By Brett Thornton President—

Last Saturday, my son, his buddy, and I went night snowboarding.

First run off the lift: pitch black in spots, shadows everywhere, depth perception completely off. My brain was screaming, "Maybe let's not do this."

But something interesting happened.

By the second run, I was a little more comfortable.
By the third, I started trusting myself.
By the fifth, what felt scary felt normal.

That is not just "getting used to it." That is neuroplasticity at work.

Neuroplasticity is the brain's ability to rewire itself through experience. Every time you do something hard, uncertain, or uncomfortable, your brain strengthens the neural pathways that say:

• "I can handle this."

• "This isn't a threat."

• "Keep going."

Those pathways only get built one way. By doing the thing. Not thinking about it. Not planning it. Not talking yourself into it.

Doing it.

What This Has to Do With Your Sales Team

If you lead a home improvement company, you already know this feeling.

You have seen it in your reps. The hesitation before introducing a new offer. The reluctance to change a pitch that "used to work." The instinct to stick with what is familiar even when the results are telling you something needs to shift.

In a market growing at 2 to 3 percent annually, that hesitation is expensive.

The companies that are winning right now are not the ones with the most leads or the biggest ad budgets. They are the ones that got comfortable doing something their competitors were not willing to try.

The First Run Is Always the Hardest

When Destination Motivation clients first introduce a Vacation Voucher into their sales presentation, the reaction from their own team is often the same.

• "Will this feel gimmicky?"

• "What if the customer asks too many questions about it??

• "I don't want to oversell something I'm not sure about."

That is the first run off the lift. Pitch black. Shadows everywhere. Brain screaming.

But here is what happens when they do it anyway.

By the second appointment, the rep notices the homeowner's energy shift the moment the voucher is mentioned.

By the third, they start to see how it naturally handles the "I need to think about it" objection.

By the fifth, it is not a new tactic anymore. It is just part of how they sell.

The discomfort does not disappear because the conditions change. It disappears because the rep changes.

The Real Cost of Avoiding the Uncomfortable

Here is the hard truth for owners and sales leaders.

Every time your team avoids the uncomfortable conversation, the new approach, or the unfamiliar offer, they are not staying safe. They are shrinking.

In a flat market, shrinking looks like:

• Close rates that plateau

• Cancellations that quietly drain revenue

• Reps who rely on discounts because they do not have a better tool

• Leads that cost more and convert less

Avoid hard things and your world gets smaller. Lean into them and your capacity expands.

The same is true for your sales culture.

Building a Team That Leans In

The best sales leaders we work with do not just hand their reps a new script and hope for the best. They build a culture where trying something new is expected, not feared.

Here is what that looks like in practice:

They role-play the uncomfortable moments.
What does the rep say when the homeowner asks, "What's the catch?" Practice it until it feels natural. That is neuroplasticity in action.

They celebrate the attempt, not just the close.
When a rep introduces the Vacation Voucher for the first time and it does not land perfectly, that is still a win. The pathway is being built.

They track the data, not just the feeling.
Fear is loudest before you have evidence. Once your team sees the close rate lift and the cancellation drop, the discomfort fades fast.

Final Thought: The Fear Does Not Go Away Because Conditions Change

The market is not going to suddenly get easier.

Leads are not going to get cheaper. Homeowners are not going to stop price shopping. Competition is not going to get less aggressive.

The conditions are what they are.

What can change is your team. Their confidence. Their offer. Their ability to walk into an appointment and give a homeowner a reason to say yes today instead of "maybe later."

That only happens one way. By doing the thing.

Ready to Give Your Team Something Worth Getting Comfortable With?

If your reps are relying on the same pitch in a market that has fundamentally changed, it is time to add a tool that actually moves the needle.

We will show you how top home improvement companies are using Vacation Vouchers to close more deals, reduce cancellations, and build a sales culture that leans into the uncomfortable instead of avoiding it.

Let's schedule a demo. The first run is always the hardest.