"Just Keep Swimming" Is More Than Dory's Line...

The sales organization I headed for Cisco was broad in scale at 500 people in 14 countries. We of course had numerous organizational wins, some of which were stupendous. However, it’s by far the individual stories that I enjoyed the most. With Finding Nemo being released back to theaters, it reminds me of one of my favorite stories and favorite employees.

The inside sales roles in this org were not easy (are any?). Despite a stringent hiring process, extensive training, and supportive peers and management, the velocity at which we moved and the sheer breadth of the entire Cisco SKU list could make the ramp period overwhelming for any seller. And Amy (not her real name), about a month in, was overwhelmed.

I loved walking the sales floor at this particular location in Salt Lake City and chatting with the sellers. But when it’s going poorly out of the gate, you can see it in the eyes and the posture as much as the words or the performance. I remembered that Amy was a mom from when she was first hired. When I got to her cube, I asked her if she had seen Finding Nemo. Of course she had.

Amy and her family
(Looking for Nemo?)

“Just Keep Swimming,” I said.

When I walked by later, she had that printed out and pasted above her monitor. I knew it could work. I hoped that it would. I wondered if it would.

It worked alright.

Every time I heard from her or visited that office in the following weeks and months, she mentioned it.

Just Keep Swimming.

It never left her monitor and it became a mantra for her to get her through the tough times. It didn’t really take all that long until she was tearing it up. But there was more to it than that. The confidence she got from overcoming her challenges led her to become more than just a successful seller, she turned in to a respected and effective leader among her peers and was regularly recognized by them as such.

An interesting adjunct to this is that Amy is an amazing writer, and although that talent didn't play much into her role as a seller, it did play in to her leadership. She certainly appreciates the power of effective words; properly delivered in a timely fashion.  

Just Keep Swimming.

Effective words I didn’t write, but ones when effectively delivered at the right moment, made a difference for Amy. Would Amy have "righted her ship" eventually? Probably. She is very talented. 

But at that moment, three words gave her something to hold on to. (Resisting "grab shell dude" reference here). Whether you are a leader or not, whether you are in sales or not, you can do the same for someone who's struggling.

So when you have the opportunity, three more powerful words I didn't write:

Just Do It.

Amygdala...It's Not Just For Neuroscientists Anymore...

Sometimes ironic things happen when you start writing.

Not hipster ironic...impactful, meaningful ironic.

The amygdala of the title of this article, is a small mass of nuclei that are located within the temporal lobe of the brain. You've likely never heard of it. Many of the finest leaders, entrepreneurs, and sellers I know have never heard of it. That's too bad, because it controls their/your life.

The irony, is that the spell checkers of both Chrome, as well as of Blogger itself, say I misspelled the word. I didn't, it's just not in their dictionaries. So, at least if it's not in your personal dictionary, you're in good company.

The company you would rather keep in this instance is the company of neuroscientists...or at least those who write about them. Because if that were the case, you would understand the tremendous impact the amygdala has on you.

It has a tremendous impact on emotions, is one of the master keys to the fight or flight decision, and filters almost every decision that you make. It is constantly scanning the world for threats, and often sees them when they aren't there.

And, unless you have looked into neuroscience, you don't know anything about it. But once you do, you'll recognize it.

There are plenty of great resources to learn about its function, how it impacts you, and how learning about it can transform how you go about your personal and professional life. Go find one...or ask me and I'll suggest one.

Rene Descartes put forward the famous: "I think therefore I am." The amygdala is at the very core of that statement.

Your amygdala is activated right now, evaluating what this is all about.

Since that is the case, have a look. You'll be glad you did.

A Day Too Long, A Dangerous Difference (Oh Snap!)

Not sure when I’ll get to post this blog due the ice-storm induced blackout we’re enduring in my neighborhood, but it’s being written late on a Thursday.  (Yes, of course I am wearing my red sweater. As well as a balaclava. Inside. That’s a first. For not being in a ski lodge.)

Yesterday, I took particular notice in the common area behind our back yard, of a 15-foot tall deciduous tree that still had not shed its leaves. The leaves had turned varying beautiful shades of red. Maroon, rouge, crimson mixed in with a dark green…yet were still hanging stubbornly on.

They looked even more beautiful against the snow that was falling Wednesday morning, which is likely why I took particular note of it. They were also hanging on a good month past when the other trees like it and near it had shed their foliage. Even that was pretty late…well into December for most of its peers.

This morning when I looked out, the leaves were gone. And so were the branches. And pretty much the whole tree. The ice that coated the bare branches of that tree’s peers made their boughs bow and bend…but they were still intact.

But for that one spectacular, enduring tree that held on to its leaves too long, beautiful as they and it were, it was game over.

I don’t know why those leaves were still hanging on yesterday.  I suppose it didn’t matter why come today.

The lessons to be drawn from this story are so many and so varied…and so obvious. I’ll let you make your own interpretation and application as apropos for your life.

But the common thread no matter how you apply it: there’s a time to let go, to transform, and be ready for the next cycle nature brings. Hold on too long…even one day sometimes… the snow turns to ice...

Oh snap!

Rogers, Conley, Haque & Me. A Whole New Neighborhood. (Plus Jang.)

In my neighborhood, for the past few months, just about any time you would see me in my home / home office, you would see my new favorite sweater. It’s a beautiful red Merino wool zip-up from Icebreaker in New Zealand that is the most comfy thing you can possible imagine. Originally bought from REI to keep me warm in the mountains while snowshoeing, it’s become my regular companion pretty much everywhere around the abode.

As pointed out to me by my wife, my regular reliance on it also gives me a vaguely Mr. Rogers vibe. (That’s his famous red sweater, not mine, on display at The Smithsonian.)

Credit: Randomduck http://www.flickr.com/photos/rudiriet

While this comparison might concern you, I don’t mind it.

One, you could say I look like Snuffleupagus, it wouldn't stop me from wearing my favorite sweater. (Did I mention I love this sweater?) Also, from a practical standpoint, the more I wear it, the less it costs per hour. Icebreaker Merino wool ain’t cheap.

Two, when I was a kid I loved Mr. Rogers. It was only as an adult that I fully appreciated how creepy some of those puppets were, but that’s another story. As a kid is where this story begins.

When I was around six years old, I wrote a letter to Mr. Rogers telling him how much I enjoyed his show. It was, to my memory, a fairly long letter for a six-year-old, requiring some effort. Then I realized I didn’t have his address. I thought of sending it to his neighborhood, but I was also fairly pragmatic at six, and realized that probably wouldn’t be good enough. So the letter never got mailed. Not sure why I’ve always remembered that…I suppose I am not a big fan of wasted effort. I am, however, a fan of letting people know when I appreciate them and their work.

Fast forward to 2009.

Seeing it displayed in an airport bookstore, I read Chip Conley’s book Peak: How Great Companies Get Their Mojo from Maslow. The book was fantastic. I have read a copious amount of books over the years, but this was the first time I was moved enough to want to go the Mr. Rogers note-of-appreciation route. So, I hit Chip’s website, and sent him a note of appreciation through the feedback page. About 12 hours later, I was surprised and pleased to receive a gracious email back from Chip, who was on his iPhone in Bangkok. Chip has also been gracious enough to stay in touch since. Too bad Mr Rogers didn’t have email.

But that whole process was oh-so-2009 in the neighborhood.

Fast forward again to the last week of 2011. 

While on Twitter, I saw a Tweet from someone I follow about a new Amazon single from Umair Haque called Betterness: Economics for Humans. I downloaded a sample and was very impressed. Thus, I downloaded the whole book, read it in about an hour...and was extremely impressed. When I checked out Umair on Twitter, he happened to be in the midst of a chat session. I joined it, was able to communicate directly with him, and he was as well gracious in appreciation of my readership. We've also had further exchanges since.

In reflecting on the progression of both commerce and communication listed above, I was struck by the stark change in the "neighborhood". (More so from 2009 to now than the previous!)

In 2009, it took going to a bookstore, purchasing a physical book, later hitting a website to communicate with the author, and getting a static email back some time later. Weeks. Physical movement. Transportation. 

In 2011, it was a span of no more than 90 minutes from first becoming aware of the book, to downloading it, to communication directly with the author.

All while sitting in my house.

And, of course, wearing my red sweater.

Fred Rogers passed in 2003. That was the year Time proclaimed, believe it or not, the camera phone one of the Best Inventions of The Year.

Mr. Rogers would never have believed what has happened to the neighborhood. 

That was going to be the end of the article. Then, after hitting Publish at 1am on a Sunday...

...I had a quick Twitter exchange with Seattle news anchor and social celeb Lily Jang about the dream of a Seahawks-Texans Super Bowl.

I won't go into detail about my concomitant-to-Mr Rogers-70's-era affinity for solid newscasters starting all the way back with Bill Beutel and Roger Grimsby on the "original" Eyewitness News in New York City.

But suffice to say, another great example of the new neighborhood. 

Connectors and a New Ear of Opportunity (er...Era)

I've been watching a fascinating exchange lately.

A couple of small businesses I follow on Twitter have been communicating with each other about a potential deal for one due to the need of the other.

The connection came about for a few reasons.

One, the company in need, instead of doing their own research on who could provide their need, just put it out there on Twitter. "Hey, we need this. Help."

Two, I saw the need, thought of the providing company, and told the company in need: "Hey, check these folks out."

The fascinating part though is how the relationship has developed. As far as I can see, it's all been via Tweets between the two companies. All out there for anyone to see. Essentially, public email exchanges (or text messages I suppose given the short length).

It really is a new era of transparency, connection...and opportunity. (Interesting Freudian slip. When I first wrote this, I wrote "ear of...opportunity". It's that too...if you're listening to the right media channels.)

In some recent consulting engagements, I was surprised to see how unfamiliar some sales teams, leaders, and individuals were with the social media tools available to them. Following unfamiliarity were disinterest, and often, disdain.

Much as I hate to say it, there was a significant correlation to age when it came to acceptance of the new tools that are out there. This kind of phenomenon has been well documented.

What hasn't been has been lost opportunity and commissions...

30 Things...To Do (Riff)

Years ago, I read Golf Is Not A Game Of Perfect by Bob Rotella, a noted sports psychologist. In this wonderful book, which has numerous applications to life far beyond the golf course, I found a teaching that greatly impacted my golf game...and life.

Most golfers, as they stand in front of a tricky shot over a water hazard, have the following running through their head: "Don't hit it in the water...don't hit it in the water."

What Dr. Rotella explains, is that there is a funny mechanism in our brains that does the following...it removes the word "don't". Therefore, between your brain and the muscles, the message changes to "Hit it in the water." (Well, that explains some things.)

Owing to that anomaly, he says simply take the message from a prohibitive, to a directive one: "Hit it over the water." That mental trick works well for my personality (see my previous post on Relentless Positivity).

Whether the 17th at Sawgrass is in your mind when you read this or you've never touched a club, the implications are clear.

This approach (pun unintended, but not bad), sprang immediately to mind when I read the following fantastic post on avoiding negative habits from the cooly-named Marc and Angel Hack Life: 30 Things To Stop Doing To Yourself

When I read this excellent article, I was mentally reframing each of the 30 statements that start with the word "stop", into a more directive statement a la Dr. Rotella's approach above. About a third of the way through, I decided to write it out...and here I'll share it with you.

I'd encourage you to go look at the original post, compare my riff on it, consider your own...but most of all...do some of it in your life!

Thank you Marc and Angel for providing the rich source material for this interpretation.

30 Things...To Do...

1. Spend time with the right people.

2. Face your problems.

3. Be honest with yourself.

4. Reprioritize your own needs.

5. Be authentic.

6. Move on.

7. Take a chance.

8. Forgive yourself.

9. Earn deep satisfaction.

10. Look within for stability.

11. Do something.

12. Do something you're not ready for.

13. Pick the right reasons for relationships.

14. Leave old relationships out of new ones.

15. Compete against your own standards.

16. Be appreciative.

17. Learn from failure and move on.

18. Forgive for real for your own sanity.

19. See #15

20. Be authentic start to finish.

21. Disengage.

22. Smell the roses while doing #21

23. Be content with good enough.

24. Take the stairs.

25. Let it out.

26. Woman/Man up.

27. Do what you can and let it go.

28. Sweat the right stuff.

29. Keep your eye on the ball...not everything else.

30. Appreciate.

Relentless Positivity

Don’t know why on a Monday of all days such a positive vibe seems to be in control. (Especially pre-first-cup-of-coffee.)

It did strike me as ironic that a Google search of “brutally honest” yields 5.2 million results, while a search of “relentlessly positive” yields only 129k. For more on my thoughts on brutality and honesty, see http://tricendent.blogspot.com/2009/04/surgery-vs-brutality.html, but for now I’ll focus on positivity.

In the current environment, this seems to be more difficult than ever. Yet much of our drive and resilience comes from positivity, and I love the illustrative juxtaposition of the words in the term Relentlessly Positive. Positivity seems so Pollyanna-ish, yet Relentlessness is so hard-edged. It might seem an oxymoronic phrase, but when you have it, and you stick to it, it pays dividends.

There actually is a blog I had never seen before called Relentlessly Positive. (http://relentlesslypositive.blog.co.uk/) In it, I found a key phrase right at the top of the latest post…

“Someone stole my Mojo for a week or so, but I'm back…”

That’s the great thing about Relentless Positivity, it doesn’t mean you’re always up (did I mention it’s Monday).

It means you always get up.

Grit (w/Grace) vs. Pedigree...

Today I had the chance to do one of my favorite things…provide a reference for a former employee named Melissa whom I truly admire and believe in.

During the conversation with the hiring manager, who was the president and co-founder of a small company making a significant investment in this applicant, he said something that struck me as worth sharing.

He said that out of the over 100 resumes he had viewed, there were plenty that had better “pedigrees” than the applicant, but in speaking with her, none were even close to her grit. I couldn’t agree more, and kudos to him for having the keen eye and the will to keep looking until he found what he wanted. That kind of sense for people is probably a big reason why his company has been successful for over a decade and why they are in a position to expand in a significant way, with my former employee at the helm of the effort.

The flip side of the grit commentary is that Melissa combines her grit with an unusual grace as well. She’s like a high quality emery board with rough grit on one side and a smoother surface on the other to finish things off just right. As we both heartily agreed, you can’t teach character. Add to that extreme acumen and that is what makes a wining proposition.

Give me someone like that over a great pedigree any day!

(And give me more hiring managers who don’t get fooled by smooth packaging on the surface!)

Good, Bad, and Ugly (LinkedIn pics)...

Since Tricendent has a search practice, I often am asked by candidates for interviewing tips. Beyond be yourself, be educated, be curious, I don't give much.

I will give some pointers about LinkedIn pictures here though for people who are seeking jobs. They (the tips) may seem opinionated, but, this is a blog ;-) Also, trust me, they're accurate.

If you are posing with a fish, I may assume that you want to be a fisherman. Since I am typically recruiting sales execs, not a good first impression.

If you are posing with your buddies at a club, I may assume that we will lose you early on Fridays (and maybe Wednesdays, and...)

If your pic on a site where you should be trying to put your best foot forward professionally looks like a mug shot with a firm frown that you refuse to turn upside down that, I may assume that you might (purposely) scare people in person.

If you have no pic, I may assume you at least have the good judgment not to do the three things above. But I'd rather see your face...with a smile on it. If you'd like to read some more about why that may get you a call...

http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/emiliya-zhivotovskaya/200809271036

Of course, if you're looking for a job piloting a fishing boat that makes regular deliveries to the hottest clubs where those uber-cool people who never smile are...please disregard.

Customer Centricity = Shareholder Value

Being focused on and caring about your customers is not just about the warm and fuzzy. (See my prior post: What's So Salesy 'Bout Peace Love and Understanding.)

A little experiment I ran shows some definite indications of that. Now, I am nobody's data analyst, I don't even play one on TV. I do know when numbers tell a story however. I also am a big believer in the power of words.

So, I wondered, if a company is really focused on its customers, that would show in the words of its top executives. And if it showed in the words of its executives, would that have any correlation to a company's performance?

In order to do a controlled experiment, I chose the following, using a client as a baseline.

Words:

How regularly did the executives of public companies use the word customer in their latest earnings release call with the street? This is expressed as occurrences of "customer" vs total words in the call. The comparison is off of my client's baseline. So, for instance, Comp 5's execs used "customer" 126% more often than my client, and Comp 1's used it about 1/3 less.

As another comparison, I compared how often the execs used the word "account" (controlled for versions such as accounting, etc) vs using the word "customer". Comp 1's execs used "account" the most. Three companies' execs only used the word customer...not account.

Performance:

Set against the words analysis, is the 6 month stock performance of the companies. Also, several market indexes are included for comparison.

As you can see, there is a fairly clear correlation.

Is this the do-all end-all of analyses? No.

Is there enough here to warrant looking further into it? Yes.

Has anyone done any research that contradicts this? Not yet!

Yes, Hope Is a Strategy...and a Good One Too...

A common phrase bandied about by sales leaders, as well as the title of a best-seller on large account management, is "Hope Is Not A Strategy."

That's wrong though. Hope is a bad tactic. It's a great strategy, when properly executed by visionary leaders.

The first definition for the noun "hope" that popped up for me online was: "A desire accompanied by confident expectation of its fulfillment."

To have Hope be an effective strategy, there are two foundational requirements:

Desire: Has to be to reach an achievable goal, even if it is tough...super stretch. It also has to be authentically communicated to the team.

Confident expectation: This only happens if you've already put in the time to build the team, tools, and pipeline to execute against the desire.

So is Hope A Strategy? Absolutely...if you've built the foundation to make it so!

Ship the Copier. But Have a Scorch Protector!

Was amazed to read this article about the original Xerox machine. http://bit.ly/hGUFdI

It was a stunning achievement in 1959, yet had such a tendency to...burst into flames...that it came with a "scorch protector"...otherwise know as a fire extuingisher.

Some would take a dim view of such a risky approach, but what a great corrolary to innovation in the workplace.

Many leaders have groundbreaking ideas that would benefit their orgs right now if they "shipped" them to use Seth Godin's term. Yet their hope for the benefits is outweighed by fear of "fires" that may flare if it isn't perfected.

I say go now, ship the copier.

But have a scorch protector!

No Plan...Just Bigger Guns...

Was watching television the other day when some mindless preview from some inane movie hit the screen. I have no idea what the movie was or who the characters were.

What did stick with me was when one character asked another what the plan was, the answer was as noted above...

"There is no plan, just bigger guns."

Tricendent is in the business of enabling sales organizations, and most orgs are beefing up their sales organizations to take advantage of the upturn. Not a bad idea. However, just throwing volumes of people at a market does not mean success.

Such a (non) plan may mean spending more money on ammunition, but not hitting any more targets.

Have a plan.

What's so Salesy 'Bout Peace, Love, and Understanding?

Apologies to Elvis Costello for hijacking and twisting the title of his 1979 classic. (Actually, apologies should go to Nick Lowe of Cruel To Be Kind fame since he wrote it in 1974...but it's likely the 1979 version running through your head now...)

Woke up with this song in my head. Also woke up to over $4 Billion in budget cuts being contemplated by the legislature here in Washington State...with much of the pain coming from education cuts.

As noted in earlier posts, I work with one of my technology clients on their go-to-market and execution for Public Sector sales. The Washington budget refrain noted above is being played out by state and local governments around the country. It's in such an environment that the following lyrical refrain from the title song of this post comes to mind...

So where are the strong?
And who are the trusted?
And where is the harmony?

Like never before, sellers in public sector especially, but across all segments are going to need...

Strong value propositions based on business outcomes.
Trusted relationships with multiple decision makers within an account.
Complete harmony with Customer Care-Abouts.

Peace, Love, and Understanding might not seem so "Salesy", but smart sellers will learn and effect these tenets.

5 Stars x 9? Really?

I am a huge fan of user reviews in general. Yelp, for instance, insures I almost never have a bad meal when eating out.

I am also a huge fan of the reader reviews on Amazon. And today, I saw something there I have never seen.

Once a book has more than 10 reviews, it's rare that it will retain 5 stars. It happens, but not that often. Take a look at some of the best books out there in your opinion, and you'll see what I mean.

I heard about a customer-centric B2B sales book called Slow Down, Sell Faster by Kevin Davis. I went to Amazon, and was impressed to see that it had 23 reviews...and 5 stars. Then I saw something that really surprised me.

As I scrolled down, I saw the section of the page where Amazon lists the 8 books also purchased by people who bought this one. Every one of them were on sales...and every one of them had 5 stars too!

Pretty sure I had never seen this before, I tested this theory by looking at 20 of my favorites. Just as I suspected. Not even close.

So what's the source of this irrational exuberance over all these books on sales? Could it be that sellers themselves are easily sold on the latest and greatest sales "secret sauce"?

Maybe if you want to sell more...you should sell sales books!

Stumbling vs Strategic

In one of the more unique stories about the effect of the extensive budget cuts that are going on in schools nationwide, I discovered a principal in California who is selling her shoe collection to raise funds for her school.

It's actually touching to see the commitment of this professional that you can read about here... http://bit.ly/fiExUL

Beyond that, this school district is an account of a large company for which I am consulting on their sales execution. I pinged the account manager covering the district to get his thoughts on the scenario. It is a passion of mine and an approach of my firm to instill a strong sense of customer empathy with our clients, and it's difficult not to feel that for professional educators like the principal in this scenario.

When the AM got back to me, he asked me where I "stumbled across" this info. I thought that was an interesting question, since, I didn't stumble across it at all. It came through someone that is focused on the kind of markets that my client serves, that I strategically follow on Twitter to receive just this kind of information.

This isn't an indictment of the AM's question, but it is an opportunity for you to consider how you are using all the incredible technology out there to learn about...and to connect on a deeper level with...your customers.

Don't stumble...be strategic.

Is Prevailing Wisdom Either One?

Two people.

That's how many people out of over 5.9 million on espn.com picked Butler and VCU to be in the Final Four. In statistics, that's so small a percentage as to be negligible.

It did make me wonder though...what were those two people thinking when they picked Butler and VCU? Were they grads...fans...analysts...wanton gamblers?

It also made me wonder how many of us go with the "high seeds" in business instead of betting on longshots once in a while.

So often I see clients on an individual and corporate level rolling with the prevailing wisdom and not taking the risks that could put them in the finals.

Is there a Butler or VCU out there in your pipeline today? Give it a shot.

Relief A Little...

Was reading about a global company, that like so many others, is making efforts to insure that their employees in Japan are safe and cared for in this time of terrible tragedy. Good for them, that is what they should do.

It made me wonder. How do they treat their employees in Japan or elsewhere when there is no major disaster? Is it possible they have employees who on a regular basis are disengaged, distrustful of the company, performing below optimal?

It made me think of a company you might not have heard of in Brazil: Semco. Semco is no start-up. They are a South American market leader in industrial equipment and document management solutions. At Semco, you don’t need to wait until you’re old to enjoy your retirement. The idea is that you can take advantage of it once a week, from any age.

The “Retire a Little” project was created based on a life-cycle analysis that showed we have money when we don’t have time to enjoy it, time when we no longer have financial certainty, and the ability to enjoy nature and sports when we no longer have the health to do so.

So along those lines, if you are a leader, perhaps you should think about a "Relief a Little" project for your people. Every day your workers face challenges small and large that may not range to the point of a disaster. They'll almost certainly never make the news...or even get a #hashtag.

Yet, do you handle your people in an empathetic management style that accounts for people...as people? Many, companies (and leaders) would have to say no...unless there is a tsunami or earthquake or nuclear crisis.

Yes, I said Empathy. With a Big E. Too touchy-feely for you?

It shouldn't be.

As Stanford's Dev Patnaik, CEO of Jump Associates says in his outstanding book Wired to Care: How Companies Propser When They Create Widespread Empathy, "The hidden payoff of creating widespread empathy...Growth, not only for organizations, but for the people who work for them."

Patnaik is not a hippie (as far as I know). He's the CEO of a thriving consulting agency that teaches some of the worlds leading innovative companies how to grow and drive profits. That's not touchy-feely.

Another great quote from Patnaik is this: "Open Empathy Organizations avoid the kind of big 'empathy-building events' that leaders love to kick off. It’s far more important to insert empathic information into the workplace on a daily basis."

So, are you a leader?

Relief a Little.

Today.

Don't Be a Bichon...

Bichon Frises are undeniably cute dogs. If you want a sense of how cute, here you go…

The official Tricendent Bichon pictured here is named Zoe...or Dohtee...or Nonee...or whatever we call her in the silly three-year old accent that seems to plague us when we talk to her.

That cuteness as well as her incredible fondness for scraps from whatever her humans might be eating leads to regular sessions of...hide the scrap...watch Zoe find it.

This evening, the scrap went in a spot it usually doesn’t go. It was in plain sight to all of us (including Dohtee/Nonee/Zoe), but she went with her routine of visiting all of the ususal places, nose twitching and sniffing but not really working, and then looking at us very frustratingly when it wasn’t there.

Sellers can do the same thing.

Don’t be the one who is great to have around and be very entertaining and run around "working" hard and coming back frustrated when you don’t find business in the usual places.

Find what’s out there even when it’s not in the routine.

Be a bloodhound. Not a Bichon.

Pin It To The Wall: A (Positive) Lesson from Lehman Brothers

Call reluctance is a ubiquitous disease among sellers, afflicting even high performers from time to time. A great description of this affliction comes from Gary Stauble, Principal Consultant for The Recruiting Lab: “Call reluctance is an emotional short circuit that diverts energy from the act of prospecting to the act of procrastinating. Instead of making calls, call-reluctant salespeople are busy preparing to prepare and avoiding the phone.”

There are any number of places to focus on the psychological source of call reluctance and great ways to attack the root cause. However, in the best cognitive-behavioral-theory fashion, I’d suggest the Lehman Brothers approach to tackling the problem head-on. (No, I don’t mean leveraging your company with meaningless derivatives to the point of bankruptcy!)

Those familiar with the Harvard Business School case on the incredible rise of Lehman’s equity research department know the tale of how in the 80’s, Research Director Jack Rivkin transformed a middling group into one that literally was the best on Wall Street.

Even though Rivkin’s equity analysts weren’t salespeople, he demanded that they make 125 calls per month to clients. More than that, he publicly posted their call volumes to the wall, and engaged positive peer pressure to insure that people got that he was serious about the requirement. It was also easy for all the analysts to see that there was a clear correlation between call volume and higher analyst ranking. When analysts who didn’t think they had the time to do that many calls saw that others did…and reaped the benefits…they got on board…regardless of the reasons for their call reluctance.

The lesson is clear for sellers, especially In an inside sales environment. When it comes to performance, there is no way around customer contact. Whatever your metric is for insuring customer contact, make sure everyone on your team knows what everyone is doing so they can make their own correlations and get over their issues.

Pin it to the wall.