Based on research by Robledo, S., Munoz, L., Miller, R., & Brill, T
A significant amount of strategy, self-discipline, and flexibility is required to succeed as a B2B salesperson, so not everyone who starts out in that role will thrive. This study was interested in the relationship between B2B salespeople’s personality traits, delayed gratification, performance, and intentions to leave. This study demonstrates that employees who exert sufficient self-discipline in exchange for long-term gains will not only perform better, but are also less likely to leave their positions. Notably, this study also discovered that more conscientious salespeople tend to perform better.
Key Points
- Working in a Business-to-Business (B2B) sales environment requires consistent performance.
- Delayed gratification is an individual’s capacity to self-regulate in order to achieve a goal.
- The Big Five personality test looks at various traits, including conscientiousness and neuroticism.
- The researchers focused on salespeople, and found that:
- Highly conscientious salespeople demonstrate stronger delayed gratification
- Highly neurotic salespeople display weaker delayed gratification
- Delayed gratification tends to improve salespeople's’ performance
- Delayed gratification is less prominent in salespeople with intentions to leave their companies
Why This Matters
Companies have several incentives to seek out highly conscientious, minimally neurotic employees and rewarding salespeople who demonstrate delayed gratification. People who are more capable of regulating their negative emotions are less tempted by quick, easy wins and tend to persevere for long-term payoffs. Salespeople with better self-management techniques also tend to be better at managing their workload, which is reflected in higher performance.
This study offers a two-pronged approach to help companies by providing traits to seek in candidates and behaviors to reinforce in employees. On the talent acquisition side, companies could incorporate screenings that prioritize applicants with high conscientiousness and low neuroticism, and include interview questions that identify these traits. Once employees are in the door, companies should encourage salespeople to strategically approach their workload. Delayed gratification requires employees to maintain a delicate balance—they need to avoid both impulsivity and passivity. When salespeople seek quick wins, they risk cutting off what could become a bigger sale. However, unmotivated salespeople can claim they’re working on long-term strategies without ever closing any deals. As such, recognizing the high performers who reached their goals through perseverance is crucial. Since employees who feel satisfied in their jobs tend to stay at their companies, it’s crucial to incentivize salespeople by rewarding their delayed gratification behaviors.
Companies should hire and reward salespeople who are diligent in their tasks, resilient in the face of challenges, skilled with strategic decision-making, and dedicated to their companies. Attracting and retaining employees with these traits will help companies to both reduce costs and improve their cultures.
Based upon the following peer-reviewed manuscript: Robledo, S., Munoz, L., Miller, R., & Brill, T. (2025). Delayed Gratification and Its Impact in B2B Sales. Journal of Selling, 25(1), 91-109.
