to the manager after the call.  She felt that the CSR did a good job “handling” the caller by pointing out the options the distributor had to fix the situation.  Later I was talking to vice president about the situation.  He stated that no CSR should have to be talk to someone who is so clearly upset.  He said he trains his CSR to say that they are willing to help, but that yelling does not help the situation.  If they distributor wants to call back when they are in a better state of mind that would be best.  What is clear here is that their are choices.  Knowing that you have choices in your response can reduce the stress.  Seeing the creativity, solving a complex problem solved or rising to the challenge are all positive ways to handle difficult situations.

The common factors among effective police officers, police, nurses, airline attendants, 911 dispatchers, and direct sales are the same: Recognizing our options and using them effectively can make conflicting emotions more productive.

Hochschild, A.R. (1983). The Managed Heart: Commercialization of Human Feeling. Berkley: University of California Press.