There’s a great article where Ryan Tognazzini talks about something called the panic-euphoria continuum.

This is the process where emotions of a quota-bearing individual “change quarter by quarter, week by week and hour by hour. With these changes come the highest of highs (euphoria) and the lowest of lows (panic). The separation between the two is a fine line.”

Fine line, indeed. Here’s even a nifty graph illustrating said continuum:

We’ve all been there. Some days we’re on one part of the continuum. Other days, we’re all over the board. If you haven’t come up with a strategic incentive plan, quota attainment can be a messy, emotional business.

Luckily, there are 4 ways sales leaders can switch the mood from panic to euphoria.

1. Create a formal account plan – shift the financial year if necessary
2. Make adjustments and smooth out revenue stream
3. Have shorter time periods for quota measurement. Almost 12% MORE reps hit or exceed a given quota when it is measured quarterly than annually.
4. Conduct win/loss analysis

To learn more about how sales compensation can grow your organization, head over to YouTube to watch our latest webinar Comp Plan Strategies for 2013.

—Erik Charles is Xactly’s Principal Incentives Strategist