Blog
It’s no joke – the power of Improv in business meetings
Last year I started taking improvisation lessons. I wanted to think faster on my feet, wanted to expand my coaching range by working more fluidly with my clients’ energy, and wanted to do something that didn’t resemble my everyday life. I had a ball! What I didn’t...
13 ways to end boring meetings
Meetings – we’ve all been there. They can be useless, energy-sucking wastes of time or they can be a platform for lively discussion, the exchange of interesting ideas and efficient decision-making. Unfortunately, the first type is far more common than the second. And...
The myth of the Lone Wolf salesperson
Throughout history, the mythological “lone wolf” has captured imaginations as the solitary, resourceful, self-sufficient hero who stands tall against daunting odds to win the day. The “lone wolf” figure has been especially prevalent in the world of sales: the “ace...
Would Sherlock Holmes have been a great sales coach?
“What does it take to become a great sales coach?” is one of the first questions sales managers ask me when I’m running a training session or acting as their coach. They’re surprised to hear that I put “An extreme curiosity about people” at the top of the list of...
Disruption in sales: friend or foe?
Question: What do these scenarios have in common? My wonderful friend recently lost her big job and her marriage in the same week. A technology sales team I work with lost their charismatic and brilliant leader. They are shaken to the core. The European head office...
Old world lessons for modern-day sales success
Not long ago, I was fortunate enough to travel to Italy and spent my last few days at a spectacular villa in Sienna called Frances Lodge. It’s run by two of the most gracious people I have ever met, and I had the privilege of observing, first-hand, how they run their...
16 important differences between a sales manager and a coach – and which is better?
What’s the most powerful tool that you as a sales manager have to help your team sell more with greater motivation and more purpose? Is it sales training? More direction from you? Lower pricing? It might surprise you to know that the answer to that question is a very...
10 role-playing tips to increase sales success
Vince Lombardi, the famous football coach, used to say, “Football is about blocking and tackling. The team that blocks and tackles better than their opponent will probably win the game.” Translation ... if you want to win, you’ve gotta master the basics. How do you do...
Top 20 ways to make your sales team want to do (almost) anything for you
How’s your relationship with your sales team? Are they motivated by you, inspired by you to do their best? When you face them with a new challenge, do they grumble as they head out to “do our best”? Or do they feel excited by the opportunity and want to do their best...
Can business life be happy?
I’ve been married for quite a while (26 years, and counting). Before I got married, I remember thinking the secret to a meaningful life and a good marriage is being happy. I also remember thinking that I was pretty young and probably relatively shallow. I was right!...
Sales and sales management lessons from the Ashram
As the warmer weather is arriving now, I am reminded of the time I went to the Bahamas on my first yoga retreat with my buddy Cindy. Every day we practiced yoga for four hours, meditated for two (also a new experience for me), and when we weren’t engaged in finding...
As a sales leader, do you go bump, bump, bump?
“Here is Edward Bear, coming downstairs now, bump, bump, bump, on the back of his head…It is, as far as he knows, the only way of coming downstairs, but sometimes he feels that there really is another way, if only he could stop bumping for a while.” – A.A. Milne In my...