Selling is a difficult, scary job. And most would agree thatprospecting is the most difficult, scariestpart. That's why most producers come up with countless reasonsto avoid it.

But, that's not OK; you have to own theresponsibility.

People only embrace the pain of change once the pain of thestatus quo becomes greater. You will only embrace your prospectingresponsibility when you realize avoiding it is the scarier option.And, if you are the responsible professional I'm sure you are,there are at least four things scarier than making that call.

1. Letting yourself down. If you think callingis tough today, wait until you have to overcome anotherday/week/month of accumulated head trash that is inevitable whenyour “self-talk” has you kicking the can. If you make prospectingcalls part of your daily routine, it will get less scary and youwill definitely like the results.

2. Letting your team down. You have an entireteam depending on you making that call. They know it's scary tomake it; that's why they chose another position in the agency. Buttheir future opportunities, continued employment, bonuses andlivelihood depend on you making the call.

Is that a heavy weight for you to have to carry? Yep! But yousigned up for it. If you want a little motivation, look yourteammates in the eyes next time you walk through the office andremind yourself how much they depend on you.

3. Letting your clients down. If you don'task clients for targeted introductions, you deny them theopportunity to do a good deed.

We like to do good things for people. When you don't ask yourbest clients to introduce you to their best relationships, you denythem an opportunity to return the help you've provided them.

4. Letting that future opportunity down.Producers tell me they are reluctant to “interrupt” someone byasking them for a meeting.

They are usually taken aback when I tell them it's theirresponsibility to call. That they have knowledge and anunderstanding of how to deal with problems that have a terriblynegative impact on their clients' business — problems the prospectmay not even realize they have.

Related: Why prospectng fails and what to do aboutit

When you possess the knowledge that can improve — or even save —someone else's business, you have a responsibility to share it. Andif you haven't educated yourself to that point, your own businessis in trouble.

The universe keeps everythingbalanced

The great thing about this life is that the universe keepseverything balanced. You have a scary, difficult job. When youstand up to fear and tackle the difficulty, you get to enjoyrewards beyond what most anyone else gets to experience.

When you own the responsibility:

• You build an inner confidence that you can take on anything.

• You can look your teammates in the eye and know they haveopportunities they wouldn't have if not for you.

• You have the type of relationship with your clients that onlyhappens when you are close enough to ask one another for help.

• You improve, or even save, businesses, and the countless livesthat depend on them, because of the knowledge you accumulated andshared.

I don't know about you, but I think that's pretty freakin'cool.

Game on!

Related: Here's how turning over rocks can reveal hiddenprospects

Kevin Trokey is founding partner andcoach at St. Louis-based Q4intelligence, abusiness, sales and marketing consulting firm working withinsurance agencies. Contact him at (314) 436-7171 and check outhis LinkedInprofile and follow him on Twitter @kevintrokey.