Podcasts about sales eq

Most companies don't stall before $100M because of strategy — they stall because the founder can't see the business at $100M, and the team feels that ceiling.In this episode of The $100M Entrepreneur Podcast, Brad Sugars sits down with Jeb Blount to break down what it really takes to scale: building momentum, moving fast, and replacing “sales heroes” with a repeatable sales system (recruiting, onboarding, ramp time, comp, playbooks, and leadership). They also dig into when growth requires acquisition — and why you can't scale chaos.Subscribe and share this with the founder who's still doing it all.About Jeb Blount:Jeb Blount is the Founder and CEO of Sales Gravy, a global sales training and coaching organization. He's a bestselling author of 17+ books on sales and sales leadership, including Fanatical Prospecting, Sales EQ, Objections, The AI Edge, and The LinkedIn Edge. He's also a keynote speaker and the host of the Sales Gravy podcast.About Brad SugarsInternationally known as one of the most influential entrepreneurs, Brad Sugars is a bestselling author, keynote speaker, and the #1 business coach in the world. Over the course of his 30-year career as an entrepreneur, Brad has become the CEO of 9+ companies and is the owner of the multimillion-dollar franchise ActionCOACH®. As a husband and father of five, Brad is equally as passionate about his family as he is about business. That's why, Brad is a strong advocate for building a business that works without you – so you can spend more time doing what really matters to you. Over the years of starting, scaling and selling many businesses, Brad has earned his fair share of scars. Being an entrepreneur is not an easy road. But if you can learn from those who have gone before you, it becomes a lot easier than going at it alone. Please click here to learn more about Brad Sugars: https://bradsugars.com/Build a Business That Gives You More Time, Money & Life: Get The $100M Playbook: https://go.bradsugars.com/100m-playbook-ebook

Here's a question that'll make every salesperson's blood pressure spike: What do you do when your cold call gets an objection in the first five seconds because prospects immediately stereotype you as something you're not? That's the challenge facing Rick VanNess from Albuquerque, New Mexico. Rick co-founded a company that helps healthcare providers collect on older insurance claims (the ones sitting out 45-90 days that billing departments struggle to get paid). His team augments existing billing operations rather than replacing them. But here's the problem: The second Rick mentions what he does, billing directors immediately think "outsourcing" and shut down the conversation. They've either had bad experiences with outsourcing or they're terrified of losing their jobs to a vendor that promises to do it all. If you've ever been stereotyped, dismissed, or written off before you could even explain what you actually do, you know exactly how frustrating this is. And it's costing you deals. The Fatal Mistake: Arguing Instead of Agreeing When a prospect says "We already have billing" or "We don't outsource," most salespeople instinctively go into argument mode. They try to explain how they're different, how they're not really outsourcing, how their service is special. This is exactly the wrong move. Here's the brutal truth: When you argue with a prospect's reflexive response, you're fighting against their primary concern. For a billing director, that concern isn't whether you can help them. It's whether you're going to cost them their job. Think about that for a second. You're calling someone whose entire world revolves around protecting their position, especially in an age where AI and automation are threatening white-collar jobs left and right. Their antenna is already up. They're listening for any reason to say no. So when you argue with their objection, you're actually validating their fear. You're making them dig in deeper. The Power of the Ledge-Disrupt-Ask Framework Instead of arguing, try this: Agree with them. When Rick hears "We already do billing" or "We don't outsource," here's what I told him to say: "That's perfect, because none of my customers do outsourcing. They all have internal billing departments. What we do is complement what they're already doing by picking up the really hard things like collecting on insurance claims that have been sitting for 45 to 90 days and getting them paid faster." Notice what's happening here? You're using the Ledge framework that top performers use to handle objections: Ledge: A simple statement that settles your brain and lowers tension ("That's perfect...") Disrupt: Pattern interrupt that reframes the conversation ("...because none of my customers do outsourcing") Ask: Move toward a meeting ("Wouldn't it make sense for us to take a few minutes to see if this could help you?") You're not fighting them. You're joining them on their side of the table, then pivoting to the real problem you solve. Lead With the Problem, Not Your Solution Here's another critical mistake Rick was making: He was leading with his pricing model ("no risk to you, you don't pay until we collect"). While this might sound like a great selling point to you, to a prospect it sounds like every other too-good-to-be-true pitch they've heard. It creates skepticism rather than interest. Instead, focus obsessively on the problem you solve. For Rick's business, that's the money sitting in accounts receivable that billing departments are too busy to collect. According to industry data, many practices have millions sitting out there at 45+ days. That's pure profit that's not in the business. That's real money being left on the table. When you frame your prospecting messaging around the problem rather than your solution mechanics, you create curiosity and urgency. Save the pricing conversation for when you're actually negotiating an agreement. The Multi-Level Prospecting Strategy One of the most powerful insights from my conversation with Rick was this: Don't limit yourself to just one contact at the organization. Rick was focusing solely on billing directors and managers because they'd at least give him 15 seconds. But there's a better approach. Go bottom-up and top-down simultaneously: Bottom-up: Call claims adjusters and billing clerks. They don't care what you're selling. But they'll tell you exactly what's broken in their organization. Ask questions like "How much money do you have sitting out there over 45 days that you're struggling to collect?" These narrators give you the stories and data points you need. Top-down: Use that intelligence to reach the CFO. Now you're not pitching a service. You're providing insight about their business: "I spoke with your team and discovered you have $5 million in receivables sitting at 45+ days. Here's how we help organizations like yours collect 80% of that money 40% faster." Middle-out: Armed with data from below and endorsement from above, the billing director conversation becomes completely different. You're not a threat. You're a resource. This is straight from the Sales EQ playbook: Read the room, understand everyone's motivations, and position yourself as the person who makes everyone's life better, not worse. Stand in Their Shoes The breakthrough moment in any prospecting challenge comes when you stop thinking about your message from your perspective and start viewing the world through your prospect's lens. When you call a billing director, their number one job is to protect their position. When you call a CFO, their primary concern is whether this conversation is worth their time. When you call someone lower in the organization, they're just trying to get through their day without more headaches. Your job isn't to convince them you're different. Your job is to meet them where they are, validate their concerns, and then show them how what you do makes their specific situation better. That's how you stop getting objections and start closing. The Bottom Line Stop fighting your prospects' reflexive objections. When they say "We already have that" or "We don't need outsourcing," the worst thing you can do is argue with them. Instead, agree with them. Everyone you work with already has that. Then pivot to the gap you fill and the problem you solve. Save your solution mechanics for later. Lead with problems, not pricing. And remember: The best salespeople aren't the ones who argue the hardest. They're the ones who listen the deepest and position themselves on the same side of the table as their prospects. That's how you break through buyer resistance. That's how you build trust. And that's how you win deals others walk away from. Want to master the art of breaking through buyer resistance? Join us at Outbound 2026 in Las Vegas this November, where we'll be diving deep into strategies for overcoming objections, building rapport, and closing more deals. Learn more and grab your ticket at salesgravy.com/live.

On this first Monday of the second month of the year, it's time for a gut check. First, we need to check where we are against our new year goals. Next, we need to take stock of our first month’s sales performance and make adjustments. We're just a little more than 30 days away from our New Year’s intentions, resolutions, and goals. A month ago, we set out into the new year with hope and ambition that this year would be our best ever and that we'd make positive lasting changes in our lives. It's Easy to Slip Off the Track You'll remember that discipline is sacrificing what you want now for what you want most. But as time goes by and sticking with new habits gets more challenging, it's easy to forget what motivated us to make the changes in the first place. It's easy to let down our guard and go back to our comfort zone. The farther away we get from our intentions, the more likely it is that we allow our discipline to slip and get off track. It's just human nature. Small Slips in Discipline Can Add Up Quickly Let's say you kicked off the new year determined to have your best sales year ever, and you knew that meant filling your pipeline daily by getting Fanatical about Prospecting. But upon reflection, you realize that days have passed since you picked up the phone, knocked on a door, or talked with customers. You've been making excuses to avoid the very activities that move you closer to your goals. I'll admit that it happened to me just this past week. This month has been non-stop travel — 12 flights, 10 cities, 8 keynotes, 5 full days delivering training to sales teams. Toward the end of the week, I got tired, made excuses, and let my exercise and nutrition routine slide. This was something I promised myself I wouldn't do when the year started. I know that if I don't stop right now and recommit to my goals, then there is a good chance that I'll continue down this negative path — because it's easy. Revisit Your Goals and Resolutions This is exactly why NOW is a good time for a gut check and a look in the mirror. Pause and carve out time today to revisit your goals, resolutions, and intentions. Sit down and think about what you decided to achieve back in early January. Visualize what it was that motivated you. Picture what you want most and where you want to be at the end of this year. Go back and re-listen to the Money Monday episodes on building a personal business plan, reflection vs. regret, and why personal goals are essential for sales discipline. Then recommit to your goals. Remember the feelings you had when you set them, and make an intentional decision to get back on track. Evaluate Your First Month's Performance Against Your Sales Goals Next, step back and evaluate your first month's sales performance. As you do, you'll likely find one of three scenarios: You Crushed It – You had a killer month and blew your goals out of the water. You Were Average – You hit quota or did “okay,” but you know you're capable of much higher performance. You Bombed – You missed your number and ended the month worse than you hoped. Great Sales Month If You Crushed it, and you're at the top of the ranking report, fantastic, congratulations! But be very careful not to let off the gas. It's likely you worked very hard last month to achieve these results. There will be the temptation to take a breather. Trust me, if you do, this complacency will come back to bite you. Now is the time to recommit to doing the activity that fueled your success last month so you don't end up with a lackluster February and a disastrous March. In other words, you've set the foundation for a huge year, take advantage of what you have accomplished, and keep the pedal to the metal! Average Sales Month If you had an average or just OK month — maybe you hit quota, maybe you came close, but you know you've got more in the tank — then it's time for some honest self-reflection. Ask yourself: What held you back from greatness? What could you have done differently that would have resulted in higher sales productivity? Maybe you needed to prospect harder. Perhaps you could have pushed a little harder to close some of your pipeline opportunities. It could have been that your pipeline wasn't big enough from the start, and you ended up scrambling to make your numbers, but otherwise you did everything right. It's okay, you haven't hurt yourself. You are still in a good position to have a great year. But you'll need to identify your performance gaps and plan to overcome them in February. This is a good time to sit down with your coach or mentor, break down your performance, and get guidance on where you can make tweaks and get better. If you don't have a coach and you want to talk with someone, go to https://salesgravy.com/coach to get help. Bad Sales Month If you bombed, if your month was downright awful, then you're going to need to move fast to make adjustments. Getting behind the eight ball at the beginning of the year is no fun. You don't want to chase your tail for the rest of the year. The key is taking positive action now. Rather than dwelling on the negatives — which is super easy to do — pull your head up and start breaking down what happened. Empty Pipe Did you have an empty pipeline, so you had nothing to close? That happens to a lot of salespeople in the first month of the year. Go back and listen to the How to Fix an Empty Pipeline Now Money Monday episode from a few weeks ago. Use that lesson to help you fix the problem. Closeable Opportunities that Pushed Were there closeable pipeline opportunities that simply pushed into this month? Make sure you're on top of them so they don't vanish for good. But also make sure you have the pipe to cover this month, so you're not solely depending on last month's leftovers. Shortcutting the Sales Process Is it possible that you might have been skipping steps in the sales process? This will often happen when you are in a desperate and stressed emotional state. This is a big clue that it is time to get back to the basics and fundamentals of selling— and get disciplined about following a proven sales process. This may be a very good time to take some courses on Sales Gravy University and read (or listen) to books like Sales EQ that can help you dial in your sales process. Recommit to Your Sales Goals We all slip. We all make mistakes. Discipline can waver, especially once the initial excitement of a new year fades. But you have the power to step back into your resolutions and do the daily work required to achieve your goals. Whether you crushed it, coasted, or crashed, the key to getting February off to a strong start is to recommit. Make the decision — say it out loud: “I'm going to be better in February than I was in January.” Need help setting winning Sales Goals? Check out our FREE Goal Planning Guide

On this first Monday of the second month of the year, it's time for a gut check. First, we need to check where we are against our new year goals. Next, we need to take stock of our first month's sales performance and make adjustments. We're just a little more than 30 days away from our New Year's intentions, resolutions, and goals. A month ago, we set out into the new year with hope and ambition that this year would be our best ever and that we'd make positive lasting changes in our lives. It's Easy to Slip Off the Track You'll remember that discipline is sacrificing what you want now for what you want most. But as time goes by and sticking with new habits gets more challenging, it's easy to forget what motivated us to make the changes in the first place. It's easy to let down our guard and go back to our comfort zone. The farther away we get from our intentions, the more likely it is that we allow our discipline to slip and get off track. It's just human nature. Small Slips in Discipline Can Add Up Quickly Let's say you kicked off the new year determined to have your best sales year ever, and you knew that meant filling your pipeline daily by getting Fanatical about Prospecting. But upon reflection, you realize that days have passed since you picked up the phone, knocked on a door, or talked with customers. You've been making excuses to avoid the very activities that move you closer to your goals. I'll admit that it happened to me just this past week. This month has been non-stop travel — 12 flights, 10 cities, 8 keynotes, 5 full days delivering training to sales teams. Toward the end of the week, I got tired, made excuses, and let my exercise and nutrition routine slide. This was something I promised myself I wouldn't do when the year started. I know that if I don't stop right now and recommit to my goals, then there is a good chance that I'll continue down this negative path — because it's easy. Revisit Your Goals and Resolutions This is exactly why NOW is a good time for a gut check and a look in the mirror. Pause and carve out time today to revisit your goals, resolutions, and intentions. Sit down and think about what you decided to achieve back in early January. Visualize what it was that motivated you. Picture what you want most and where you want to be at the end of this year. Go back and re-listen to the Money Monday episodes on building a personal business plan, reflection vs. regret, and why personal goals are essential for sales discipline. Then recommit to your goals. Remember the feelings you had when you set them, and make an intentional decision to get back on track. Evaluate Your First Month's Performance Against Your Sales Goals Next, step back and evaluate your first month's sales performance. As you do, you'll likely find one of three scenarios: You Crushed It – You had a killer month and blew your goals out of the water. You Were Average – You hit quota or did “okay,” but you know you're capable of much higher performance. You Bombed – You missed your number and ended the month worse than you hoped. Great Sales Month If You Crushed it, and you're at the top of the ranking report, fantastic, congratulations! But be very careful not to let off the gas. It's likely you worked very hard last month to achieve these results. There will be the temptation to take a breather. Trust me, if you do, this complacency will come back to bite you. Now is the time to recommit to doing the activity that fueled your success last month so you don't end up with a lackluster February and a disastrous March. In other words, you've set the foundation for a huge year, take advantage of what you have accomplished, and keep the pedal to the metal! Average Sales Month If you had an average or just OK month — maybe you hit quota, maybe you came close, but you know you've got more in the tank — then it's time for some honest self-reflection. Ask yourself: What held you back from greatness? What could you have done differently that would have resulted in higher sales productivity? Maybe you needed to prospect harder. Perhaps you could have pushed a little harder to close some of your pipeline opportunities. It could have been that your pipeline wasn't big enough from the start, and you ended up scrambling to make your numbers, but otherwise, you did everything right. It's okay, you haven't hurt yourself. You are still in a good position to have a great year. But you'll need to identify your performance gaps and plan to overcome them in February. This is a good time to sit down with your coach or mentor, break down your performance, and get guidance on where you can make tweaks and get better. If you don't have a coach and you want to talk with someone, go to https://salesgravy.com/coach to get help. Bad Sales Month If you bombed, if your month was downright awful, then you're going to need to move fast to make adjustments. Getting behind the eight ball at the beginning of the year is no fun. You don't want to chase your tail for the rest of the year. The key is taking positive action now. Rather than dwelling on the negatives — which is super easy to do — pull your head up and start breaking down what happened. Empty Pipe Did you have an empty pipeline, so you had nothing to close? That happens to a lot of salespeople in the first month of the year. Go back and listen to the How to Fix an Empty Pipeline Now Money Monday episode from a few weeks ago. Use that lesson to help you fix the problem. Closeable Opportunities that Pushed Were there closeable pipeline opportunities that simply pushed into this month? Make sure you're on top of them so they don't vanish for good. But also make sure you have the pipe to cover this month, so you're not solely depending on last month's leftovers. Shortcutting the Sales Process Is it possible that you might have been skipping steps in the sales process? This will often happen when you are in a desperate and stressed emotional state. This is a big clue that it is time to get back to the basics and fundamentals of selling— and get disciplined about following a proven sales process. This may be a very good time to take some courses on Sales Gravy University and read (or listen) to books like Sales EQ that can help you dial in your sales process. Recommit to Your Sales Goals We all slip. We all make mistakes. Discipline can waver, especially once the initial excitement of a new year fades. But you have the power to step back into your resolutions and do the daily work required to achieve your goals. Whether you crushed it, coasted, or crashed, the key to getting February off to a strong start is to recommit. Make the decision — say it out loud: “I'm going to be better in February than I was in January.” Need help setting winning Sales Goals? Check out our FREE Goal Planning Guide

In this episode, we're joined by Jeb Blount, Founder and CEO of Sales Gravy and one of the most influential voices in modern sales. Jeb is the bestselling author of seventeen books—including Fanatical Prospecting, Sales EQ, People Follow You, The AI Edge, and his newest release, The LinkedIn Edge.   With decades of experience advising top global organizations and their executive teams, Jeb breaks down how emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills shape every customer-facing interaction. Widely regarded as a leading expert on prospecting, sales, leadership, and customer experience, he shares actionable insights that help professionals at every level communicate more effectively, build trust faster, and win more opportunities.   Tune in for a masterclass on elevating your sales game, strengthening relationships, and leveraging the human edge in an AI-driven world.  

This is a very special Monday because it's Thanksgiving week here in the United States. This is the week we pause to express gratitude for the people in our lives, for what we've been given, and for what we've accomplished. But gratitude isn't just a feel-good emotion reserved for the holidays. It's also a performance- and life-enhancing routine that can give you sales superpowers. Gratitude Builds a Strong Mindset Sales is a mental game. Your mindset, attitude, and beliefs have more impact on your sales outcomes and ultimate success than any technique, script, or strategy ever will. This isn't soft psychology. This is neuroscience. Gratitude activates the parts of your brain associated with reward and emotional regulation. It releases dopamine and serotonin, neurotransmitters that make you feel good, leading to increased happiness and decreased anxiety and stress. Your confidence rises, your mind clears, you gain emotional control, and you make wiser decisions. Gratitude fundamentally rewires how your brain processes the world around you. When you practice gratitude consistently, your brain shifts from focusing on what could go wrong and starts seeing what could go right. Gratitude and insidious self-pity cannot coexist. Instead of dwelling on the deal you lost, the prospect that rejected you, or the leads you don't have, you appreciate the lessons you've learned and the opportunities still in front of you. But it goes deeper than just feeling better. Gratitude Builds Resilience In sales, you face rejection constantly. Bad weeks, tough months, prospects who ghost you after months of work, and deals that fall apart at the last minute, even though you did everything right. In this brutal profession, the salespeople who survive and thrive are the ones who bounce back faster from these inevitable setbacks. One of the key traits of highly successful people is an enduring belief that everything happens for a reason. When you can find something to appreciate even in difficult situations, you maintain your emotional stability. You don't spiral into negativity. You don't let one bad call ruin your entire day. Instead, you process the setback, learn from it, and move forward. Abundance vs Scarcity Thinking When you focus on what you do have—your skills, your relationships, your opportunities, your resources—you shift from scarcity thinking to abundance thinking. Scarcity thinking is the mother of negativity. It says: "I don't have enough leads. I don't have enough time. I don't have enough support. I'm going to miss my number." Abundance thinking is a mindset of opportunity and potential. It says: "Look at the skills I've developed. Look at the customers who trust me. Look at the opportunities in my pipeline. Look at what's possible." When you operate from gratitude and abundance, you become more creative, more energetic, more persistent. You stop fixating on limitations and start exploring possibilities. You show up differently. You bring positive energy. And people feel it. They want to work with people who are confident, positive, and focused on what's possible rather than what's impossible. Cultivating an Attitude of Gratitude But here's the thing. You don't wait to feel grateful. You choose to practice gratitude. The feelings follow. Every morning, you are empowered to make a conscious choice about where to focus your attention. You can focus on what's missing, what's wrong, who's against you, and what's hard. Or you can focus on what's present, what's working, what's possible. Both perspectives contain truth. But only one moves you forward toward the success and happiness you are seeking. Here are some practical ways to build gratitude into your daily routine: Keep a gratitude journal. Every morning or evening, write down three things you're grateful for. My friend Eric, who suffered from a severe brain injury, does this, and the impact it has had on his recovery is nothing short of a miracle. Thank someone every day. Send a text, an email, or better yet, make a phone call. Thank a customer. Thank a colleague. Thank a team member. Express genuine appreciation for something specific they've done. People naturally gravitate toward those who express genuine appreciation. When you thank a customer for their business, when you acknowledge a colleague's help, when you recognize someone's support, you strengthen those relationships. It makes you someone people want to work with, buy from, and help succeed. Mentally acknowledge the good. During your day, when something positive happens, pause for just a moment and mentally acknowledge it or say a prayer of thanks. Don't let it pass by unnoticed. Reframe challenges. When something goes wrong, ask yourself: "What can I learn from this? What opportunity might this create? What's the hidden gift in this situation?" This isn't about pretending problems don't exist. It's about looking for the lessons and possibilities within them. Start your week with gratitude. Every Monday, give thanks for the week ahead and the opportunity you've been given to make a difference in your life, for your family, company, and customers. The beautiful thing about gratitude is that it is like a muscle; it gets stronger with exercise. My Gratitude to You Before wrapping up, I want to take this opportunity to pause and express my gratitude to you. I'm grateful to you for listening to the Sales Gravy podcast. My team and I pour our hearts into producing this show, and your support means everything to us. Your comments, your reviews, your messages telling us how the podcast has helped you, fuels us. I'm thankful for the fans of my books. Writing is one of my greatest joys in life, and you make that possible. Every time someone tells me that "Fanatical Prospecting," or "Sales EQ," or "The LinkedIn Edge" changed their career, it reminds me why I do this work. I'm grateful for the companies around the world that trust Sales Gravy to train their teams. You let us into your organizations, trust us with your people, and give us the opportunity to make a real difference. That's a privilege we never take for granted. I'm grateful for the sales professionals who invest in themselves through Sales Gravy University. Your commitment to getting better inspires us to keep creating better content. And most of all, I'm grateful for the amazing people who choose to work at Sales Gravy. We are blessed with an incredible team that wakes up every morning focused on serving you and making a difference. They're the reason we can do what we do. Thank you for allowing us to be part of your professional journey. Reflecting on Gratitude So as we head into Thanksgiving week, I'll leave you with this simple reflection: Be thankful that you don't already have everything you desire. If you did, there would be nothing left to reach for, no reason to dream, no horizon pulling you forward. Be thankful that you don't know everything. It means life still has mysteries to reveal and lessons waiting to shape you. Be thankful for the difficult times. It's in these seasons that you grow stronger, wiser, and more resilient. Be thankful for your limitations. They remind you that there is still room to stretch, improve, and become more than you are today. Be thankful for challenges and obstacles. They forge your strength, your courage, and your character. These are the things that truly endure. Be thankful for your mistakes, because each one is a teacher guiding you toward better choices and deeper understanding. Be thankful for what you've been given. Every gift is proof that someone cares, someone believes in you, and someone has invested in your journey. Be thankful for the people who push you, support you, frustrate you, and inspire you. Each one plays a role in shaping the person you are becoming. Be thankful for beginnings, endings, and every transition in between. They are the chapters and seasons of a life story still being written. Be thankful for Monday, because Monday brings new possibilities. And at the end of the day, when you are tired and weary, when you've stopped and made one more call, be thankful because it means you've made a difference. An attitude of gratitude changes how you approach your day—and your prospects. My new book, The LinkedIn Edge, shows you how to leverage that mindset to build genuine connections, engage with your network, and create opportunities that actually convert.

This is a very special Monday because it's Thanksgiving week here in the United States. This is the week we pause to express gratitude for the people in our lives, for what we've been given, and for what we've accomplished. But gratitude isn't just a feel-good emotion reserved for the holidays. It's also a performance- and life-enhancing routine that can give you sales superpowers. Gratitude Builds a Strong Mindset Sales is a mental game. Your mindset, attitude, and beliefs have more impact on your sales outcomes and ultimate success than any technique, script, or strategy ever will. This isn't soft psychology. This is neuroscience. Gratitude activates the parts of your brain associated with reward and emotional regulation. It releases dopamine and serotonin, neurotransmitters that make you feel good, leading to increased happiness and decreased anxiety and stress. Your confidence rises, your mind clears, you gain emotional control, and you make wiser decisions. Gratitude fundamentally rewires how your brain processes the world around you. When you practice gratitude consistently, your brain shifts from focusing on what could go wrong and starts seeing what could go right. Gratitude and insidious self-pity cannot coexist. Instead of dwelling on the deal you lost, the prospect that rejected you, or the leads you don't have, you appreciate the lessons you've learned and the opportunities still in front of you. But it goes deeper than just feeling better. Gratitude Builds Resilience In sales, you face rejection constantly. Bad weeks, tough months, prospects who ghost you after months of work, and deals that fall apart at the last minute, even though you did everything right. In this brutal profession, the salespeople who survive and thrive are the ones who bounce back faster from these inevitable setbacks. One of the key traits of highly successful people is an enduring belief that everything happens for a reason. When you can find something to appreciate even in difficult situations, you maintain your emotional stability. You don't spiral into negativity. You don't let one bad call ruin your entire day. Instead, you process the setback, learn from it, and move forward. Abundance vs Scarcity Thinking When you focus on what you do have—your skills, your relationships, your opportunities, your resources—you shift from scarcity thinking to abundance thinking. Scarcity thinking is the mother of negativity. It says: "I don't have enough leads. I don't have enough time. I don't have enough support. I'm going to miss my number." Abundance thinking is a mindset of opportunity and potential. It says: "Look at the skills I've developed. Look at the customers who trust me. Look at the opportunities in my pipeline. Look at what's possible." When you operate from gratitude and abundance, you become more creative, more energetic, more persistent. You stop fixating on limitations and start exploring possibilities. You show up differently. You bring positive energy. And people feel it. They want to work with people who are confident, positive, and focused on what's possible rather than what's impossible. Cultivating an Attitude of Gratitude But here's the thing. You don't wait to feel grateful. You choose to practice gratitude. The feelings follow. Every morning, you are empowered to make a conscious choice about where to focus your attention. You can focus on what's missing, what's wrong, who's against you, and what's hard. Or you can focus on what's present, what's working, what's possible. Both perspectives contain truth. But only one moves you forward toward the success and happiness you are seeking. Here are some practical ways to build gratitude into your daily routine: Keep a gratitude journal. Every morning or evening, write down three things you're grateful for. My friend Eric, who suffered from a severe brain injury, does this, and the impact it has had on his recovery is nothing short of a miracle. Thank someone every day. Send a text, an email, or better yet, make a phone call. Thank a customer. Thank a colleague. Thank a team member. Express genuine appreciation for something specific they've done. People naturally gravitate toward those who express genuine appreciation. When you thank a customer for their business, when you acknowledge a colleague's help, when you recognize someone's support, you strengthen those relationships. It makes you someone people want to work with, buy from, and help succeed. Mentally acknowledge the good. During your day, when something positive happens, pause for just a moment and mentally acknowledge it or say a prayer of thanks. Don't let it pass by unnoticed. Reframe challenges. When something goes wrong, ask yourself: "What can I learn from this? What opportunity might this create? What's the hidden gift in this situation?" This isn't about pretending problems don't exist. It's about looking for the lessons and possibilities within them. Start your week with gratitude. Every Monday, give thanks for the week ahead and the opportunity you've been given to make a difference in your life, for your family, company, and customers. The beautiful thing about gratitude is that it is like a muscle; it gets stronger with exercise. My Gratitude to You Before wrapping up, I want to take this opportunity to pause and express my gratitude to you. I'm grateful to you for listening to the Sales Gravy podcast. My team and I pour our hearts into producing this show, and your support means everything to us. Your comments, your reviews, your messages telling us how the podcast has helped you, fuels us. I'm thankful for the fans of my books. Writing is one of my greatest joys in life, and you make that possible. Every time someone tells me that "Fanatical Prospecting," or "Sales EQ," or "The LinkedIn Edge" changed their career, it reminds me why I do this work. I'm grateful for the companies around the world that trust Sales Gravy to train their teams. You let us into your organizations, trust us with your people, and give us the opportunity to make a real difference. That's a privilege we never take for granted. I'm grateful for the sales professionals who invest in themselves through Sales Gravy University. Your commitment to getting better inspires us to keep creating better content. And most of all, I'm grateful for the amazing people who choose to work at Sales Gravy. We are blessed with an incredible team that wakes up every morning focused on serving you and making a difference. They're the reason we can do what we do. Thank you for allowing us to be part of your professional journey. Reflecting on Gratitude So as we head into Thanksgiving week, I'll leave you with this simple reflection: Be thankful that you don't already have everything you desire. If you did, there would be nothing left to reach for, no reason to dream, no horizon pulling you forward. Be thankful that you don't know everything. It means life still has mysteries to reveal and lessons waiting to shape you. Be thankful for the difficult times. It's in these seasons that you grow stronger, wiser, and more resilient. Be thankful for your limitations. They remind you that there is still room to stretch, improve, and become more than you are today. Be thankful for challenges and obstacles. They forge your strength, your courage, and your character. These are the things that truly endure. Be thankful for your mistakes, because each one is a teacher guiding you toward better choices and deeper understanding. Be thankful for what you've been given. Every gift is proof that someone cares, someone believes in you, someone has invested in your journey. Be thankful for the people who push you, support you, frustrate you, and inspire you. Each one plays a role in shaping the person you are becoming. Be thankful for beginnings, endings, and every transition in between. They are the chapters and seasons of a life story still being written. Be thankful for Monday, because Monday brings new possibilities. And at the end of the day, when you are tired and weary, when you've stopped and made one more call, be thankful because it means you've made a difference. An attitude of gratitude changes how you approach your day—and your prospects. My new book, The LinkedIn Edge, shows you how to leverage that mindset to build genuine connections, engage with your network, and create opportunities that actually convert.

Here's a question that'll mess with your head: What do you do when you're making seven figures in sales, crushing every goal, and suddenly … you just don't feel the same motivation anymore? That's the question Matthew Feit from Toms River, New Jersey, posed on an Ask Jeb episode. Matthew's living the dream that most salespeople chase their entire careers. He's at the top of his game financially. He's proven everything he set out to prove. And now he's stuck in this weird limbo where the fire that got him there has gone cold. If you're shaking your head right now, thinking this is a champagne problem, you're missing the point. This is one of the most dangerous positions a high achiever can find themselves in, and it's costing top performers their edge every single day. The Jim Story: When Achievement Becomes Your Enemy Let me tell you about Jim. Years ago, when I was living in Florida, I had this sales rep who was an absolute monster. Top of the ranking report. Presidents Club. Rolex on his wrist for winning. Then one day, his director of sales wanted to put him on a performance improvement plan. In sales, a PIP means you are a dead man walking. I drove up to Jacksonville thinking there had to be some mistake. When I sat down with Jim, I realized the problem wasn't his ability. The guy was still incredibly talented. The problem was he'd won everything there was to win, and he just didn't have the next goal driving him anymore. Here's what I learned: The things we do in sales are hard. They're repetitive. We deal with difficult people. It takes massive discipline, which is simply sacrificing what you want now for what you want most. But when you don't know what you want most anymore, that discipline evaporates. Jim's answer surprised me. He wanted a Harley-Davidson, but his wife wouldn't let him buy it. So I worked out a way to structure his commissions so he could get his Harley while still bringing home the money his wife expected. Suddenly, his sales went through the roof again. He had something driving him. The Cognitive Dissonance of High Achievement Here's what's happening with guys like Matthew and what happened with Jim: They've got this level of cognitive dissonance. Part of them is a stone-cold high achiever who needs to be achieving. The other part is saying, "I don't feel it anymore. I don't have that juice." When you're younger or earlier in your career, you're sketching out goals constantly. I remember having a goal book where I wrote down everything I wanted. One of my goals was a house on the inter-coastal waterway in South Florida. I achieved that goal. Then one day I'm sitting there going, "Well, what do I do now?" It's easy to get comfortable when you don't know where to go next. But comfortable is the enemy of excellence in high-performance sales cultures. What Do You Really Want? I hit the same wall this year. Twenty years building this business, book number 17 coming out, and I'm asking myself the same question Matthew asked: "What now?" I finally figured it out. My wants aren't things anymore. Maybe in my 20s and 30s it was about what I was going to own, but today it's different. It's about what I want to accomplish and who I want to work with. I realized I want to work with people and companies I know I can help. That are a challenge for me. Where I can watch them grow and enjoy seeing them succeed. Who really want to work with me and see me as part of their organization, not as a vendor. As a result, I've been rearranging my world so I can be very picky about what I'm going to do, who I'm going to work with, and who I'm going to speak to. I want to do things that give me joy and fulfill my purpose, which is to help people sell more. That's why I believe God put me here. The Twenty Year Vision When I was a little older than Matthew, I looked at my life and asked: "What are the next 20 years going to be like?" I had won every award you could win in sales. I was operating at the top level of a Fortune 200 company. I had the accolades, the money, all of it. So I asked myself that simple question. What happened over those 20 years completely changed my life. Everything shifted. I wrote my first book when I was 38. It wasn't great. But it was my story, and it was the beginning. I made a goal to write five books in five years. Twenty years later, The LinkedIn Edge is book is number 17. Here's the thing: When I was 38, I didn't know exactly where I'd be at 58. I just knew I was going to make a massive impact over the next 20 years as I pursued my purpose. It was simply about helping people. Stop Thinking, Start Doing Matthew mentioned wanting to write a book about his journey and helping other people. That's a perfect path for someone at his level. Here's my advice: Sit down and look ahead. If you were looking at yourself 20 years from now, what would you want that person to look like? It's not so much about what you want to achieve. It's about who you want to be. Don't wait for the perfect vision. I didn't have some crystal clear picture of where I'd be today. I just knew I needed to change and make an impact. The journey gets you there, but you have to start moving. For Matthew and for anyone else who's climbed every mountain in their current world: You have everything it takes to do whatever you want. You know that already. But if you get more time to just sit in your vacation home, you're going to go out of your mind in no time because you'll know you're not living up to your potential. The question isn't whether you should keep pushing. The question is: What are you pushing toward? Answer that, and the fire comes back. Ignore it, and you'll keep wondering why success doesn't feel like it used to. The best part? Once you reconnect with your purpose and set new goals that actually matter, you'll discover that all those skills that got you to seven figures become even sharper. You're not starting over. You're leveling up. Jeb Blount is the author of 17 books, including the groundbreaking classics Fanatical Prospecting, Sales EQ, Objections, and Inked. In The LinkedIn Edge, co-authored with Brynne Tillman, Jeb teaches sales professionals how to leverage LinkedIn to build their personal brand and fill their pipeline with qualified prospects.

The year was 1938. Families across America gathered, listening during the golden age of radio. On the eve of Halloween, a broadcast interrupted their evening: A live report claimed Martian cylinders had landed in Grovers Mill, New Jersey. Within minutes, panic erupted as citizens fled their homes, convinced Earth was under alien attack. The entire event was fake. It was a perfectly executed radio drama by 23-year-old Orson Welles. Here's the sales lesson tucked into The War of the Worlds sci-fi scare: Welles wasn't just reading a script. He was executing a masterful lesson in emotional engagement. He had listeners hooked, buying into his story emotionally before their brains had time to register, "Wait, this can't be real."  That emotional buy-in is a core tenet of sales: People buy on emotion and then justify it with logic and facts. If rational adults can flee their homes over a fictional Martian invasion, imagine the force of emotion you can unleash when you find your prospect's emotional trigger. Sharpen your emotional intelligence, and you deploy a powerful sales tool. Emotion Gets the Attention, Data Seals the Deal Welles sold tension, uncertainty, and gravity, not a product. His voice was calm yet urgent, delivered with the authority of a trusted news anchor. The audience felt an adrenaline surge—heartbeats rising, eyes widening—before they had time to check the facts. This is the non-negotiable first step in sales. Your passionate storytelling creates the emotional charge. Your tone carries more weight than any spreadsheet full of ROI data. Emotion gets your buyer leaning in and invested in the outcome. The data you provide simply helps them sleep well at night after they've already made their decision. If your message isn't landing, stop reviewing your product deck and start analyzing your delivery. Are you speaking with urgency, and are you connecting to their emotional state? Without that emotional resonance, even the best solution just adds to the noise. Authority Isn't Arrogance, It's Command Welles dressed his fictional story in familiar trappings like live news bulletins, eyewitness reports, and crackling radio static. Each detail made the unbelievable feel legitimate. He commanded belief by establishing immediate, undeniable authority. Bring that same presence to your sales interactions. Authority isn't arrogance; it's commanding belief. Sound like someone who's been there, knows the terrain, and has the solution. Communicate with unwavering authority, and you build trust before price discussions begin. This is how you sell the experience. Prospects must believe in you and your company; belief in your product comes next. They buy the experience of working with you before seeing the product. If you sound uncertain, you'll never build a foundation of trust. Stay Steady to Control the Chaos Welles predicted a strong reaction to his broadcast and stayed calm, controlled the narrative, and guided the audience through the panic he was creating. In sales, moments of crisis or uncertainty test your professionalism. When a prospect goes cold, objections arise, or a competitor attacks, do not panic. Do not mirror their anxiety—it only feeds chaos and cedes control of the deal. Control the process, control yourself, control the outcome. When deals wobble and emotions spike in your buyer, that is your moment to shine. Breathe, slow down, ask questions, and lead steadily. Be the calm voice that reassures, guides, and inspires confidence. Mastering internal composure is the essence of emotional intelligence in sales.  Your Action Plan: Develop Your Sales EQ Mastering composure under pressure is a skill, not a gift. It requires commitment to developing emotional intelligence so you can use logic while others react in fear. Start a 'Rejection Journal' Drill. Stop letting rejection or setbacks paralyze you. Create a Failure Log to immediately document your feelings (frustration, anger, anxiety) and behaviors (rushing calls, getting defensive). This practice builds self-awareness and helps you identify emotional triggers before they hijack your sales process. Practice the 'Mute Button' Listening Exercise. On your next call, mentally mute your urge to speak. Analyze the prospect's delivery: tone, pace, hesitation. This drill sharpens social awareness and forces you to catch subtle emotional cues—the things they won't email. This is how you truly understand their situation. Implement the 'Two-Second Pause' Rule. When a high-stakes moment occurs—a sharp objection, competitor mention, or deal crisis—pause for two seconds before speaking. This creates a cognitive buffer, shifting you from reactive to controlled. Your Story Is Your Greatest Weapon The Orson Welles broadcast is nearly a century old, yet it still teaches us today that a gripping story delivered well can move mountains. The way you connect, build trust, and influence emotion hasn't changed since radios ruled the living room. You are an broker of features and benefits. You are a storyteller, and the calm in your prospect's noisy, chaotic world. You are the guide who connects the dots between their terrifying "Martian invasion" of a problem and your ultimate solution. Embrace this role, and you move past objections and skepticism. You stop triggering defensive panic and start inspiring action. Your ability to command a room starts with your ability to command your own emotional intelligence. When the sales airwaves get noisy, keep your voice steady, your mind sharp, and your heart connected.  Master your emotions, and you will close deals your competition can't. The real battlefield in sales is psychological, and if you can't master your own emotions, you will never master your prospects. Jeb Blount's book Sales EQ gives you the psychological edge to win the business your competition can't even touch.

Here's a question that'll make you rethink everything about sales performance: What happens when your team has all the skills, tools, and training they need, but they're still underperforming because they can't regulate their emotions under pressure? That's exactly what Natalie Brooks from Charlotte discovered when she noticed how drastically emotions were impacting her team's performance during tough selling days. Meanwhile, salespeople like Jordan from San Diego are making decisions they later regret—pushing forward on deals they know are wrong just because they look good on paper. If you're nodding your head right now, you're witnessing one of the most overlooked aspects of sales performance: emotional regulation. And it's costing you deals, talent, and revenue. The Dysregulation Problem: When Emotions Hijack Performance Here's the brutal truth: When you're emotionally dysregulated or your nervous system is hijacked by stress, focusing on anything becomes nearly impossible. Your best discovery questions go out the window. Your qualifying discipline disappears. Your prospecting consistency evaporates. Think about it. You can have the perfect sales process, but if your rep is in fight-or-flight mode from a string of rejections, they're not executing that process effectively. They're just going through the motions while their emotional state sabotages their performance. This isn't just about "feeling better." This is about creating the mental and emotional foundation that allows elite sales performance to happen consistently. Why Most Sales Leaders Miss This Completely The reason most sales organizations ignore emotional regulation is the same reason they obsess over talk time metrics—it's easier to focus on activities than outcomes. It's much simpler to say "make more calls" than to create an environment where your team feels safe enough to regulate their emotions and perform at their peak. But here's what happens when you ignore the emotional component of sales: Your reps start making fear-based decisions. They chase deals they know are wrong fits because they're afraid of having an empty pipeline. They avoid difficult conversations because rejection feels personal. They burn out because they're running on adrenaline instead of sustainable energy. Meanwhile, your top performers aren't just skilled, they've learned to manage their emotional state in a way that supports peak performance. The Three Pillars of Emotional Regulation in Sales Personal Regulation: The Foundation Everything starts with personal habits that support emotional stability. Your "why" becomes your anchor during tough moments. When you're tired, exhausted, or questioning what you're doing, that purpose pulls you through. But purpose alone isn't enough. Your daily habits outside of work create the foundation for emotional regulation at work. Sleep, nutrition, exercise, stress management—these aren't "nice to haves." They're the infrastructure that supports your ability to stay sharp and focused when deals get challenging. Team Regulation: Creating Safety As a leader, you have a responsibility to create psychological safety where your team can regulate together. This might look like mid-day resets where everyone takes a few deep breaths or does a quick activity to release tension from difficult calls. The key is consistency. When emotional regulation becomes part of your team culture—not just something you talk about during tough times—it shows that peak performance includes emotional wellness. Process Regulation: Trusting Your System Here's where emotional regulation meets sales discipline. When you have clear qualifying standards and you trust your process, you don't have to make emotional decisions about which deals to pursue. Ultra-high performing salespeople show discipline by recognizing that they only have so many hours in the day. They create rules they can live by rather than relying on gut feelings in the moment. If a deal doesn't cross their probability threshold, they walk away. The Courage to Trust Your Instincts One of the most powerful forms of emotional regulation is learning to trust your instincts about deals, prospects, and opportunities. We've all had that immediate "no" feeling about something, but then overridden it because we wanted to please someone or didn't want to let anyone down. When you go against that inner guidance, you lose trust in yourself. And when the deal inevitably falls apart, you're not mad at the situation—you're mad at yourself for not listening to what you knew was true from the beginning. Building confidence means having the courage to feel that feeling and move with it instantly. Every choice you make is a trade-off. The choice to work on a deal that's not a strong fit is the choice to deal that is a fit on the backburner. How to Build Regulation Into Your Process For Sales Leaders: Create daily opportunities for team emotional regulation, even if it's just a few minutes of shared breathing or tension release. Implement sales coaching methodologies that address both the skill and emotional components of performance. Stop penalizing reps for walking away from low-probability deals when they're following proper qualifying discipline. For Sales Professionals: Define your deeper why beyond just quota achievement. What does success enable you to do or become? Master prospecting disciplines that keep your pipeline full so you can afford to walk away from poor-fit opportunities. Create qualifying thresholds that remove emotion from deal decisions. For Everyone: Treat emotional regulation as seriously as any other sales skill, and recognize that it requires practice and consistency. Develop your Sales EQ alongside your technical sales abilities. Remember that emotion is just energy in motion. You can always redirect it toward your purpose. The Bottom Line Stop treating emotional regulation as a "soft skill" that's separate from sales performance. Your ability to manage your emotional state under pressure directly impacts your ability to execute your sales process, make good decisions, and maintain the energy needed for consistent prospecting. The best sales professionals are both skilled and emotionally regulated. They've created the internal infrastructure that allows their skills to show up consistently, regardless of external circumstances. That's how you build sustainable sales success. That's how you maintain peak performance under pressure. And that's how you create the mental and emotional foundation that turns good salespeople into elite performers. Emotional regulation starts with working the right opportunities. The LinkedIn Edge is the definitive guide to combining LinkedIn, AI, and proven outbound strategies to sell more, win more, and earn more. Pre-order your copy today.

Here's a question that'll flip your understanding of cultural intelligence in sales upside down: How do you win over a room full of skeptical Spanish teenagers when you're the obvious American outsider who barely speaks their language? That's exactly what Spencer Birmingham from Arkansas faced when he called into Ask Jeb. Fresh out of college with a marketing degree and an internship at International Paper under his belt, Spencer was heading to Spain for eight months as a language teaching assistant. His challenge? Figure out how to connect with Spanish students and "sell" them on American culture and the English language. What started as a simple question about gaining cultural perspective turned into a must-listen discussion of the universal principles of influence—principles that work whether you're closing deals in boardrooms or winning over teenagers in Spanish classrooms. The Universal Language of Human Connection Spencer had already absorbed one of the key lessons from Sales EQ—the brown paper bag of bread story about understanding what matters to your prospect. But he was struggling to see how those principles would translate across cultural and language barriers. Here's the breakthrough: The five core decisions people make before they buy into you—Do I like you? Do you listen to me? Do you make me feel important? Do you get me? Do I trust and believe you?—are universal. They transcend language, culture, and geography. Whether you're selling software to executives in Atlanta or teaching English to teenagers in Madrid, every human being makes these same emotional decisions before they'll open their hearts and minds to your message. The Listening Advantage That Trumps Language Barriers Most teachers (and salespeople) make the same fatal mistake: They walk in talking. They assume their job is to deliver information, share knowledge, and demonstrate expertise. Wrong approach. The secret weapon that works in every culture? Start by listening. Instead of walking into that Spanish classroom and immediately launching into English lessons, what if Spencer started by asking questions: "Tell me something about yourself that not many people know. What are your biggest challenges with English? Why do you want to learn this language?" This approach leverages what we know about human psychology in complex sales: When you listen first, you accomplish three critical things simultaneously. First, you demonstrate likability through genuine interest. Second, you prove you're actually listening—the foundation of all trust. Third, you make people feel important, which is the most insatiable human need. Speaking Their Language (Even When You Don't) Here's where it gets fascinating. Spencer worried about the language barrier, but that's actually his biggest opportunity. The language that matters most isn't Spanish or English—it's the language of being a teenager in Spain. It's the language of their challenges, their dreams, their world. When Spencer takes what they share about themselves and incorporates it into his lessons, suddenly he's not the outsider trying to force American culture on them. He becomes the person who gets them. "Remember when you told me about your soccer tournament? Let's practice describing that experience in English." Suddenly, English isn't a foreign concept—it's a tool for expressing what matters to them. This mirrors exactly what happens in complex sales. The most successful salespeople don't speak the language of their product features—they speak the language of their prospect's business challenges, industry pressures, and personal goals. The Power of Making People Feel Heard There's a reason why building trust through active listening is foundational to every sales methodology: It's the fastest way to move from outsider to trusted advisor. Spanish teenagers, like buyers everywhere, are drowning in noise. Everyone's talking at them—parents, teachers, social media.

Here's a question that'll flip your understanding of cultural intelligence in sales upside down: How do you win over a room full of skeptical Spanish teenagers when you're the obvious American outsider who barely speaks their language? That's exactly what Spencer Birmingham from Arkansas faced when he called into Ask Jeb. Fresh out of college with a marketing degree and an internship at International Paper under his belt, Spencer was heading to Spain for eight months as a language teaching assistant. His challenge? Figure out how to connect with Spanish students and "sell" them on American culture and the English language. What started as a simple question about gaining cultural perspective turned into a must-listen discussion of the universal principles of influence—principles that work whether you're closing deals in boardrooms or winning over teenagers in Spanish classrooms. The Universal Language of Human Connection Spencer had already absorbed one of the key lessons from Sales EQ—the brown paper bag of bread story about understanding what matters to your prospect. But he was struggling to see how those principles would translate across cultural and language barriers. Here's the breakthrough: The five core decisions people make before they buy into you—Do I like you? Do you listen to me? Do you make me feel important? Do you get me? Do I trust and believe you?—are universal. They transcend language, culture, and geography. Whether you're selling software to executives in Atlanta or teaching English to teenagers in Madrid, every human being makes these same emotional decisions before they'll open their hearts and minds to your message. The Listening Advantage That Trumps Language Barriers Most teachers (and salespeople) make the same fatal mistake: They walk in talking. They assume their job is to deliver information, share knowledge, and demonstrate expertise. Wrong approach. The secret weapon that works in every culture? Start by listening. Instead of walking into that Spanish classroom and immediately launching into English lessons, what if Spencer started by asking questions: "Tell me something about yourself that not many people know. What are your biggest challenges with English? Why do you want to learn this language?" This approach leverages what we know about human psychology in complex sales: When you listen first, you accomplish three critical things simultaneously. First, you demonstrate likability through genuine interest. Second, you prove you're actually listening—the foundation of all trust. Third, you make people feel important, which is the most insatiable human need. Speaking Their Language (Even When You Don't) Here's where it gets fascinating. Spencer worried about the language barrier, but that's actually his biggest opportunity. The language that matters most isn't Spanish or English—it's the language of being a teenager in Spain. It's the language of their challenges, their dreams, their world. When Spencer takes what they share about themselves and incorporates it into his lessons, suddenly he's not the outsider trying to force American culture on them. He becomes the person who gets them. "Remember when you told me about your soccer tournament? Let's practice describing that experience in English." Suddenly, English isn't a foreign concept—it's a tool for expressing what matters to them. This mirrors exactly what happens in complex sales. The most successful salespeople don't speak the language of their product features—they speak the language of their prospect's business challenges, industry pressures, and personal goals. The Power of Making People Feel Heard There's a reason why building trust through active listening is foundational to every sales methodology: It's the fastest way to move from outsider to trusted advisor. Spanish teenagers, like buyers everywhere, are drowning in noise. Everyone's talking at them—parents, teachers, social media. But how many people are actually listening to them? When Spencer takes time to hear their stories, understand their challenges, and remember their dreams, he's giving them something rare: the feeling that they matter. And when people feel like they matter to you, the law of reciprocity kicks in. They want to give something back. At minimum, they'll give him their attention. More likely, they'll drop their emotional walls and give him a genuine chance. The Cultural Bridge Strategy Here's the advanced play: Use their language to build the bridge to your world. When Spencer discovers that Maria loves photography, he doesn't just teach her photography vocabulary in English. He asks her to describe her favorite photo in Spanish first, then helps her translate that passion into English. Now English isn't a foreign language—it's a way to share her passion with a wider world. This strategy works in sales too. The best salespeople don't pitch their solution in business jargon. They take what the prospect cares about most and show how their solution helps them achieve those specific goals. Building Global Influence Skills What Spencer doesn't realize yet is that this eight-month experience will become the foundation of elite-level influence skills that will serve him throughout his entire sales career. Every interaction in Spain—from family dinners to classroom conversations—becomes practice in reading people across cultural differences, adapting his communication style, and finding common ground with people who seem completely different from him. These are the exact skills that separate good salespeople from great ones. The ability to walk into any room, with any group of people, and quickly build rapport and trust. The Compound Effect of Curiosity The final piece of Spencer's success strategy: Genuine curiosity about others' stories. Whether it's asking Spanish families about their traditions, learning from his students about their dreams, or understanding local customs, every conversation becomes an opportunity to practice the art of making others feel important. Research on what makes listening truly effective shows this skill compounds. The more you practice being genuinely interested in others, the more natural it becomes. You develop the patience to calm your mind and step into someone else's world—a skill that creates friends, builds trust, and opens doors everywhere you go. The Bottom Line Spencer's heading to Spain thinking he needs to learn how to teach English. What he'll actually learn is far more valuable: how to connect with anyone, anywhere, regardless of language or cultural barriers. The principles of Sales EQ aren't just for salespeople—they're for anyone who wants to influence, connect, and make a difference in other people's lives. Whether you're teaching teenagers in Spain or closing deals in corporate America, the fundamentals remain the same: Listen first, make people feel important, speak their language, and always remember that behind every interaction is a human being who wants to feel understood. That's how you win hearts. That's how you create influence. And that's how you turn any challenge into an opportunity for deeper connection. Want to master the art of prospecting across every platform? Buy The LinkedIn Edge and discover how to turn social selling into systematic revenue generation with both fast outbound prospecting and relationship-building sequences that actually convert.

If you are spending more time staring at your windshield instead of looking into your customers' eyes, you are doing field sales wrong.  Over the past couple of years, there's been a resurgence in field sales. Businesses everywhere are adding field salespeople and sending representatives out into the territory to meet with customers face-to-face.  And for good reason—human beings buy from human beings. The most powerful way to anchor relationships, solve problems, and sell more is to get in front of your customers. With AI creating so much noise in the system, it's getting harder to prospect via email and social media. Going out and knocking on doors has become an easier way to connect with people, build relationships, and open up opportunities in your pipeline.  And the good news, at least for now, is that prospects are happy to see field sales pros and inviting them in to their businesses and homes.  But with the resurgence of outside sales comes an age-old problem: Field salespeople have got to travel to get to customers. And here's the brutal reality—the single greatest waste of time for field sales professionals is staring at a windshield. On this Money Monday segment of the Sales Gravy Podcast I'm going to teach you exactly how to minimize windshield time and maximize face time. Because at the end of the day, you don't get paid to drive. You get paid to sell. The Windshield Time Delusion Too many reps delude themselves into believing that driving from one place to another is "working." Let's get something straight: Driving is not an accomplishment. I don't care if you put 100 miles on your vehicle in a day. That doesn't mean you accomplished anything meaningful. It just means you drove from one place to the next, burning dinosaurs and wasting time. I see this all the time. Reps will drive to one customer, then drive all the way across their territory to another customer, instead of concentrating their work in a single geographic area.  They'll dead-head out to an appointment, then drive all the way back to the office, passing up dozens of prospects they could have walked into along the way. Don't confuse activity with productivity.  Just because you drove all over creation, that doesn't mean you had a productive day.  Your job is to be in front of customers, not behind a steering wheel. Every minute you spend staring at your windshield is a minute you're not building relationships, solving problems, putting new opportunities in the pipe or closing deals. The Mathematics of Effective Field Sales Territory Management  Let me put this in perspective with some simple math that will blow your mind. Let's say you're a typical field sales rep working in a moderate-sized territory. You make 5 customer visits per day, and between poor route planning and territory management, you spend an average of 45 minutes driving between each appointment. That's 3 hours and 45 minutes of windshield time daily. Over a 5-day work week, that's 18 hours and 45 minutes of non-productive driving time. That's nearly half of your work week spent accomplishing absolutely nothing. Now, let's say you tighten up your territory management and reduce that drive time to 20 minutes between appointments through better planning. You're now down to 1 hour and 40 minutes of windshield time daily, or 8 hours and 20 minutes weekly. You just freed up more than 10 hours per week. That's enough time for 15 to 20 additional customer visits or prospect calls. Over a month, that's 60-80 more customer touchpoints. Over a year, that's 720-960 additional opportunities to build relationships and generate revenue. The reps who figure out how to minimize windshield time don't just have better work-life balance—they absolutely dominate their territories and blow past their quotas while their competitors are still driving around wastefully. Map Your Territory Into Quadrants This is why the first rule of field sales is getting your territory mapped, segmented, and planned to reduce drive time.  I remember when I started out in field sales that the first thing my sales manager, a guy named Bob Blackwell, did was sit down with me and help me map my territory into daily quadrants where I'd be working on specific days of the week.  He said if it's Monday and you are in your Thursday quadrant, you better have a damn good reason.  At the time, I didn't understand exactly what we were doing but soon it made sense. By concentrating my focus each day in a tighter geographic area I wasted less time and made a lot more money. It was a lesson I never forgot.  Start by printing out a map and grabbing a sharpie.  Monday might be the northeast quadrant. Tuesday, the southeast. Wednesday, the southwest. Thursday, the northwest. Friday could be your flex day for special situations or your highest-priority accounts regardless of location. Keep that map visible where you can see it.  The tighter your route planning, the more selling time you create and the less windshield time you waste. Yes, you will get off track from time to time. That's the real world. But because you have built a set of tracks, when you get off, you'll know where to get back on.  The Hub-and-Spoke Model Then use the hub-and-spoke model to maximize your time in each geographic area. It works like this: Once you have an appointment booked on your calendar, use your CRM and mapping tools to pre-plan and route five additional drop-ins or door swings around that appointment.  This will both increase the number of prospecting calls you make each day, and help you avoid the temptation to just head back to the office after your appointment.   The T-Calling Technique to Boost Prospecting Activity You'll increase your productivity further with the practice of T-Calling.  As you walk into or out of those pre-planned prospecting calls, look to your left, look to your right, and look behind you, then knock on those doors, too.  Walk in. Introduce yourself. Build relationships. You're already ther—you've already invested the windshield time to get to that location. Maximize your return on that investment. Think about it, with this methodology you can easily make an additional 10 to 15 additional prospecting touches after each scheduled appointment. It's how you squeeze every ounce of productivity out of your sales day.  Stay on Track With Better Decisions Territory planning also helps you make better decisions about responding to customer requests.  If a customer calls on Tuesday needing help, rather than dropping everything and driving all the way to their location, assess whether it's truly an emergency or if it can wait until you're in that part of your territory on Thursday. Learn to say, "I'll be in your area Thursday morning. Can I schedule some time with you then?" Most requests that feel urgent really aren't. Don't let poor planning by others derail your territory strategy. When you do need to leave one part of your territory to handle a high-priority customer, don't dead-head straight back to your office or home base. Look left, look right, and look behind you to make additional calls in that immediate area before you leave. Make Drive Time Learning Time  No matter how well you plan, you're still going to spend time behind the wheel. So here's the critical question: When you're driving between accounts, what's coming through your speakers? Is it lifting you up, making you better, helping you make more money—or is it tearing you down? Top performers attend  Automobile University. Instead of listening to news or sports radio that usually puts you in a negative mindset, they're listening to audiobooks, training courses, and business podcasts. The compound effect of consistently investing in yourself during windshield time is enormous.  If you spend just 60 minutes a day listening to educational content in your car while you are driving , that's 5 hours per week, 20 hours per month, 240 hours per year of professional development.  That's the equivalent of 6 full work weeks of training annually—just from your drive time.  When you're always learning, you improve your skills, build stronger business acumen, stay current with industry trends, and develop a competitive edge over reps who waste their windshield time listening to talk radio. Most importantly, consistent learning maintains a stronger belief system and winning attitude. You arrive at each appointment energized and confident, instead of drained and negative. Territory Action Plan Here's what I want you to do this week to transform your territory productivity: Step 1: Audit Your Current Windshield Time: For the next week, track exactly how much time you spend driving. Calculate the total hours you spend behind the wheel. I guarantee the number will shock you. Step 2: Map Your Territory into Quadrants: Get out a map or use Google Maps to divide your territory into logical geographic sections. Assign each section to specific days of the week and commit to staying in your designated areas except when absolutely necessary. Step 3: Plan Routes in Advance: Every evening or first thing each morning, use your CRM and mapping tools to plan your most efficient route through your designated quadrant. No more winging it. Step 4: Implement Hub and Spoke Planning: For every scheduled appointment, pre-plan five additional stops in that immediate area. Turn single appointments into territory blitzes. Step 5: Create Your Learning Playlist: Download 3 audiobooks, subscribe to 5 relevant podcasts, and enroll in at least 1 audio training course. Build your Automobile University curriculum. By the way, the new re-mastered audiobook version of my international best selling book Sales EQ was just released, so perhaps that might be one of your first choices. 

In this short segment of the Revenue Builders Podcast, we revisit the discussion with Frederik Maris, CRO at Atoss Software SE. Frederik shares how he interviews, assesses, and hires elite enterprise sales talent by focusing on EQ, character, and curiosity over resumes alone. Learn the power of the ICE criteria and how seasoned leaders spot top performers by blending science, gut instinct, and situational awareness.KEY TAKEAWAYS[00:01:00] The ICE criteria: Intelligence, Character, Coachability, and Experience—what it means and how to apply it in hiring[00:02:00] How “Spin Selling” still applies to modern interviews and what it reveals about candidates[00:03:00] Why understanding hiring criteria is a test of a rep's customer empathy[00:04:00] EQ as a deal accelerator—how top reps build champions both internally and externally[00:05:00] The role of self-awareness, curiosity, and integrity in elite salespeople[00:06:00] How to spot emotional intelligence in subtle cues during interviews[00:07:00] Why gut feel, not just metrics, is a critical part of hiring decisions[00:08:00] Frederik's favorite interview question that reveals a rep's self-awareness instantlyQUOTES[00:01:00] "If they don't ask what I'm looking for in this interview, how are they going to understand what a customer wants?"[00:04:00] "EQ is about the ability to build champions—internally and externally."[00:05:00] "I'm looking for people who do what's right for the customer, the partner, the company—and hopefully, the world."[00:06:00] "You can feel EQ—how they interact with the receptionist, how they carry warmth in a conversation."[00:08:00] "How do you think you're doing in this interview?" That one question shows me their self-awareness instantly."Listen to the full conversation through the link below.https://revenue-builders.simplecast.com/episodes/training-your-teams-for-complex-enterprise-sales-with-frederik-marisEnjoying the podcast? Sign up to receive new episodes straight to your inbox:https://hubs.li/Q02R10xN0Check out John McMahon's book here:Amazon Link: https://a.co/d/1K7DDC4Check out Force Management's Ascender platform here: https://my.ascender.co/Ascender/Force Management is hiring for a Sales Director. Apply here: https://hubs.li/Q02Zb8WG0Read Force Management's eBook:https://www.forcemanagement.com/roi-of-sales-messaging

Zack in Defiance, Ohio, faces a unique challenge that might sound specific at first but is more common than you think: he can only close a deal if his customer closes a deal of their own first. In other words, they must “sell” a project to their own clients before Zack's solution can come into play. This scenario appears in industries like construction, engineering, software licensing, and more. The conversation with Zack revealed practical strategies you can use to overcome these hurdles and keep your own pipeline healthy. Welcome to another Ask Jeb segment on the Sales Gravy Podcast! I'm Jeb Blount—bestselling author of Fanatical Prospecting, Objections, Sales EQ, and INKED. In each of these special episodes, we shine a spotlight on your questions, challenges, and roadblocks—offering real-world advice from sales pros who are in the trenches every single day. 1. Recognize the Real-World Obstacles Whether your customer has to bid on government contracts, secure large client projects, or get internal buy-in from multiple stakeholders, their success dictates your sale. While it's easy to be frustrated by this extra layer, it's crucial to acknowledge a few realities: -- Your Customer's Motivation: They're laser-focused on winning their own deal. Your product or service is secondary—important, but not top of mind until they're assured of a win. -- Lead Time: Deals can stretch out because you're waiting on an entire chain of approvals or external decisions. -- Competition: If your customers finally land the big deal, they might still shop around to find the best supplier, leaving you in a second round of competition. Understanding these pressures helps you empathize with your buyer. It also positions you to offer support in ways that make them want to stick with you—rather than jumping to a competitor at the eleventh hour. 2. Be a Genuine Partner, Not a Peddler It's tempting to keep nudging your buyers with hard-closing tactics, but that rarely works when they haven't secured their own contract. Instead, pivot to a mindset of partnership: Build Real RelationshipsInvest time getting to know your buyer on a personal level. Talk about local sports teams, industry news, or shared hobbies. Real rapport fosters loyalty. When your customer finally wins their deal, they'll feel comfortable turning to a friend—you—for the solution they need. Offer Strategic ExpertiseIf your offering requires complex configurations or specialized knowledge, step in as a consultant. For instance, share best practices on how to optimize a design, or explain how to streamline a process. By helping them present stronger bids or more compelling proposals, you become integral to their success. Stay ResponsiveIf they're scrambling to nail down specifics for a bid, be the easiest person on their call list. Quick turnaround times and thorough answers showcase that you're a reliable partner. Nobody wants a vendor who goes dark when the pressure is on. 3. Avoid Becoming a “Quote Factory” One of the biggest pitfalls in this scenario is turning into a “quote factory” who does piles of work for prospects who never buy. While it's true you miss 100% of the shots you don't take, you also waste valuable hours if you keep shooting at targets that never pan out. -- Track Buying HistoryLook at your records: are there customers or accounts for which you consistently provide proposals and never see a sale? Identify these patterns. -- Have Candid ConversationsLet them know your time and expertise aren't free. You're happy to help, but if they continually choose other suppliers or undercut your prices, you need to reevaluate the partnership. Sometimes, a direct discussion is enough to shift their approach and earn you real business. If not, you can focus on more promising leads. -- Prioritize Strategic DealsIf you're caught up producing endless quotes for “long-shot” clients, you'll lack bandwidth to develop deeper relationships where you can add real value. By focusing your time on viable buyers who have a history of awarding you the deal—or who show strong potential—you improve your overall win probability. 4. Arm Them to “Sell You” Internally Even if you're not strictly dealing with a bid environment, many of us rely on champions who must pitch our solutions to higher-ups. They effectively “resell” what we offer inside their organization. To help them succeed: Provide Clear, Concise Value PropositionsOffer bullet-pointed benefits, case studies, and ROI data they can share internally—without overwhelming them. Simplicity wins. Volunteer Your PresenceIn some cases, you can join a call or meeting with executives. This direct access gives you a chance to handle objections and demonstrate credibility first-hand. Check In Without HoveringBalanced follow-up is key. Too many check-ins can feel pushy. Too few and you disappear from their radar. Develop a steady, empathetic cadence that ensures you remain top-of-mind. 5. Bend the Win Probability in Your Favor Remember, you don't control whether your customers win their own deals, but you do control your approach to the relationship. If you focus on becoming indispensable, customers will fight to include you when it's time to deliver. -- Stay Price-Competitive, But Don't Race to the BottomIf your margin is too high, your customer might choose someone else. However, if you're always the lowest-priced vendor, you risk becoming a commodity. Earn business through value and trust. -- Provide Critical InsightsIf you can highlight cost savings, faster implementation, or greater efficiency—particularly in ways your competitors haven't—your customer has a stronger pitch to their client or internal stakeholders. -- Expand Your NetworkSpeak with multiple stakeholders. If one contact disappears or the champion moves on, having other relationships in the organization can keep your deal alive. 6. Final Thoughts Even if you're not technically waiting for your customer to sell something first, you often are relying on someone to champion your cause internally. In both cases, the takeaway is the same: support your customer, become a trusted advisor, and make sure they see you as vital to their success. If you do, when they finally land that contract or secure that budget approval, you'll be the first person they call. That means less time fighting for scraps and more time closing real, profitable deals. Have a Sales Challenge of Your Own? If you've got a question, a snag, or a pressing issue in your sales life, I want to hear about it! Head over to salesgravy.com/ask, fill out the quick form, and one of our amazing producers will reach out to schedule you for an upcoming Ask Jeb episode. In the meantime, remember: when you're tired, when you're frustrated, when you've had enough—always make one more call. It could be the one that changes everything.

Zack in Defiance, Ohio faces a unique challenge that may sound specific at first but is more common than you think: he can only close a deal if his customer closes a deal of their own first. In other words, they must “sell” a project to their own clients before Zack's solution can come into play. This scenario appears in industries like construction, engineering, software licensing, and more. The conversation with Zack revealed practical strategies you can use to overcome these hurdles and keep your own pipeline healthy. Welcome to another Ask Jeb segment on the Sales Gravy Podcast! I'm Jeb Blount—bestselling author of Fanatical Prospecting, Objections, Sales EQ, and INKED. In each of these special episodes, we shine a spotlight on your questions, challenges, and roadblocks—offering real-world advice from sales pros who are in the trenches every single day. 1. Recognize the Real-World Obstacles Whether your customer has to bid on government contracts, secure large client projects, or get internal buy-in from multiple stakeholders, their success dictates your sale. While it's easy to be frustrated by this extra layer, it's crucial to acknowledge a few realities: Your Customer's Motivation: They're laser-focused on winning their own deal. Your product or service is secondary—important, but not top of mind until they're assured of a win. Lead Time: Deals can stretch out because you're waiting on an entire chain of approvals or external decisions. Competition: If your customers finally land the big deal, they might still shop around to find the best supplier, leaving you in a second round of competition. Understanding these pressures helps you empathize with your buyer. It also positions you to offer support in ways that make them want to stick with you—rather than jumping to a competitor at the eleventh hour. 2. Be a Genuine Partner, Not a Peddler It's tempting to keep nudging your buyers with hard-closing tactics, but that rarely works when they haven't secured their own contract. Instead, pivot to a mindset of partnership: Build Real Relationships Invest time getting to know your buyer on a personal level. Talk about local sports teams, industry news, or shared hobbies. Real rapport fosters loyalty. When your customer finally wins their deal, they'll feel comfortable turning to a friend—you—for the solution they need. Offer Strategic Expertise If your offering requires complex configurations or specialized knowledge, step in as a consultant. For instance, share best practices on how to optimize a design, or explain how to streamline a process. By helping them present stronger bids or more compelling proposals, you become integral to their success. Stay Responsive If they're scrambling to nail down specifics for a bid, be the easiest person on their call list. Quick turnaround times and thorough answers showcase that you're a reliable partner. Nobody wants a vendor who goes dark when the pressure is on. 3. Avoid Becoming a “Quote Factory” One of the biggest pitfalls in this scenario is turning into a “quote factory” that does piles of work for prospects who never buy. While it's true you miss 100% of the shots you don't take, you also waste valuable hours if you keep shooting at targets that never pan out. Track Buying History Look at your records: are there customers or accounts for which you consistently provide proposals and never see a sale? Identify these patterns. Have Candid Conversations Let them know your time and expertise aren't free. You're happy to help, but if they continually choose other suppliers or undercut your prices, you need to reevaluate the partnership. Sometimes, a direct discussion is enough to shift their approach and earn you real business. If not, you can focus on more promising leads. Prioritize Strategic Deals If you're caught up producing endless quotes for “long-shot” clients,

On this episode of the Sales Gravy podcast, Jeb Blount sits down with sales coach Cheryl Parks to discuss why modern sales professionals need to shift from traditional selling to a more consultative and insightful approach that leverages business acumen, industry knowledge, and the right questions. You'll learn the keys to differentiating yourself and gaining a competitive advantage by becoming a trusted advisor. Key takeaways include: Business Acumen is Crucial: Sales professionals need to deepen their understanding of how businesses operate to effectively meet the needs of their clients. Building Trust: Trust is foundational in sales, emphasized through understanding customer needs and proving reliable over transactions. The Importance of Asking the Right Questions: Effective questioning is vital to uncover the real needs and challenges of customers, which guides them towards the right solutions. Authenticity in Sales: Authenticity isn't just a trait but a necessity in building long-term customer relationships where customers trust the salesperson's intentions and insights. Continuous Learning and Adaptation: Salespeople must continually update their industry knowledge and adapt to new market trends and technologies. Customer Insight Over Selling: The focus should shift from merely selling products to providing valuable insights that help customers understand their own needs better. Understanding Customer Outcomes: Sales professionals should know not just what they are selling, but how it helps the customer achieve specific business outcomes. The Role of Positivity and Energy: A positive outlook and high energy are infectious and can significantly impact customer interactions and outcomes. Personal Growth from Experiences: Personal experiences, such as overcoming shyness, can deeply influence one's approach to sales, emphasizing resilience and adaptability. Impact of Multithreading: Understanding and interacting with multiple stakeholders in a business can provide a more comprehensive view of the customer's needs and challenges, leading to better solutions. The Evolution of the Salesperson: Becoming a Trusted Advisor In today's rapidly changing business landscape, the role of the salesperson has undergone a profound transformation. Gone are the days when simply pitching a product or service was enough to seal the deal. Modern buyers are savvier than ever, armed with an abundance of information at their fingertips. They don't merely seek a transaction; they crave a meaningful relationship built on trust and expertise. This shift has given rise to a new breed of salespeople: the trusted advisors. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYA_4u4sqt4 The Human Connection Matters At the heart of this evolution lies a fundamental truth – authenticity cannot be faked. In a world dominated by AI, where everything can be replicated or automated, the one thing that remains irreplaceable is the human connection. Buyers yearn for authentic relationships with people they can trust to guide them through complex decisions. Trusted advisors understand this need and strive to be more than just salespeople; they become partners in their clients' success. But what does it take to earn the coveted title of "trusted advisor"? It starts with a mindset shift. Instead of solely focusing on closing the deal, trusted advisors adopt a "student and leader" mentality. They actively listen, asking insightful questions to uncover their clients' true needs and challenges. This curiosity not only demonstrates genuine interest but also helps advisors gain a deeper understanding of the client's industry and the broader context surrounding their decisions. Continuous Learning, Expertise, Critical Thinking and Business Acumen Trusted advisors also recognize the importance of continuous learning. They voraciously consume industry publications, follow relevant blogs, and stay abreast of the latest trends and terminologies. This knowledge equips them to engage in meaningful conversations, using language that resonates with their clients and showcasing their expertise. For instance, understanding the concept of "multi-threading" can instantly establish credibility. Crucially, trusted advisors possess the ability to think critically and connect seemingly disparate ideas. They don't just regurgitate information; they analyze patterns, synthesize insights, and provide guidance tailored to their clients' unique circumstances. This level of business acumen positions them as true authorities in their field, capable of advising clients on making the best decisions for their organizations. Detachment and Authenticity Detachment from the outcome is another hallmark of a trusted advisor. While they strive to align their solutions with their clients' needs, they understand that their ultimate goal is to help clients make the right choice, even if it means walking away from a deal. This level of integrity and selflessness further reinforces the trust they have built. Above all, trusted advisors embrace authenticity. They are not afraid to have difficult conversations or challenge their clients' assumptions when necessary. This level of candor, coupled with a deep understanding of their clients' goals and challenges, creates a bond that transcends the typical buyer-seller relationship. The Future of Sales is the Trusted Advisor As products and services become increasingly commoditized, the role of the trusted advisor will only grow in importance. Buyers will continue to seek out those who can help them navigate complex decisions, cut through the noise, and provide valuable guidance. For salespeople willing to embrace this transformation, the rewards are plentiful – from becoming a go-to resource and receiving referrals, to enjoying long-lasting, rewarding relationships built on mutual respect and trust. The rise of the trusted advisor is a testament to the enduring power of human connection in a world where artificial intelligence and automation are increasingly prevalent. The ability to forge authentic relationships and provide personalized advice will remain the domain of skilled salespeople. Those who embrace this evolution will not only thrive but also shape the future of sales, one trusted relationship at a time. Learn why developing a high Sales EQ is the path to becoming an authentic, trusted advisor. Download Free Guide

On this episode of The Sales Gravy Podcast, Jeb Blount sits down with sales coach Cheryl Parks to discuss how she used skills like resilience, empathy, adaptability, relationship-building, continuous learning, and goal-setting to enhance sales performance. You'll learn how to turn every experience into an opportunity for growth and success. Key Takeaways:  - Resilience is Crucial: Use rejection as a learning opportunity rather than a setback. Analyze what went wrong and apply those lessons to improve your future pitches. View each experience, whether successful or not, as a chance to grow. - Adaptability is Key: Stay flexible and open to change. New trends and shifts in the market require you to adjust your strategies to remain competitive. Be willing to experiment with new approaches and adjust based on results. - Build Strong Relationships: Invest time in fostering positive relationships with clients and colleagues. Trust and rapport can lead to repeat business and valuable referrals. - Set Clear Goals: Establish specific, measurable sales goals. Breaking them into smaller targets can help you stay focused and motivated. - Be Persistent: Stay committed to your goals, even when faced with challenges. Persistence is often the key to long-term success in sales. - Value Relationships Beyond Sales: Show genuine interest in your clients' success and provide value beyond just closing deals. Active listening and empathetic responses can help you offer the right solutions. Building lasting relationships can lead to sustained success and growth. - Using Breaks for Inspiration: Taking breaks and engaging in activities like walking or listening to music can help reset the brain and inspire new ideas, particularly when facing creative blocks. - Mindset Shifts: Focus on changing your mindset, especially when overcoming shyness and self-doubt, by assessing your reactions and using affirmations such as “be your excellent best.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tlmtfE9fPQ Unlock the Power of Experience Life is full of lessons. We learn some in school, others at work, and many through the ups and downs of daily living. These lessons shape who we are and how we interact with the world. But have you ever thought about how these life lessons can translate into sales success? It turns out that some of the most valuable sales skills aren't taught in a textbook but are developed through life's experiences. Here's how you can turn these life lessons into powerful tools for sales success. Resilience in the Face of Rejection One of the most universal lessons we learn in life is that rejection is inevitable. Whether it's a job application, a proposal, or a personal relationship, we've all faced rejection at some point. The key to overcoming rejection is resilience—and this is just as important in sales. In sales, rejection is a common experience. For every successful pitch, there are countless "no's." However, it's not the rejection that defines us; it's how we handle it. Viewing rejection as a step towards success rather than a failure can turn a "no" into a motivator. Rejection teaches us resilience, and resilience leads to persistence. In sales, persistence is often what separates the winners from the losers. Instead of dwelling on a lost deal, take a moment to analyze what went wrong. Learn from the experience and apply those lessons to your next pitch. Use rejection as a tool for growth rather than a setback. Empathy and Understanding Empathy is another vital lesson that can greatly benefit your sales career. Throughout our lives, we learn to understand and connect with others by putting ourselves in their shoes. This ability to relate to others is invaluable in sales. In sales, it's crucial to understand your customer's needs, desires, and pain points. Selling isn't just about pushing a product or service; it's about solving a problem for your customer. The better you understand them, the more effectively you can position your offering as the solution they need. Practice active listening during sales conversations to help you truly understand your customer's needs before you start pitching. Ask open-ended questions to uncover their challenges and listen carefully to their responses without interrupting or jumping to conclusions. Adaptability and Flexibility Life rarely goes according to plan. Whether it's a career change, unexpected personal circumstances, or a global event, being adaptable is a crucial life skill. This ability to pivot and adjust is just as important in sales. The sales landscape is constantly evolving. New technologies, shifting market conditions, and changing customer behaviors require sales professionals to be adaptable. Those who stick to outdated methods without adapting will quickly fall behind. Conversely, those who embrace change and remain flexible will discover new opportunities and continue to thrive. Stay updated on industry trends and be open to experimenting with new sales strategies. Don't hesitate to adjust your approach based on what's effective and what's not. Flexibility in your sales techniques can lead to greater success in a constantly changing market. The Power of Positive Relationships Life teaches us the importance of relationships. Whether personal or professional, the quality of our relationships often defines the quality of our lives. This principle holds true in sales as well. Building and maintaining positive relationships with clients, colleagues, and your network is crucial for long-term success. Trust and rapport are the foundation of any successful sales relationship. When clients trust you, they're more likely to buy from you—not just once, but repeatedly. Additionally, strong relationships can lead to referrals, which are invaluable in sales. Invest time in nurturing strong relationships with your clients. Follow up regularly, offer value beyond the sale, and show genuine interest in their success. Remember, sales are about building relationships, not just making transactions. The Importance of Continuous Learning Life is a journey of continuous learning. Once we stop learning, we stop growing. This lesson is especially relevant in sales, where ongoing improvement is key to staying competitive. The most successful sales professionals are those who never stop learning. They actively seek out new knowledge, whether through formal education, mentorship, or self-directed learning. By staying curious and committed to personal and professional growth, you can stay ahead of the competition and continue to succeed. Dedicate time each week to learning something new about your industry, products, or customers. Attend webinars, read relevant books, or seek out a mentor who can provide guidance. The more you learn, the more value you can offer in your sales conversations. Goal Setting and Persistence One of the earliest life lessons many of us learn is the importance of setting goals and working persistently to achieve them. This lesson is particularly relevant in sales, where goal-setting is essential. Sales is often considered a numbers game. Setting clear, achievable goals and working consistently toward them is crucial for long-term success. It's not just about setting goals; it's about persisting in your efforts, even when faced with challenges. Set specific, measurable goals for your sales activities. Break them down into daily, weekly, and monthly targets, and regularly track your progress. Persistence is key—keep pushing forward even when things don't go as planned. Turn Experience into Success Life lessons are more than just personal growth tools; they are the building blocks of professional success. By applying the resilience, empathy, adaptability, relationship-building, continuous learning, and goal-setting skills you've developed through life, you can elevate your sales performance to new heights. Remember, every experience is an opportunity to learn and grow, and every lesson learned brings you one step closer to sales success. Learn why developing a high Sales EQ is the path to turning your life experiences into success.  Download Free Guide

"How Ultra High Performers Leverage Sales-Specific Emotional Intelligence to Close the Complex Deal"

Episode Summary Randy Welch talks about mission-driven sales in the education sector. He discusses his background in school psychology and administration, and how it led him to a career in education technology focused on school safety solutions. He emphasizes the importance of truly understanding customer needs through active listening. Randy also provides insights into navigating the challenges of the education market by prioritizing safety over sales numbers. The interview covers Randy's vision for developing a holistic safety ecosystem and recommendations for incorporating learning into a sales mindset. About the guest Randy Welch is an educator at heart but found his way into the technology sector through his passion to ensure the safety and security of school students and staff. At Motorola Solutions, Randy oversees the education focused Sales efforts for the North America region and highlights the technology, safety, and security solutions schools need to solve their biggest safety challenges. Prior to Motorola Solutions, Randy served for more than 20 years as a school psychologist, special education director, Chief Program Officer, and board member for multiple public and charter schools. Randy has also spoken nationally and internationally about a variety of education topics. Connect with Randy Welch Key takeaways- Understand customer needs through active listening, not just hearing what they say - Prioritize solving customer problems and mission over making sales numbers  - Develop a holistic, integrated ecosystem approach to school safety rather than isolated systems - Keep focus on the mission of keeping students safe even during budget cuts or challenges - Incorporate continuous learning into sales through recommended books and shared learning - Bring an educator's passion for learning to the sales field Quotes"Someone has a problem, your job is not to solve their problem, your job is to help them find a solution to that problem." - Randy Welch on drawing connections between education and sales. Recommended Resource Books-"New Sales. Simplified." by Mike Weinberg. -"Sales Management. Simplified." by Mike Weinberg. -"Selling in a Crisis" by Jeb Blount. -"Sales EQ" by Jeb Blount -"The Little Red Book of Selling" by Jeffrey Gitomer. ⁠Connect with Randy Welch⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Follow us on LinkedIn ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ |⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Website

Season 3 - Episode 15   Emotions in Sales with Jeb Blount (expert episode) Joining us on The Other Side of The Mann this week is Jeb Blount, author of “Sales EQ” along with 15 other incredible books. We are so honored to have Jeb on this week, be sure to stay tuned to hear the five decisions consumers have to make to buy from you.   Episode resources: “Sales EQ” by Jeb Blount  Antonio Damasio's Somatic Marker Study “How to win friends and Influence People” by Dale Carnegie   If you have enjoyed this episode and it inspired you in some way, or if you have suggestions on making this podcast work better for you, email me at lcunningham@manngroup.net and tell me what you want to hear next.   Be sure to follow The Other Side of The Mann on Instagram!    Haven't left a rating or review yet?  It makes a huge difference, and all you have to do is click here. We are so grateful for your support of The Other Side of The Mann!       If you want to take the assessment to see where your EQ falls click here.   Interested in the classes The Mann Group offers?  Please click here.     Editing and Production: Charlie Freedman Instagram: @charliefreedmanmusic  Email:  charlie@charliefreedmanmusic.com   Music: Will Collante and Amanda Garrigues Instagram: @willcollante Email:  will.collante@gmail.com  

On this episode of the Sales Gravy Podcast, Jeb Blount (Sales Gravy CEO and author of Sales EQ) and Graham Hooper (CEO of Ellison Technologies) discuss the keys to leading your sales team in uncertain times. You'll learn how to succeed in volatile economic times by effectively handling decision deferment objections and conducting thorough research during the discovery phase of the sales process. Key Takeaways: Salespeople can successfully navigate the transition from a red hot market to a stagnant down market, but it requires grit, discipline, and creativity. In uncertain economic times and a world increasingly influenced by the power of AI, sales-specific emotional intelligence and human-to-human communication are the most important skills a salesperson can have when establishing trust and building relationships with buyers. Conducting effective, deep discovery and handling buying decision deferment objections will give salespeople a competitive edge in any economic climate. Transitioning From A Red Hot Market To A Stagnant Down Market Many salespeople today are struggling to make the transition from taking advantage of a red hot market to navigating the doldrums of volatile economic times. Some sectors, like real estate, are experiencing the brunt of these changes in the market, where other sectors, like defense are seeing more profit. Economic swings are cyclical and always will be, but especially in the last twenty four months, sales organizations are moving to a more traditional kind of selling. Salespeople who know how to get creative, grind it out, and prioritize the fundamentals will see the most success in times like these. However, it's not easy to make that mindset shift and truly rise to the moment. The One Thing That Will Always Guarantee Your Success in Sales For the individual salesperson, the most important thing that you can have in your arsenal to make it out on top in volatile economic times is not above-average intellect or a winning personality— it's grit. This is this ability to dig deep and take your career, your future, and your life into your own hands when things are difficult and it seems like there is very little in your control. Getting up, getting yourself ready for the day, protecting your time and your energy, and making sure that you are putting yourself in front of the right people at the right time with the right message. Nothing Compares to Real Human Connection Another strength that will set you apart from other salespeople and allow you to break through the noise and truly connect with the right customers is sales-specific emotional intelligence— Sales EQ. Salespeople aren't the only ones experiencing tough times. Real human connection matters today more than ever. You must have the ability to see eye to eye with your customers, meet them where they are, and make them comfortable enough to open up and share their toughest business challenges. When you connect the dots between their biggest problems and how you can help solve them, you build the foundation for trust and create lasting business relationships as a result. Conducting deep discovery is the key to helping your customers close the gaps and see positive change from your solutions. The Only Communication You Can Trust is Human-to-Human In today's world, human-to-human communication is the only trustworthy form of communication. With more AI tools and services than any one person could take full advantage of, it's not secret that we rely heavily on automation to maintain productivity and be maximally effective. The downside of this is that written communication can easily be created and distributed by AI, which is often seen as inauthentic or untrustworthy. So has the role of the salesperson changed in the expanding world of automatic and artificial intelligence? The short answer is yes. The rise and mass adoption of automation has certainly changed the value and responsibility of salespeople to be effective communicators. In a world where robots are increasingly doing work for us, it is important for sales professionals to have strong communication skills, know how to build genuine trust, and establish close business relationships. Spend 80% of The Sales Process In Discovery That's precisely why salespeople should invest about 80% of the time in the sales process in discovery. What are you learning about your buyer? What are you asking them? Discovery is where salespeople face the most heartache, because when buyers are holding back, sellers don't have any ammunition to reduce fear because they didn't ask great discovery questions and do the work upfront. In times of abundance and prosperity, salespeople skip that crucial step because buyers will decide to buy anyway. Salespeople often let their guard down and get transactional. Doing deep level discovery is the only way to stay afloat in a down market because buyers are vulnerable, hesitant, and hard to reach. The transactional sale will not get the job done in volatile times. You Need A Solid Business Case To Be Competitive It's easy to be complacent when times are good. But things have changed, even in growing industries. The competitive landscape is now much more intense than it used to be. To succeed in this environment, you need to do your homework. You must have a solid business case for why your product is a good fit for the customer, and that requires a a great deal of research. Once you have a use case and understand the challenges of the industry, you need to address any concerns that are specific to your buyers' unique situation, business, or sector and show proven ROI. Doing your homework is fundamental to success, and that homework is done in discovery. 4 Ways to Handle Buying Decision Deferment Objections Inevitably, buyers will present salespeople with decision deferment objections. It is imperative that salespeople handle these objections with tact, at both the emotional and rational level. Salespeople can prepare for these objections in a couple of ways. Ask "Why" Questions to Uncover Fears Ask questions that reveal their hesitation to buy, the perceived risk of purchase or adoption, and what is at stake for them in this relationship. This will allow you to understand the fundamental reason why they don't want to buy, and give you insight into how you can help them move forward in their purchasing decision, and ultimately create a sense of trust that reassures your buyer that you know what is most important to them and their company. Get Creative With Soft Benefits Whether this is providing extra training, additional customer support, access to premium features, or other similar benefits, giving your buyer an improved experience at little to no additional cost to you, while drawing their focus away from pricing alone. Giving them some added benefits or bonus features helps them feel that they are getting value from your product or service that increases the return on their investment. Create a Sense of Urgency Sometimes it helps to instill a sense of urgency so that buyers are less likely to pull back from a purchasing decision. In this case, offer pricing that's only available for a limited time, or offer an add-on that has limited availability. Target Companies That Hold Steady In Down Markets Of course, this isn't always possible, but targeting larger companies with more flexible budgets, versus smaller companies that are on a feast or famine cycle will make it easier to prevent facing buying deferment objections in the first place. A Slow Market Is Not A Dead-End Salespeople can navigate the transition from a thriving market to a slow one by staying tough, focused, and innovative. In uncertain times, sales-specific emotional intelligence and authentic human-to-human communication are crucial skills to establish trust and build relationships with buyers. By dedicating 80% of the sales process to discovery, salespeople can make a compelling case for why their product is a good fit for their buyer and learn what matters most to them, so that decision deferment objections don't clog up the pipeline. In this on-demand sales training on Sales Gravy University the world's most sought-after sales trainer, Jeb Blount, delivers an essential blueprint for staying motivated, keeping your pipeline full, increasing sales, retaining your customers, and advancing your career in times of uncertainty and change. 

Leading In A Changing Sales Landscape On this episode of the Sales Gravy Podcast, Jeb Blount (Sales Gravy CEO and author of Sales EQ) and Graham Hooper (CEO of Ellison Technologies) discuss the keys to leading your sales team in uncertain times. You'll learn how to succeed in volatile economic times by effectively handling decision deferment objections and conducting thorough research during the discovery phase of the sales process. Key Takeaways: Salespeople can successfully navigate the transition from a red hot market to a stagnant down market, but it requires grit, discipline, and creativity. In uncertain economic times and a world increasingly influenced by the power of AI, sales-specific emotional intelligence and human-to-human communication are the most important skills a salesperson can have when establishing trust and building relationships with buyers. Conducting effective, deep discovery and handling buying decision deferment objections will give salespeople a competitive edge in any economic climate. Transitioning From A Red Hot Market To A Stagnant Down Market Many salespeople today are struggling to make the transition from taking advantage of a red hot market to navigating the doldrums of volatile economic times. Some sectors, like real estate, are experiencing the brunt of these changes in the market, where other sectors, like defense are seeing more profit. Economic swings are cyclical and always will be, but especially in the last twenty four months, sales organizations are moving to a more traditional kind of selling. Salespeople who know how to get creative, grind it out, and prioritize the fundamentals will see the most success in times like these. However, it's not easy to make that mindset shift and truly rise to the moment. The One Thing That Will Always Guarantee Your Success in Sales For the individual salesperson, the most important thing that you can have in your arsenal to make it out on top in volatile economic times is not above-average intellect or a winning personality— it's grit. This is this ability to dig deep and take your career, your future, and your life into your own hands when things are difficult and it seems like there is very little in your control. Getting up, getting yourself ready for the day, protecting your time and your energy, and making sure that you are putting yourself in front of the right people at the right time with the right message. Nothing Compares to Real Human Connection Another strength that will set you apart from other salespeople and allow you to break through the noise and truly connect with the right customers is sales-specific emotional intelligence— Sales EQ. Salespeople aren't the only ones experiencing tough times. Real human connection matters today more than ever. You must have the ability to see eye to eye with your customers, meet them where they are, and make them comfortable enough to open up and share their toughest business challenges. When you connect the dots between their biggest problems and how you can help solve them, you build the foundation for trust and create lasting business relationships as a result. Conducting deep discovery is the key to helping your customers close the gaps and see positive change from your solutions. The Only Communication You Can Trust is Human-to-Human In today's world, human-to-human communication is the only trustworthy form of communication. With more AI tools and services than any one person could take full advantage of, it's not secret that we rely heavily on automation to maintain productivity and be maximally effective. The downside of this is that written communication can easily be created and distributed by AI, which is often seen as inauthentic or untrustworthy. So has the role of the salesperson changed in the expanding world of automatic and artificial intelligence? The short answer is yes. The rise and mass adoption of automation has certainly chan...

Jeb Blount is sales royalty. He's published 15 books on selling, including Sales EQ, Fanatical Prospecting, and Objections, and he's been top of my Pitch Masters hit list since the show began.  In this episode we cover a huge amount of ground: qualifying deals, closing deals, relationships, stories, 'the ledge', 'murder boarding' the chessboard of sales, how to withhold information for leverage, and of course, how we can create emotional connections. In 70 minutes we cover the entire sales cycle, and Jeb gives me a ridiculous amount of insights that we can all use to improve our pitches and make more sales.  You can find out more about Jeb on his website salesgravy.com and I'd highly recommend you go buy one of his books on Amazon - Sales EQ is my all-time favourite.  I'm also pleased to announce that this is Pitch Master's first full VIDEO EPISODE, available on Apple and Youtube - just search for Pitch Masters. If you enjoy the show, please leave a review and share it with someone else who might. Sign up for the mailing list for exclusive content at http://pitchguy.co.uk/ and follow me on social media for video clips of the episode.  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dannyfontaine/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@pitchguy YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@pitchguy/ Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dannyfontaine/  

Jeb Blount is sales royalty. He's published 15 books on selling, including Sales EQ, Fanatical Prospecting, and Objections, and he's been top of my Pitch Masters hit list since the show began.  In this episode we cover a huge amount of ground: qualifying deals, closing deals, relationships, stories, 'the ledge', 'murder boarding' the chessboard of sales, how to withhold information for leverage, and of course, how we can create emotional connections. In 70 minutes we cover the entire sales cycle, and Jeb gives me a ridiculous amount of insights that we can all use to improve our pitches and make more sales.  You can find out more about Jeb on his website salesgravy.com and I'd highly recommend you go buy one of his books on Amazon - Sales EQ is my all-time favourite.  I'm also pleased to announce that this is Pitch Master's first full VIDEO EPISODE, available on Apple and Youtube - just search for Pitch Masters. If you enjoy the show, please leave a review and share it with someone else who might. Sign up for the mailing list for exclusive content at http://pitchguy.co.uk/ and follow me on social media for video clips of the episode.  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dannyfontaine/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@pitchguy YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@pitchguy/ Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dannyfontaine/  

Jeb Blount is the author of thirteen books including Fanatical Prospecting, Sales EQ, Virtual Selling, and his latest book, Selling in a Crisis: 55 Ways to Stay Motivated and Increase Sales in Volatile Times - which is the topic of today's discussion. Jeb advises a who's who of the world's leading organizations and their executives on the impact of emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills on customer-facing activities. He is among the world's most respected thought leaders on prospecting, sales, leadership, and customer experience. In this podcast for managers, Audrey, Lee and Jeb discuss:   ·       The real secrets to selling more in a crisis ·       Why you need more than charm and a great personality to close sales in a crisis ·       Why you must stop swimming naked and put your bathing suit on ·       Why you don't get into buckets with crabs  "We assume we are succeeding because we are so awesome at what we do. But as the saying goes, don't confuse a bull market with brains. During cycles of abundance, even the weak can succeed.”– Jeb Blount    Build Credibility and Effective Leadership with the Manage Smarter Podcast Join hosts Audrey Strong and C. Lee Smith every week as they dive into the aspects and concepts of good business management. From debunking sales myths to learning how to manage with and without measurements, you'll learn something new with every episode and will be able to implement positive change far beyond sales.  Connect with Jeb Blount     https://jebblount.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/jebblount/ https://www.facebook.com/SalesGravy https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUVoyyL3KRtiXFXdcWwN8bA https://www.instagram.com/salesgravy/ https://salesgravy.com/ Connect with Manage Smarter Hosts ·         Website: ManageSmarter.com  ·         LinkedIn: Audrey Strong                                                                 ·         LinkedIn: C. Lee Smith   Connect with SalesFuel ·         Website: http://salesfuel.com/  ·         Twitter: @SalesFuel  ·         Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/salesfuel/  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Selling the Price Increase: The Ultimate B2B Field Guide for Raising Prices Without Losing Customers by Jeb Blount About the Book: A practical guide for successfully navigating the single greatest growth and profit improvement opportunity for B2B enterprises: price increases The payoff for implementing price increases without losing customers is massive! Effective price increase campaigns are far more effective at boosting topline revenue and generating profits than acquiring new customers. The problem is that price increase initiatives, whether broad-based or targeted to specific accounts, strike fear and anxiety into the hearts of sales professionals and account managers who are tasked with selling them to their customers. Approaching customers with price increases sits at the tip top of the pantheon of things salespeople hate to do because they fear that raising prices will reduce sales volume or open the door to competitors. Yet when sold effectively, customers accept price increases, remain loyal, and often buy even more. In Selling the Price Increase: The Ultimate B2B Field Guide for Raising Prices Without Losing Customers, celebrated sales trainer Jeb Blount reveals the strategies, tactics, techniques, and frameworks that allow you to successfully master price increase initiatives. From crafting effective price increase messages to protecting hard-won relationships, handling common objections, and making the case for the value you deliver, this comprehensive guide walks you through each step of the price increase sales process. In each chapter, you'll find practical exercises designed to help you master the Selling the Price Increase system. As you dive into these powerful insights, and with each new chapter, you'll gain greater and greater confidence in your ability to successfully engage customers in price increase conversations. You'll learn: How to navigate multiple price increase scenarios: broad-based, targeted, non-negotiable, negotiable, defending, presenting and asking The eight price increase narratives and three drivers of customer price increase acceptance How to neutralize and get past the five big price increase fears and anxieties How to avoid the big mistakes that trigger resentment and drive customers into the arms of your competitors The 9-Box Risk-Profile Framework for targeting accounts for price increases A repeatable process for confidently approaching price increase conversations The Five-Step Price Increase Messaging Framework Proven frameworks for reducing resistance and handling price increase objections How to negotiate profitable outcomes with high-risk profile accounts Winning strategies for coaching and leading successful price increase initiatives Following in the footsteps of his blockbuster bestsellers Fanatical Prospecting, Sales EQ, Objections, Inked, and Virtual Selling, Jeb Blount's Selling the Price Increase puts the same strategies employed by his clients—a who's who of the world's most prestigious organizations—right into your hands. Selling the Price Increase is an essential handbook for sales professionals, account managers, customer success teams, and other revenue generation leaders looking for a page-turning and insightful roadmap to navigating the essential—and nerve-wracking—world of price increases. About the Author: Jeb Blount is the author of 14 of the most definitive books ever written on sales and sales leadership and is among the world's most respected thought leaders on sales, leadership, and customer experience. Through his global training organization, Sales Gravy, Jeb and his team train and advise a who's who of the world's most prestigious organizations. His flagship website, salesgravy.com is the most visited sales-specific website on the planet. And, interesting fact -Jeb Blount is now a member of a very exclusive club: The Marketing Book Podcast 6-Timers Club! Click here for this episode's website page with the links mentioned during the interview... https://www.salesartillery.com/marketing-book-podcast/selling-price-increase-jeb-blount

In this episode of the Duct Tape Marketing Podcast, I interview Jeb Blount. Jeb is the CEO of Sales Gravy and the author of 14 books including Fanatical Prospecting, Sales EQ, Objections, Virtual Selling, and his brand new book — Selling the Price Increase: The Ultimate B2B Field Guide for Raising Prices Without Losing Customers. More About Jeb Blount: His brand new book — Selling the Price Increase: The Ultimate B2B Field Guide for Raising Prices Without Losing Customers. JebBlount.com Salesgravy.com Take The Marketing Assessment: Marketingassessment.co This episode of the Duct Tape Marketing Podcast is brought to you by the HubSpot Podcast Network and SEMRush.

► Is it OK to up your pricing? Jeb Blout is CEO @ Sales Gravy, he's also the author of thirteen books including Fanatical Prospecting, Sales EQ, Inked, Virtual Selling, and his latest: Selling The Price Increase. That's right, he's a true Sales Legend!

Objections can strike fear into the hearts of salespeople everywhere. But what if there's a simple formula to handle objections with confidence? In today's episode of The Sales Evangelist, our guest Ryann Dowdy explains how we can integrate this sales strategy into our sales methodology.  Ryann's feelings on objections: It's about asking questions - focusing on the human to human connection and seeing the value in that connection We think of a “closing problem,” but the “opening problem” can be just as essential to overcome. Help people get what they want by using information they've already shared. Overcome objections from the beginning: It's a simple philosophy: Jeb Blunt's book Sales EQ explains that we have a physiological response (like increased heart rate) when someone raises an objection.  When you get an objection, have a script to follow immediately after the objection to have time to collect yourself. For Ryann, she likes to empathize and understand more about the objection to determine where it's coming from and how to handle it. Asking questions indicates where to speak further: Strictly following a script reduces the human-to-human connection and might prevent you from understanding key information. A short post-objection script can be helpful, but think critically and have a loose framework ready to dial in on the prospect's specific needs. When asking questions, don't let your emotions take control. Take a breath before speaking to think. Often, the prospect will start talking instead and give you more information. Make conversations based on humanity: If you focus on serving that prospect, you'll strengthen the relationship and the trust alongside it. It takes practice to avoid taking objections personally. Remember, you and your job are two different things - you bring value and are worthy, regardless of people saying no to a product or service. The first time you sit in front of a buyer might not be the right time for the buyer - it's all about how you handle the rejection. Ryann's major takeaway? Ask more questions and never assume you understand a prospect's objection. For more content from Ryann, check out her book, The 100k Sales Method, on Amazon and connect with her on LinkedIn and Instagram. This episode is brought to you in part by LinkedIn Sales Navigator. The Great Resignation has become the Great Reshuffle, meaning it can be difficult for sales professionals like you to find leads and close deals. Luckily, Sales Navigator from LinkedIn is here for you! Sales Navigator from LinkedIn is the only tool that uses real-time alerts and up-to-date insights to help you know when prospects are ready to buy. And, with over 30 advanced filters, sales professionals can quickly find genuine leads with the intent to purchase. Gain the advantage of accurate, quality lead generation data from LinkedIn Sales Navigator. You can get a 60-day free trial of Sales Navigator at www.LinkedIn.com/TSE.  This episode is brought to you in part by Skipio. Are you sick of crickets? As a salesperson, the pain of reaching out with phone calls or emails and not receiving a response is real. But all text messaging is not created equal. 85% of people prefer text over email and phone calls because they want to engage in a conversation, not listen to bots. Be more like people and start having conversations that end in the conversions you want. Try Skipio at www.Skipio.com. This episode is brought to you in part by Closers.io. Closers.io helps sales reps land their dream remote sales gig, where they can set their own hours, work from anywhere, and make six or even multi-6 figures per year. That sure sounds good to us! Committed to helping sales reps make a shift, Closers.io will place you in an available sales role that will increase your commissions and help you live the life you want. Apply for free now at go.closers.io/TSE. This episode is brought to you in part by Scratchpad. Are you tired of a digital workspace cluttered with notes, folders, files, and half-filled spreadsheets? (Not that we're speaking from personal experience.) Luckily, we've found the solution. Scratchpad is the first Revenue Team Workspace specifically designed to adapt to each salesperson's workflow, so you don't have to change your habits. Scratchpad creates a streamlined workflow that allows everyone to be a little more productive each day without the hassle of updating a database with whatever info you can find. Get Scratchpad free at Scratchpad.com.  This episode is brought to you in part by The Sales Evangelist Sales Training. Check out some of our upcoming programs designed to simplify selling and help b2b sellers consistently hit quota each month. Learn more here at ww.thesalesevangelist.com/upcoming-training or call 1-833-713-2343 for more information. As one of our podcast listeners, we value your opinion and always want to improve the quality of our show. Complete our two-minute survey here: thesalesevangelist.com/survey. We'd love for you to join us for our next episodes by tuning in on Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Stitcher, or Spotify. Also, leave us a rating and reviews on Apple Podcast. Read more about sales or listen to audiobooks on Audible and explore their huge online library. Register now to get a free book and a 30-day trial. Audio provided by Free SFX, Soundstripe, and Bensound. Other songs used in the episodes are as follows: The Organ Grinder written by Bradley Jay Hill, performed by Bright Seed, and Produced by Brightseed and Hill.

Jeb Blount is the author of thirteen books including Fanatical Prospecting, Sales EQ, People Follow You, Virtual Selling, and his latest book, Virtual Training. Jeb advises a who's who of the world's leading organizations and their executives on the impact of emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills on customer-facing activities. He is among the world's most respected thought leaders on prospecting, sales, leadership, and customer experience.

Whether you are starting up or you're already a sales person, having sales management coaching is a must. How can you find the best mentor for your needs? In today's first episode of the year, Walter welcomes Tim Chapman. Tim is the Vice President of Elliptic and also the Managing Partner of Sales EQ. Together, they talked about how Tim started with sales coaching and what gets him going. He also discusses the different factors of hiring a new employee and the effects of KPI in a business. Tim also cites the most challenging aspects of his coaching job and the realistic expectations of those undergoing the sessions. Highlights Who is Tim Chapman? - 0:15 How much training and coaching he received when he was starting and how it helped him. - 4:50 The desire to prove somebody wrong and come back from failure. - 9:04 What gets him going? - 9:26 When hiring, what is he looking for? - 10:48 The big difference. - 18:36 Viewing it from the sales perspective: Is it a challenge? - 25:19 The purpose of KPI. - 28:23 Giving feedback without freaking people out. - 31:24 Words of wisdom for sales people. - 36:26 In a coaching session, you just need them to walk away with one solid thing. - 39:56 Is it a realistic expectation? How long does it usually take? - 41:32 Not everybody is in the right seat on the bus. - 46:16 Sometimes you have to call it out with your team and with your prospect. - 50:19 What's the most challenging aspect? - 52:38 Here's the theory and understanding of the Why and How. - 53:44 Restriction of cigar smoking in public in England. - 55:57 How Tim's relationship with cigars happened. - 56:11 What he's doing today and how to get in touch with Tim. - 59:28 Episode Resources Connect with Walter Crosby https://www.linkedin.com/in/walterlcrosby/ https://calendly.com/walter-helix/15-minute-virtual-cup-of-coffee https://helixsalesdevelopment.com/ https://helixsalesdevelopment.com/podcast/ walter@HelixSalesDevelopment.com Connect with Tim Chapman https://uk.linkedin.com/in/tichapman https://podcasts.apple.com/ie/podcast/crypto-decoded/id1568661759 https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/crypto-decoded-elliptic-e1nAJKHD7k0/ https://open.spotify.com/show/4vq1aoasPpj47IkebfqgTi https://www.elliptic.co/meet-the-team Crypto Decoded

What You'll Learn From This Episode: Importance of sales training Why you shouldn't over complicate things Always 'simplify, simplify' Related Links and Resources: Go get one of the free sales training courses of the Sales Gravy University. These are high-quality courses taught by trainers really across the spectrum. Get any course you want from our website, just go to www.learn.salesgravy.com (still needs to reconfirm from assistant because the link doesn't work) and when you checkout, put in the coupon code “FREE COURSE” and you can get any course on our system in which we have thousands of hours of courses to choose from and it will be absolutely FREE. Summary: Jeb Blount is the author of thirteen books including Fanatical Prospecting, Sales EQ, Objections, Inked, People Follow You, Virtual Selling, and his latest book, Virtual Training. As Sales Gravy founder and CEO, Jeb advises a who's who of the world's leading organizations and their executives on the impact of emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills on customer-facing activities. He is among the world's most respected thought leaders on prospecting, sales, leadership, and customer experience. Here are the highlights of this episode: Jeb has shared with us that their ideal clients would be B2B. However, they are industry and size agnostic, therefore he also works with companies who would be in the Fotune100 and even with small companies that's just getting started. Sales training itself is about teaching anyone how to sell and win in sales. Every organization have sales people, and Jeb's company got various programs that fit any of those companies depending on where they are in their life cycle. He helps primarily these team on how to accelerate sales growth, because growth has the tendency to smooth out everything else. If you are not growing, you got a lot more problems. Jeb helps them accelerate growth, build revenue, and do it fast without a whole lot of complications. Everybody wants to win, and today's fast-phase market place, everything is moving too quickly and a lot of competitors are moving in. What Jeb sees is that people tend to over complicate solving problems; difficult for them to take complex things and simplify them. Something as simple as pick-up the phone and have a conversation. If you really want to grow your business then talk to people, the more people you talk to the more your business will grow. A lot of businesses today are spread out; therefore, Jeb would like you to grab his latest book "Virtual Training". It tells you everything on what you need to know on how Jeb's organization scale their business. They triple the size of their business in 12 months using the techniques and even the technology they use. Jeb's Valuable Free Action (VFA): Just pick up the phone and call somebody. The number one problem I see in the marketplace is that they're using email or social media, and they're not making conversations. Call one of your customers and have a conversation.

What You'll Learn From This Episode: Importance of sales training Why you shouldn't over complicate things Always 'simplify, simplify' Related Links and Resources: Go get one of the free sales training courses of the Sales Gravy University. These are high-quality courses taught by trainers really across the spectrum. Get any course you want from our website, just go to www.learn.salesgravy.com (still needs to reconfirm from assistant because the link doesn't work) and when you checkout, put in the coupon code “FREE COURSE” and you can get any course on our system in which we have thousands of hours of courses to choose from and it will be absolutely FREE. Summary: Jeb Blount is the author of thirteen books including Fanatical Prospecting, Sales EQ, Objections, Inked, People Follow You, Virtual Selling, and his latest book, Virtual Training. As Sales Gravy founder and CEO, Jeb advises a who's who of the world's leading organizations and their executives on the impact of emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills on customer-facing activities. He is among the world's most respected thought leaders on prospecting, sales, leadership, and customer experience. Here are the highlights of this episode: Jeb has shared with us that their ideal clients would be B2B. However, they are industry and size agnostic, therefore he also works with companies who would be in the Fotune100 and even with small companies that's just getting started. Sales training itself is about teaching anyone how to sell and win in sales. Every organization have sales people, and Jeb's company got various programs that fit any of those companies depending on where they are in their life cycle. He helps primarily these team on how to accelerate sales growth, because growth has the tendency to smooth out everything else. If you are not growing, you got a lot more problems. Jeb helps them accelerate growth, build revenue, and do it fast without a whole lot of complications. Everybody wants to win, and today's fast-phase market place, everything is moving too quickly and a lot of competitors are moving in. What Jeb sees is that people tend to over complicate solving problems; difficult for them to take complex things and simplify them. Something as simple as pick-up the phone and have a conversation. If you really want to grow your business then talk to people, the more people you talk to the more your business will grow. A lot of businesses today are spread out; therefore, Jeb would like you to grab his latest book "Virtual Training". It tells you everything on what you need to know on how Jeb's organization scale their business. They triple the size of their business in 12 months using the techniques and even the technology they use. Jeb's Valuable Free Action (VFA): Just pick up the phone and call somebody. The number one problem I see in the marketplace is that they're using email or social media, and they're not making conversations. Call one of your customers and have a conversation.

What does emotional intelligence have to do with sales leadership? According to Colleen Stanley, who is the author of the hit new book Emotional Intelligence for Sales Leadership, a high EQ matters a lot. In fact, it is the real secret to building a high-performance sales team. On this Sales Gravy podcast episode, Jeb Blount, the author of Sales EQ, and Colleen use stories of failure, successes, and personal experiences to illustrate why EQ is so important and how to apply it as a sales leader. Download your FREE leaders guide to Sales Incentive Programs from Blueboard HERE

What does emotional intelligence have to do with sales leadership? According to Colleen Stanley, who is the author of the hit new book Emotional Intelligence for Sales Leadership, a high EQ matters a lot. In fact, it is the real secret to building a high-performance sales team. On this Sales Gravy podcast episode, Jeb Blount, the author of Sales EQ, and Colleen use stories of failure, successes, and personal experiences to illustrate why EQ is so important and how to apply it as a sales leader. Download your FREE leaders guide to Sales Incentive Programs from Blueboard HERE

Hello and welcome to Kick-Ass Brands Show.I'm Andrei Mincov, the founder of Trademark Factory. Today, I have an amazing guest for you.Jeb Blount, who is a Sales Acceleration Specialist and the author of twelve books including FANATICAL PROSPECTING, SALES EQ, OBJECTIONS, and his latest best-seller VIRTUAL SELLING. He's among the world's most respected thought leaders on prospecting sales, leadership, and customer experience. Through his global training organizations Sales Gravy, Jeb advises who's who of the world's leading organizations and their executives on the impact of emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills on customer facing-activities.

This Sales Gravy Podcast episode is part one of Jeb Blount's (Virtual Selling) conversation with Diane Helbig (Succeed Without Selling) about why for business owners, entrepreneurs, and sales professionals success in selling and business growth really isn't about "selling." Instead, when you focus on solving problems, that's when the real magic happens. Listen to Part Two – Intentional Empathy Listen to Part Three – Sales is a Process We want to hear from you. Let us know what you think about this episode – we love your comments and questions. Just send Jeb a text message at 1-706-397-4599 or CLICK HERE TO TEXT. Ps. You can access Sales Gravy University Here Why Did You Choose To Write This Book? Diane: The book is called Succeed Without Selling: The More You Think About Selling The Less You'll Sell. I decided to write it because so many salespeople and small business owners are, in my estimation, behaving badly because they are so focused on selling that they're not getting what they want. They're not getting the results that they want and it's frustrating. And so I thought, this is what I teach when I do sales training. What if I could put it into a book and just tell them everything about sales mindset? You know, what happens when you do this, but what happens when you do that, with scripts and, and templates in the back of the book. If I can just give them everything, hopefully, a bell will go off in their head and they'll start doing things differently and achieve better results. So Why Does Being Successful in Sales Have Nothing To Do With Selling? Diane: When salespeople are selling, they are thinking about themselves. They're thinking about the fact that they have to hit quota, that they have to get revenue, that they have to do all of these things. Their mindset is, “I need to convince you that you need what I have to sell. I have to be eloquent enough and say the right things. I have to be persuasive.” They do it at networking events, they do it when they're in a sales meeting, they do it all the time. And the truth is that when salespeople behave that way, they don't get the sale because they're not listening. They're not matching what they have to what that person needs. They're not hearing what the situation is. So that's why I say that it's not about selling. It's about solving, right? It's about connecting and making sure that it's a good fit because that's how you get long-term business relationships that serve your business for decades. Sales Is Not About Selling, It's About Solving Jeb: I totally agree with you. Not that long ago, I was doing training out in Oregon and one of the people in my class was an ex CIA agent. I was teaching some concepts out of Sales EQ around human influence frameworks. And he grabbed me and said, “What's the difference between what you're teaching and what we were doing as CIA agents? Essentially, when we were bringing people in, we were using the same frameworks you're teaching to get people to turn over information or rat out someone else. And I said, “The human brain works the way the human brain works." For example, if you listen to someone, it makes them like you more. It's just how we operate. And if they like you more and you listen to them, they're more likely to give you something because you made them feel good. I mean, that's just basic influence frameworks, but what you said is exactly how I explained it to him. I said, “In your line of work, you were using these influence frameworks to manipulate people into giving you what you wanted. And in my line of work, I help people, and I solve problems." "I'm Not The Right Fit For You" Jeb: The very last thing I want to do is sell someone something, or do something for someone that they don't want or don't need. And that doesn't mean that I couldn't because I'm pretty good at influencing people and persuading people. I could certainly do that. I could go out and sell things to people that they didn't need, but I never do that. It's a normal thing for me and my business to turn customers away and say, “We're the wrong fit for you. You should not do this because you're going to spend money with me and you're not going to get the outcome that you desire." And I've always led with that. And I believe that people know there's sincerity in that. What's so funny about it is when you tell them, “I'm the wrong fit for you,” they start trying to figure out how you can be a fit for them. Diane: That is so true! Exactly. I had someone say to me, once I said, “Listen, I'm not the right resource for you.” She said, “Well, I sure hope you are because I trust you.” And I said, “Well, then you're going to have to trust me when I tell you I am not the right resource for you.” It's exactly what you say. And those people will refer you to people because you're honest. People Gravitate Towards Salespeople Who Don't Sell Jeb: Exactly right. You're honest. There's a local place where I live called C&C Tire, we only take our cars there because we trust Tommy and he's honest. If he can't fix it, he won't say, “Yeah I can fix it.” And then you spend money with him. He'll say this isn't going to happen here, let me get you someone that can do that. Or if you come in and say, “I need this fixed. Cause I think this is the problem.” He'll say, “Nah, it's a $2 part. You don't have this problem.” And he's always been that way. If you look at his business, there are people waiting in line to get him to work on their cars because he's not trying to sell you something that you don't need. Diane: And because we are so used to mechanics selling us things we don't need that, he's a gem, right? So the salespeople who don't sell are the ones that people gravitate toward because they know they're going to be told the truth. It's a total integrity thing. And I'll add something to what you were talking about, which is when you convince somebody they need what you have, it's a really bad relationship. And neither of you like it. So why would you do it? You're going to end up spending time with someone that it's just difficult all the time. The Gangrene of Business Relationships Jeb: If I sell you something that you don't need and you realize that I did that, then you resent me. Maybe you're a small business. I've been in this position before where I needed a sale or I needed to get a deal done. I would lower my price, or add on services in order to convince someone that I could help to do business with me. But down the road, as my business grew, I started resenting that customer because I felt like they were taking advantage of me. Resentment leads to contempt, which is the gangrene of business relationships. It will rot them out at the core until there's a point where you cannot save the relationship. There won't be any referrals, you don't like each other, and it almost always ends badly. So when your focus is on solving rather than selling, you only solve problems you can solve. You solve the problems you can solve at a price point that allows you to provide the service that the person is expecting you to deliver down the road, post-sale.

Want to know how to have better EQ? In this episode, I'll teach you a small sales adjustment you can start using in your sales calls, demos, and follow-ups. Questions? Connect with me on LinkedIn and let me know!

Listen to Lance Tyson, the most sought after coach & trainer of sales leaders, who has also authored two best selling books; Igniting sales EQ: Driving Sales Confidence During Uncertainty & Selling is an Away Game: Close Business and Compete in a Complex World, talk about how to motivate sales teams and the enterprise to keep winning business in the uncertain times of Pandemic. Lance addresses the so desired role of EQ in such times.

Listen to Lance Tyson, the most sought after coach & trainer of sales leaders, who has also authored two best selling books; Igniting sales EQ: Driving Sales Confidence During Uncertainty & Selling is an Away Game: Close Business and Compete in a Complex World, talk about how to motivate sales teams and the enterprise to keep winning business in the uncertain times of Pandemic. Lance addresses the so desired role of EQ in such times.

Virtual Selling: A Quick-Start Guide to Leveraging Video, Technology, and Virtual Communication Channels to Engage Remote Buyers and Close Deals Fast by Jeb Blount And, just like that, everything changed. A global pandemic. Panic. Social distancing. Working from home. Suddenly, virtual became king. Digital transformation rolled over us like a tidal wave. Virtual Selling is the new normal. To remain competitive, salespeople, account managers, entrepreneurs, and business professionals must shift the way they engage prospects and customers. There is no turning back. Virtual Selling can be challenging. Few of us haven’t felt the wave of insecurity the instant a video camera is pointed in our direction. It’s natural to feel intimidated by technology and digital tools. In the virtual world, everything moves fast. Virtual Selling is powerful. The good news is with a little training and a few easy-to-learn techniques, you can confidently master virtual sales calls, protect your income, and continue to serve and provide solutions to the customers who depend on you. Virtual Selling is the definitive resource and guide to leveraging video-based technology, digital tools, and virtual communication channels and techniques for human to human engagement and connection. You’ll learn directly from Jeb Blount, one of the most sought-after and celebrated sales trainers of our generation. Jeb teaches you: How to choose the right technology stack for your unique situation The five elements of effective virtual sales calls The seven keys to making a lasting impression on video How to make the camera your best friend Why you must be video ready (BVR) all the time How to leverage virtual tools to get more done, in less time, with better outcomes Seven virtual communication strategies you must never forget How to conduct multi-stakeholder virtual sales calls The B.O.N.D. virtual engagement framework How to leverage digital tools to keep buyers engaged and deals advancing after the virtual call How to leverage the powerful M.L.P. strategy within the virtual sales process to bend win probability in your favor The five questions stakeholders are always asking on every virtual call The S.C.O.R.E. Discovery Method for virtual sales calls How to deliver effective virtual demos and presentations that grab attention and seal the deal Key strategies for leveraging Virtual Selling to reduce sales cycles and accelerate pipeline velocity How to ask for what you want, get past objections, and close the deal on virtual sales calls How to reduce costs and boost productivity with a blended virtual/physical sales approach that meets stakeholders where they are on the buying journey Mastering these techniques will instantly separate you from competitors and give you a distinct competitive edge Virtual Selling is the most comprehensive resource on video-based and digital sales skills ever developed. As you dive into these powerful insights, and with each new chapter, you'll gain greater and greater confidence in your ability to conduct successful virtual sales calls. And, with this newfound confidence, your success and income will soar. Following in the footsteps of his blockbuster bestsellers People Buy You, Fanatical Prospecting, Sales EQ, Objections, and Inked, Jeb Blount's Virtual Selling puts the same strategies employed by his clients¯a who's who of the world's most prestigious organizations¯right into your hands. Click here for this episode's website page with the links mentioned during the interview... https://www.salesartillery.com/marketing-book-podcast/virtual-selling-jeb-blount

Jeb Blount is a best selling author including Fanatical Prospecting, Sales EQ, Objections and most recently Virtual Selling. He's published hundreds of articles and is among the world's most respected thought leaders on sales, leadership, and customer experience.  He is the leader and CEO of Sales Gravy.  Sales Gravy is the #1 most trafficked website in the world.

On part two of this Sales Gravy podcast series on sleep and sales performance, Jeb Blount (author of Sales EQ) and Jeff Kahn (CEO of Rise Science) discuss the impact of sleep on emotional intelligence and positive mindset. You will be surprised to learn that the lack of sleep makes it more difficult: to control your emotions perceive the emotions of others effectively manage sales meetings build relationships Jeff says that walking into a sales meeting without enough sleep is the same as going in drunk. You'll learn that the sleep you get tonight is the beginning of your performance tomorrow. Listen to Part One of Sleep and Sales Performance

On part one of this Sales Gravy podcast series on sleep and sales performance, Jeb Blount (author of Sales EQ) and Jeff Kahn (CEO of Rise Science) discuss how sleep impacts sales performance. Listen to Part Two of Sleep and Sales Performance

Learn to Run Your I.T. Business Hosted by Jeff Halash from TechNutPC.com Paco Lebron from ProdigyTeks John Fazio from Zorus Jennifer Bleam from MSP Sales Revolution MSP Unplugged Video Live Show and Chat every Sunday at 7:30pm EST Email: Jeff@MSPUnplugged.com Support This Show Patreon.com/MSPUnplugged BuyMeACoffee,com/MSPUnplugged PayPal.Me/MSPUnplugged   Main Topic: How to be better at sales   Join us for the 2020 ANNUAL – TECHCON UNPLUGGED BRINGING COMMUNITY TOGETHER Get away from your business, for a weekend of learning, fun and some new relationships in a getaway retreat Join like-minded business owners to help your IT business thrive! Hear from experts and get one-on-one time with peers facing the same challenges. Walk away with concrete action items to take your business to the next level. Sept 25th-27th 2020 Grand Rapids MI TechConUnplugged.com   Instant Housecall Remote support that is easy to use. FREE Auto PC Repair to track down and kill unwanted viruses FREE subaccounts to let your customers control their own PCs from home Special Discount for Listening to MSP Unplugged: Half price for the first three months, or 2 additional months free on a yearly Subscription To claim your discount, Go to InstantHousecall.com sign up for your Free 15 Day Trial Then e-mail Corey@instantHousecall.com and tell him you're an MSP Unplugged listener   Links: Instant Housecall Kickstarter is a free program designed to help new entrepreneurs who were impacted by layoff due to coronavirus. If you are starting a new computer repair, MSP, IT service, or IT consulting business, Instant Housecall Kickstarter is for you. PARTICIPANTS RECEIVE 6 months free Instant Housecall Remote Support Software (Entrepreneur Edition) 6 months free mentoring from an industry advisor, 1 hour each month for 6 months Join Instant Housecall Kickstarter   Paycheck Protection Program   Google Alerts   The Little Red Book of Selling   Response Block Selling   The Law of Success   Prospect the Sandler Way: A 30-Day Program for Mastering Stress-Free Lead Development   Sales EQ   Psycho Cybernetics   Think and Grow Rich   The Richest Man in Babylon   Free 30-Day Cybersecurity Success Roadmap   DISCLAIMER: This description contains affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, we’ll receive a small commission.   Music By Jim Holley

Can introverts sell?  Jeb Blount author of Sales EQ, and Mathew Pollard author of The Introvert's Edge, break down the myths about introverts and selling. In part one of this series, you'll learn why successful introverts employ a consistent, repeatable sales system. Listen to Part Two of Introverts Can Sell Listen to Part Three of Introverts Can Sell Listen to Part Four of Introverts Can Sell Listen to Part Five of Introverts Can Sell Listen to Part Six of Introverts Can Sell

Curt interviews sales superstar and bestselling author, Jeb Blount. Jeb is one of the “godfathers” of the Outbound sales conference, and the bestselling author of books including, Fanatical Prospecting, Sales EQ, and Objections. He hosts an ever-growing treasure trove of sales resources and content at SalesGravy.com.   For more:  https://jebblount.com/ https://outboundconference.com/

"In sales your job is to go out and find some rejection and bring it home." That's the blunt, profound sales truth you can expect from our guest today Jeb Blount, best-selling author of Sales EQ and Fanatical Prospecting. Rejection is not only a part of sales it lays at the very foundation. If you're giving up on the first rejection you are missing out on sales opportunities.  Dealing with objections and rejection begins with your mindset. Knowing how to control your own emotions is essential to being able to influence the decisions of the people you need to say, "Yes!" This is an episode full of actionable advice that you can use on your very next sales call. Don't say, "No," to this episode. You've been warned!  About Today’s Guest Jeb Blount is a sales acceleration specialist and the author of ten books including Fanatical Prospecting, Sales EQ, People Buy You, People Follow You, and Objections. He is among the world’s most respected thought leaders on prospecting, sales, leadership, and customer experience. Through his global training organization, Sales Gravy, Jeb advises a who’s who of the world’s leading organizations and their executives on the impact of emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills on customer-facing activities. Continue the conversation online with Jeb Blount @salesgravy. On today’s podcast... 1:29 - Gina is a Jeb Blount fan girl 10:17 - What was the tipping point that got Jeb Blount on the show while he's on the road? 13:49 - How does Jeb deal with generic, boring pitches that he gets? 16:39 - Prospects want to see you earn it 20:26 - Jeb Blount's Groundhog Day strategy 23:09 - A 4-step framework for sending effective prospecting messages 27:21 - Sending a Dear Kathy letter....to a Gina 30:45 - The phone is still king. Field level sales is making a comeback. 34:29 - The Katy Perry Paradigm 37:55 - The way we communicate changes but the way our brain works doesn't change 41:48 - "In sales, your job is to go out and find some rejection and bring it home." 43:30 - Jeb coaches his son to change his approach when selling CFO's 46:33 - "If you can't manage your own emotions, how are you going to be able to influence the emotions and behaviors of other people?" 51:55 - The reasons your prospects object 56:22 - Overcoming the "think about it" objection For more Gina, Rachel and Women Your Mother Warned You About visit our website! More about Gina Gina Trimarco is CEO/Founder of Pivot10 Results (training and strategy company) and Carolina Improv Company (comedy club and school). She has 25+ years of experience in marketing, sales, operations and people training. Gina combines street smarts and improv comedy skills with her experience in the corporate and entrepreneurial worlds, which sets her apart from her competition. A true Chicago city girl, her much older father trained her in sales starting at the age of 10, working in flea markets.  More about Rachel Rachel Pitts is a Mom, Realtor, Author, and Creator of The Closing Curve, a new real estate software focused on enhancing the buyer experience. With a background in show business, her motto is: Entertain. Inform. Inspire. Find Rachel on social media as RachelonRealEstate, at www.rachelonrealestate.com and www.theclosingcurve.com and pick up her book, The Gift of Wreckage on Amazon More about Keith Walters As Managing Principal of Walters Dev Group, LLC, Keith currently assists companies via board and advisory roles. Keith has spent more than 30 years using a strong entrepreneurial focus to lead, advise and grow very successful businesses. His focus on operational excellence brings stability into organizations he leads and guides. Through a unique management system focused on company growth and strong culture development Keith helps build businesses that are true talent magnets. Women Your Mother Warned You About™ is part of the Sell or Die Podcast Network. Check out these other amazing SORD podcasts.  Sell or Die The Why and The Buy Hidden Stories with Jeremy Fulkerson Wheelbarrow Profits

Gina and Rachel are all up in their feelings. Well really, they're just talking about emotions, specifically emotional intelligence. As our sales worlds get faster, more complex and communication face to face becomes less prevalent it's more important than ever to make everything we say COUNT...and not count against us.  There are so many challenges to face with prospects and customers that controlling our emotions can be very difficult. Gina and Rachel discuss their own struggles with clients and how they deal with them constructively instead of destructively. There are tons of suggestions for further study in this episode so make sure to click the links below for more.    On today’s podcast... :56 - Rachel will sell you your piece of paradise 3:26 - Clients who can't deal with reality 7:44 - In any selling process, people are going to purchase based on how they value something. 13:35 - Gina's controversial definition of emotional intelligence 17:39 - Three Toxic Phrases to Avoid 23:28 - Perception is reality for all people 29:19 - It's never a bad idea to just keep your mouth shut 36:50 - Books to read for your emotional intelligence: Sales EQ by Jeb Blount 36:50 - Books to read for your emotional intelligence: Emotional Intelligence 2.0 by Travis Bradberry 36:50 - Blogs to read for your emotional intelligence - Gina's blog For more Gina, Rachel and Women Your Mother Warned You About visit our website!   More about Gina Gina Trimarco is CEO/Founder of Pivot10 Results (training and strategy company) and Carolina Improv Company (comedy club and school). She has 25+ years of experience in marketing, sales, operations and people training. Gina combines street smarts and improv comedy skills with her experience in the corporate and entrepreneurial worlds, which sets her apart from her competition. A true Chicago city girl, her much older father trained her in sales starting at the age of 10, working in flea markets. More about Rachel Rachel Pitts is a Mom, Realtor, Author, and Creator of The Closing Curve, a new real estate software focused on enhancing the buyer experience. With a background in show business, her motto is: Entertain. Inform. Inspire. Find Rachel on social media as RachelonRealEstate, at www.rachelonrealestate.com and www.theclosingcurve.com and pick up her book, The Gift of Wreckage on Amazon More about Keith Walters As Managing Principal of Walters Dev Group, LLC, Keith currently assists companies via board and advisory roles. Keith has spent more than 30 years using a strong entrepreneurial focus to lead, advise and grow very successful businesses. His focus on operational excellence brings stability into organizations he leads and guides. Through a unique management system focused on company growth and strong culture development Keith helps build businesses that are true talent magnets. Women Your Mother Warned You About™ is part of the Sell or Die Podcast Network. Check out these other amazing SORD podcasts. Sell or Die The Why and The Buy Hidden Stories with Jeremy Fulkerson Wheelbarrow Profits

This is a Sell or Die classic episode. Maybe you missed it the first time around. If you didn't, listen again. Repetition is the mother of mastery. Original Release Date: May 18th, 2017 Jeb Blount is the author of Fanatical Prospecting and has devoted his life to help people make more sales through the art and science of prospecting. His new book Sales EQ explores the new psychology of selling. In this interview he'll explain how ultra high performers are leveraging emotional intelligence to close more deals.   Join our Exclusive Sell or Die Facebook Group, where our members are already discussing the latest episode. Submit your sales question and we will answer it on the show!   Need more sales help? Jeffrey's website: https://gitomer.com Jennifer's website: https://salesinanyminute.com Subscribe to the Gitomer Learning Academy: https://go.gitomer.com/gitomer-learning-academy   FREE EBOOK: GET GOOD, BETTER, BEST! Learn the six elements that you must master in order to uncover the secret of personal achievement. Good. Better. Best. Which one are you? http://bit.ly/GOOD-BETTER-BEST

Jeb Blount is a sales acceleration specialist and the author of ten books including Fanatical Prospecting, Sales EQ, People Buy You, People Follow You, and Objections. He is among the world’s most respected thought leaders on prospecting, sales, leadership, and customer experience.Through his global training organization, Sales Gravy, Jeb advises a who’s who of the world’s leading organizations and their executives on the impact of emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills on customer-facing activities.

Jeb Blount is a world-class thought leader in B2B sales and new business.  He has written 9 wonderful books. If you haven’t read Fanatical prospecting and Sales EQ and you’re wondering why you aren’t winning more new business, I suggest you pick up a copy. Fanatical Prospecting is the most comprehensive guide ever on prospecting. Essential reading for anyone involved in generating new business.  Essentially, we discuss everything from….using emotional intelligence to make more of an impact when selling. The best prospecting strategies to use for marketing agencies, issues with the Challenger Sales methodology which I had never heard anyone criticise at least publicly before, and I have to say I agree with him. we'll have to get Mathew Dixon and Brent Adamson on the show to defend themselves.  If you are at all interested in how to fill your pipeline with sales ready prospects and how to improve your ability to convert them into customers, I think you’re going to find this conversation fascinating.

In this episode, we jump into handling an objection that many salespeople fear. Why? Because most of them, when confronted with a client objection, automatically move to ‘fight or flight.’ Neil shares his experience in handling objections… and how in most cases it ends up working out well. Yet like many salespeople, he also admits that it can be challenging when confronted with a “That’s too expensive” response. However, after rereading one of his favourite books, “Sales EQ” by Jeb Blount, Neil remembered and shares in this episode, a fantastic story from the book titled ‘TheMysterious Brown Bag.’ He goes on to explain how the story can help you understand the principle of repositioning yourself, so that price becomes less of a consideration. The principle of this story will get you thinking about how you can reposition yourself, your brand and your company during that critical moment when the buyer tries to negotiate on price. In this episode you’ll learn: How a lot of sales people move into ‘fight or flight’ when confronted with an objection Price can be a difficult objection to handle, if you’re only focusing on price The principles of how to reposition you and your offer, to counter the “That’s too expensive” objection That a price objection is a buying signal in disguise An important point is a price objection is not always about price, it’s about value – what they get for the price.

  Jeb Blount is a sales acceleration specialist and the author of ten books including Fanatical Prospecting, Sales EQ, People Buy You, People Follow You, and Objections. He is among the world’s most respected thought leaders on prospecting, sales, leadership, and customer experience. Through his global training organization, Sales Gravy, Jeb advises a who’s who of the world’s leading organizations and their executives on the impact of emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills on customer-facing activities. In this episode, Jeb shares tips on using time management to become a top salesperson.   Here are some of the topics covered in this episode:   Organize your calendar to optimize certain activities Prioritize the most important sales tasks Use Golden Hours to their full advantage How to coach your team on time management   You can listen to this episode on iTunes, Stitcher, Spotify, Google Play or wherever you get your favorite podcast!   About the Guest: Jeb Blount is the bestselling Author and among the world’s most respected thought leaders on sales, leadership, and customer experience. He transforms organizations by optimizing talent, leveraging training to cultivate a high-performance sales culture, developing leadership and coaching skills, and applying more effective organizational design.   Through his global training organizations, including Sales Gravy, Channel EQ, and Innovate Knowledge, Jeb advises many of the world’s leading organizations and their executives on the impact of emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills on customer-facing activities, and delivers training to thousands of participants in both public and private forums. Website: Salesgravy.com   Youtube: www.youtube.com/user/salesgravy   LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/jebblount   Twitter: @SalesGravy   Facebook: @SalesGravy   Instagram: @SalesGravy Listen to more episodes of the Outside Sales Talk here and watch the video here.

Jeb Blount is the best-selling author of eight books including Sales EQ, Fanatical Prospecting, People Follow You, People Buy You. He is a Sales Acceleration specialist who helps organizations reach peak performance fast by optimizing talent, leveraging training to cultivate high-performance sales culture, developing leadership and coaching skills, and applying more effective organizational design. Through his companies – Sales Gravy, Channel EQ, and Innovate Knowledge - he advises many of the world's leading organizations and their executives on the impact of emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills on sales, leadership, customer experience, channel development, and strategic account management. Under Jeb's leadership Sales Gravy has become a global leader in sales acceleration solutions including sales recruitment and staffing, sales on-boarding automation, custom sales training curriculum development and delivery, sales coaching, and online learning. As a business leader Jeb has more than 25 years of experience with Fortune 500, SMBs and start-ups. He has been named one of the top 50 Most Influential Sales and Marketing Leaders (Top Sales Magazine), a Top 30 Social Selling Influencer (Forbes), a Top 10 Sales Experts to Follow on Twitter (Evan Carmichael), a Top 100 Most Innovative Sales Blogger (iSEEIT), a Top 20 must read author (Yes Magazine & Huffington Post), and the most downloaded sales podcaster in iTunes history; among many other accolades. His flagship website, SalesGravy.com, is the most visited sales specific website on the planet.

Jeb Blount is a sales acceleration specialist and the author of ten books including Fanatical Prospecting, Sales EQ, People Buy You, People Follow You, and Objections. He is among the world’s most respected thought leaders on prospecting, sales, leadership, and customer experience. Through his global training organization, Sales Gravy, Jeb advises a who’s who of the world’s leading organizations and their executives on the impact of emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills on customer-facing activities.          In this episode, Karen and Jeb discuss:          Success Story of Jeb.          Commit to Get Leads   o    Creating a pipeline is the key to success. Make sure you always make time to create that pipeline and put it into motion.        Consult to Sell   o   You must approach everything with confidence that you can and will succeed.          Connect to Build and Grow   o   ‘Yes’ has a number, and that number and knowing it will create the process to a successful business model with in the micro and macro levels.          Success Thinking, Activities and Vision   o   Always be prospecting for opportunities. Don’t procrastinate and miss a chance to be proactive.           Sweet Spot of Success       "The key is doing it."- Jeb Blount       *5 Minute Success - Listener Giveaway*    Go to goals.salvygracy.com to get a full video course on goal planning.         Connect with Jeb Blount:        Twitter: @salesgravy Facebook: @jebondemand     Website: www.salesgravy.com YouTube: @salesgravy LinkedIn: @jebblount        About the Podcast     Join host Karen Briscoe each week to learn how you can achieve success at a higher level by investing just 5 minutes a day! Tune in to hear powerful, inspirational success stories and expert insights from entrepreneurs, business owners, industry leaders, and real estate agents that will transform your business and life. Karen shares a-ha moments that have shaped her career and discusses key concepts from her book Real Estate Success in 5 Minutes a Day: Secrets of a Top Agent Revealed.      Here’s to your success in business and in life!         Connect with Karen Briscoe:       Twitter: @5MinuteSuccess   Facebook: 5MinuteSuccess   Website: 5MinuteSuccess.com   Email: Karen@5MinuteSuccess.com     5 Minute Success Links     Learn more about Karen’s book, Real Estate Success in 5 Minutes a Day     Subscribe to 5 Minute Success Podcast       Spread the love and share the secrets of 5 Minute Success with your friends and colleagues!       Audio production by Turnkey Podcast Productions. You're the expert. Your podcast will prove it.

Jeb Blount is a sales acceleration specialist and the author of ten books including Fanatical Prospecting, Sales EQ, People Buy You, People Follow You, and Objections. He is among the world's most respected thought leaders on prospecting, sales, leadership, and customer experience Through his global training organization, Sales Gravy, Jeb advices a who's who of the world's leading organizations and their executives on the impact of emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills on customer-facing activities.

To celebrate our 50th episode, we have a fantastic podcast for you.  Jeb Blount, is the author of fanatical prospecting, Sales EQ, Objections and many more as well as the  CEO of SalesGravy.  Sales Gravy is a global leader in sales acceleration and customer experience enablement solutions.  This is a must listen for anyone with a sales team whether small business or corporate.

Chad’s beginnings With over 20 years of broad based experience from global marketing to enterprise sales, Chad learned what he is passionate about. Mentoring, coaching other sales professionals and organizations to get better excite him. The key to his sales success was his training in the ValueSelling Framework 17 years ago where he has stayed in contact with the individuals who did the training and the business they were running. That opportunity influenced him to be a franchisee for the organization. He wants to make sure that he is doing something that he is passionate about - helping other individuals with subject matter that he has some expertise in. Chad’s solution of choice (02:38) Chad’s training 17 years ago, gave him tools that’s not just focused on sales or marketing. The training enlightened him how to do it, how to have value based conversations whether it be for internal alignment in the organization I was in or with prospects or as a way to create personas. He explains that the framework and the methodology that they teach is simple, very easy to understand, very pragmatic and very easy to adopt, that he could coach to it, mentor to it and inspire teams with it. At the same time he could do data analytics from it which made it really his solution of choice. As he became an executive, he thinks that the challenge is to make sure, if you're investing in training your sales or marketing teams, that it's something they're actually going to use and will provide them value. Chad shares that in sales, they want to make sure they're having as many conversations as possible structured in a way that is going to provide the most value to both parties. Their sales framework does not only focus on sales, but also on organizational alignment, marketing, and sales enablement. Breaking down walls in smaller companies (06:02) According to Chad, they provide tool set that gives marketing and sales a common language and a common framework. It enables them to clearly understand each other’s needs. They can get to a point where they understand each other's vision and acknowledge what each party has to bring to the table in order to optimize the revenue generation results. It may take a little while sometimes to master, but it does provide huge dividends for sales and marketing teams, especially when you know there's aggressive growth. Through their value prompter tool, it's very easy for everybody to be on the same page and generate impressive results.   Communication within the team (07:48) Chad talks about the people in the team and their differences. Older and more experienced ones have a lot of perspective through which they view the current marketplace, their current employer, the current sales and marketing landscape. He thinks that people that have been around a little bit longer are struggling at times with the speed at which multichannels evolve and which channels are okay to use. It’s more of the decorum. On the other hand, Chad thinks that millenials or the younger end are very comfortable with technology. For them those touchpoints can stimulate the sense of connectedness that may not be necessary at all times. In order for them to interact more effectively with other people in a business environment, they are equipped with tools the close that age gap and help them, regardless of industry expertise, have more effective conversations with people. Chad mentions that sometimes they need to tweak the tool a little and introduce some technology and how that works. They teach the tools and the frameworks leveraging that technology. He says that at the end of the day, it's all about getting into that common language and framework. Chad discusses a challenge that a lot of their larger global customers have - mix of people. Internally, there may need to be some understanding of what's the standard operating procedure for communications. When people in a team have a framework where they can have a consistent type of conversation, there will be increases in efficiencies and impacts because everybody does their part well. Everybody's on the same page. Building an inner team communication (12:52) Chad says that to be able to facilitate that inner team communication, his team typically uses an online class to give everybody that kind of introduction. Then, they do classroom training where they practice the conversations, the behaviors that are necessary to make it work. The training is participant centered. They engage in activities so that as they're going through the process of implementing the framework, they're starting to see the advantages of it. After the workshop, Chad’s team puts up together some type of reinforcement, coaching or mentoring to make sure the learner has access to the information and the support when and how he needs it. Chad’s team has an extremely integrated learning management system that allows them to pull in video, audio, podcast, content quizzes, gamification, etc., designed in such a way that it's going to be optimal for the team that they will work with. Applying the system in own business (14:20) Chad affirms that they use their sales methodology to sell it. It's a living, breathing approach based on proven formulas and tools that they then are able to bring a timely context too as they implement with clients. For Chad, there's no better way to prove that you really believe in your product unless you apply it in your own business. Dealing with shifts in the market (16:44) As an entrepreneur, Chad always looks for ways to make their team more present when somebody wants them to be where they want them to be, when they want them to be there. He shares that there are new tools and new approaches coming out all the time. Every three to four months, Chad and his team dedicate two or three hours in the afternoon to get together as a group. They share ideas that could be utilized to drive more value for the customer. The goal of their team is to make sure that everything they do provides value for their prospects and customers. Although at times, it’s a little more challenging for the team, they've gotten great feedback from clients on how much they appreciate the availability. Book recommendation (23:00) Creativity, Inc. by Ed Catmull - It's about how the team at Pixar came up with some of their stories like the process they go through to pressure test and brainstorm some of the creative ideas that they come up with. Sales EQ by Jeb Blount - Chad thinks that the concept of being more human and having the ability to increase your emotional awareness is key for anybody, not just in sales. Unfu*k Yourself: Get Out of Your Head and Into Your Life by Gary John Bishop - It’s a self help book for self empowerment and self accountability. So those are the three that when I'm asked, those are the ones I typically will point to because I think they provide a great deal of value in multiple facets of what's required today to be an effective human being.

On this weeks show, I speak to Jeb Blount,Jeb is the best-selling author of nine books including Sales EQ, Fanatical Prospecting, People Follow You, People Buy You, and Objections available in the Spring 2018. He is a Sales Acceleration specialist who helps organizations reach peak performance fast by optimizing talent, leveraging training to cultivate high-performance sales culture, developing leadership and coaching skills, and applying more effective organizational design. Through his companies – Sales Gravy, Channel EQ, and Innovate Knowledge - he advises many of the world’s leading organizations and their executives on the impact of emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills on sales, leadership, customer experience, channel development, and strategic account management. Under Jeb’s leadership Sales Gravy has become a global leader in sales acceleration solutions including sales recruitment and staffing, sales on-boarding automation, custom sales training curriculum development and delivery, sales coaching, and online learning. Do you want toSubscribe to Joe Dalton podcastsDiscover the top ten tips that Joe has discovered from the 100s of people he has interviewed on is radio shows CLICK HERE See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Nothing Brings About Success Like Walking Through The Right DoorsThose close to me, who know the real me, know I have no problem asking for help. Asking for help is not a sign of weakness. It is an opportunity to expand your horizons. I'm flabbergasted by the amount of people who simply fail to ask for help.I've made it my mission to educate, engage and excite all those inside the sales world. Sales leaders and their sales teams must stand up, unite and transform how they go to market in a world full of sales sameness.I believe every single sales rep must articulate a strong value proposition and tailor them to different stakeholders. They must be able to devote a tremendous amount of effort to understanding the customer, their needs, their wants, their issues; packaging all of this up by focusing on adding value every step of the way.I spent 27 years inside an extremely old school sales channel, laggard in nature and slow to adopt to modern ways of growing business; the copier channel. I've directed many pointed blogs at the industry such as, Sales Transformation... The Key To Success As A Copier Sales Rep I speak loudly to how copier sales reps must transform themselves. They must take it upon themselves to innovative inside a very slow to adapt sales channel.I now direct this same message to every sales channel out there... How are you innovating? How are you adapting to what is happening around you? What's standing in your way?EVOLVE OR FACE THE CONSEQUENCESIn life, shit happens! The spring of 2015, I found myself in a position where life took a massive turn. We all face challenging times in life. We can either let it consume us as we fade into a downward life spiral or we can use it as a launching pad to reinvent, reinvigorate and reignite passion; a passion to challenge ones mindset and skill set to start something new.A special shout out to my close friend and mentor who started his journey at the same time Scott MacGregor, at SomethingNew.I've had the fortunate experience of meeting many amazing people throughout my lifetime. A special thank you to my dear friend, Darrell Amy. Without a doubt, the most genuine, authentic and caring individuals I know. His belief in me and more importantly his ability to push me out of my comfort zone has changed me for the better, and I am forever grateful!THE LAUNCH OF SOMETHING SPECIALEvolve or perish! Two words being thrown at sales reps all over the world. Evolve to me means trying something new, adapting and adopting; constantly being on the look out to improve everything about what you do.With the heartfelt support of Darrell Amy, my business baby was launched to the sales world! The Social Sales Academy is fully committed to helping B2B sales teams integrate social into their sales process to ignite and fuel sales growth. We want you to get results. We're passionate about doing this the right way, the genuine way, the authentic way! Straight from the heart!ARE YOU CREATING VISIBILITY"How do you expect to get noticed in a marketplace when nobody knows you exist?"In a highly digitally business world, how do sales people get noticed? How do they rise above all others to stand out?You have to be willing to put yourself out there. Integrating social is jet fuel to anybody in sales who uses it in conjunction with every other prospecting strategy. I threw myself out into the marketplace to get noticed. Combining a strict work ethic, I leveraged outbound strategies coupled with a commitment to social and marketed what I was all about inside the sales channel I grew up in, the copier channel.I pounded the phone. I drove emails. I spoke at industry events. I wrote articles in industry magazines. I started blogging. I leveraged every single business development tool available to get noticed. I made this a non-negotiable deal. In the span of two years, I've written over 135 blogs, over 40 published articles and have spoken at events all over the United States, Canada and Australia.I've worked with sales leaders and their teams throughout the United States, Australia and Canada. I've infused excitement and proof that social integrated into the sales process does work. I like to consider myself the biggest excuse remover out there!I'm in the process of publishing my first book, Selling From The Heart... How Your Authentic Self Sells You (to be released by the summer of 2018).I share this with all of you as you all have the capability of making this happen. We've all been giving the same sets of tools to use, it's how we choose to use them. The commitment I made to myself matters the most. My personal goal and commitment... I want to make a difference by helping sales people become the sales professionals I know they can become.SELLING FROM THE HEART PODCAST AND JEB BLOUNTApril of 2017, the Selling From The Heart Podcast was born. This was another avenue for Darrell Amy and I to get our message out to the sales world. Our podcast is all about being genuine, being real, being authentic and speaking from the heart as we help the sales community all over the world.The guests that come onto our podcast share our same mission and are advocates in selling from the heart.It was this podcast episode that changed my world... Jeb Blount, CEO of Sales Gravy. As the author of Sales EQ, Jeb shared his research about curiosity as a core sales skill on our podcast. Here's where it takes a turn... later that same evening I hear my cell phone ringing, looking at it and not recognizing the number I almost didn't answer but I did."Hey Larry, it's Jeb... Just wanted to call to say thank you again for having me on the podcast". I'm saying to myself, "Wholly crap!" For the next hour and a half we had a phenomenal conversation. The turning point in the conversation came when Jeb mentions to me that in April of 2018 he along with Mark Hunter, Mike Weinberg and Anthony Iannarinoare putting on the Outbound Conference. Jeb mentions, I've been following what you've been doing, what you've been writing about and I like what you stand for; would you like to share your story, your journey and how you have tied outbound with social strategies to get to where you are and speak at Outbound? Oh my freaking bleep, bleep, bleep, "Hell yeah Jeb I would be honored!"Let me tell you this ... If you never put yourself out there, how do you plan on getting noticed? How do you plan on attracting new sales opportunities? How do you plan on rising above all others, your competitors? Become comfortable with who you are. Share the real you and not some facade in hopes this impresses others to help you get noticed. The path I chose and carved out for myself has be done my way! The authentic way! The genuine way! The human way by staying real and being real by saying things that need to be said.People will see, smell and sense B.S. a mile away! If you can't be the real you then who are you?MY STORY, MY WAY, THE WAY I KNOW HOWI share this with you all for one reason and one reason only - you all have the ability to change your lives. It is believing in yourself, staying true to yourself and not allowing the voices of others take you down.We all have stories to tell. We all have a voice and the message needs to be told our way, your way; your unique way as you help to change the lives of those around you.I encourage every sales leaders and every sales professional to create a plan. This plan revolves around and encompasses leveraging every single business development tool available to help you get noticed in crowded marketplace. Think of your clients, your future clients, your network, your inner circle and your fellow teammates... How can you help them become better versions of themselves? How can you help them all in doing better business?I know you have it in you. If a 53 year old guy can reinvent and repackage himself then I trust you can do it. Trust me it will change your life! I'm having the time of my life. I wish the same for you.I hope this inspires you to take action. You owe it yourself, your career and your family!I understand, I get where you all are coming from. Every day, I walk in your shoes. I am fully committed to helping your sales team integrate social aspects and modern strategies into your current sales process to grow new business. I want you to get results. This is why I am passionate about doing this the right way, the genuine way, the authentic way!In 2016, I was recognized by ENX Magazine as, “The Difference Maker,” as someone who is making a difference inside the B2B office technology sector. I am passionate about helping sales reps succeed in creating their online brand image.You can find more advanced training material inside the Social Sales Academy website.I appreciate getting the opportunity to share my stories. Integrating the use of social and sharing my story on LinkedIn was my “game-changer” in the highly competitive office technology world. With great pride I transform, challenge, coach and inspire sales teams to grow new business by helping them share their story and how they communicate it out by integrating the use of social inside the sales process. You can follow me on LinkedIn, Twitter, Social Sales Academy and on my podcast by clicking on Selling from the Heart.

Colleen Stanley, founder and president of SalesLeadership, Inc., joins Smart Companies Thinking Bigger host Kelly Scanlon to discuss how to close more sales using Sales EQ. Among the points she addresses are: Sales EQ vs. Sales IQ and why the distinction is importantWhy we often lose prospects to our competitorsHow to use EQ for greater sales successThe difference between a nurturing culture and a caretaking cultureWhat organizations can start doing now to improve the sales success of their organization   In addition to running her sales development firm, Stanley is the creator of the Ei Selling System®, a sales program that integrates emotional intelligence skills with consultative selling skills. She's also written two books on sales: Emotional Intelligence For Sales Success and Growing Great Sales Teams. Salesforce recently named Stanley one of the top sales influencers of the 21st century. She's also been named one of the Top 50 Sales & Marketing Influencers, Top 10 Women in Sales Experts to Follow and Top 30 Global Gurus.  Before she launched SalesLeadership, Stanley was vice president of sales for Varsity Spirit Corporation.  She grew sales from 8 million to 90 million during her 10 years with the company. During that time, Varsity Sprint Corporation was named by Forbes magazine as one of the 200 fastest growing companies in the United States.      Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week we are joined by author, speaker, coach, thought leader, and all-around great guy, Jeb Blount, CEO of Sales Gravy. As the author of Sales EQ, Jeb shares his research about curiosity as a core sales skill. Listen in as your hosts Darrell Amy and Larry Levine talk with Jeb about how to create a positive emotional experience for the buyer.

This week we are joined by author, speaker, coach, thought leader, and all-around great guy, Jeb Blount, CEO of Sales Gravy. As the author of Sales EQ, Jeb shares his research about curiosity as a core sales skill. Listen in as your hosts Darrell Amy and Larry Levine talk with Jeb about how to create a positive emotional experience for the buyer. 

Jeb Blount - Best Seller Author "Fanatical Prospecting"  Jeb is a Sales Specialist who helps Organizations and Salespeople reach Peak Performance  "Prospecting is not about building Rapport, its about getting an appointment." Jeb "Confidence comes from confident language. We teach people how to sound confident." - Jeb STEPS TO SUCCESS IN PROSPECTING  Be ok interrupting people  Be brief  Be relevant  Be gone  Follow up systems Realize prospecting sucks    About Jeb: Jeb Blount is the best-selling author of eight books including Sales EQ, Fanatical Prospecting, People Follow You, People Buy You. He is a Sales Acceleration specialist who helps organizations reach peak performance fast by optimizing talent, leveraging training to cultivate high-performance sales culture, developing leadership and coaching skills, and applying more effective organizational design. Through his companies Sales Gravy, Channel EQ, and Innovate Knowledge - he advises many of the worlds leading organizations and their executives on the impact of emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills on sales, leadership, customer experience, channel development, and strategic account management. As a business leader, Jeb has more than 25 years of experience with Fortune 500, SMBs and start-ups. Subscribe to this podcast in iTunes http://davidihill.com  http://thesalesplaybook.net 

A lot of people in real estate hate to be known as salespeople. How do you become a salesperson known for being caring not manipulative? Why is cold calling still alive and well? What is sales EQ and how is it effective when it comes to getting the results you desire? Why is tracking your time so powerful? On this episode, we are joined by author, speaker and sales expert Jeb Blount who shares insights from his books. Prospecting is the price you have to pay in advance for success in sales and the income you want. -Jeb Blount Takeaways + Tactics Track your time in 3 basic buckets: trivial things you do, important things you do and impactful things you do. When you walk up to someone who’s not expecting you to call them, it’s a cold call. Sales EQ is about managing your own emotions while influencing the emotions of other people. Track your numbers so you’re not delusional. At the start of the show, we talked about the basis of financial prospecting and the power of time blocking for prospecting. We also discussed the 3 things holding people back from prospecting and how desire trumps procrastination. Next, we talked about the 5 things a client will want to know about you before they hire you. Towards the end of the show, we discussed how not having people to sell to makes you desperate and lowers your likelihood of getting more clients. Jeb also shared on: Why tracking your time is so necessary The biggest predictor of a client’s propensity to do business with you How Sales EQ affects the consumer’s experience The power of managing your emotions Everything that’s holding you back in prospecting is self-imposed. When you overcome perfectionism, procrastination and paralysis you can get yourself through the door. For an agent to win over a potential client, they have to check the following boxes: do they like you, do you listen to them, do you make them feel important, do you get them and their problem, do they trust and believe you? The biggest predictor of their propensity to do business with you is their emotional experience. If you can control your emotions and influence theirs, that’s sales EQ. Remember, confidence and passion are the two greatest and most important emotions in sales.   The person with the greatest control of their emotions, has the highest probability of getting the outcome they desire. Ultimately, the sales EQ process enhances the customer’s experience.    Guest Bio:Jeb is the founder of global training organizations including Sales Gravy, Channel EQ, and Innovate Knowledge, Jeb advises many of the world’s leading organizations and their executives on the impact of emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills on customer-facing activities, and delivers training to thousands of participants in both public and private forums. Go to https://jebblount.com/ for more information. Find Jeb on Youtube, follow Jeb on Demand on Facebook, and follow @salesgravy on Twitter and Instagram.

Emotional Intelligence, Sales, Business, Relationships, Influence   073 Sales EQ - Jeb Blount   Summary   Emotional intelligence might just be the ultimate difference-maker in terms of living a successful and influential life. We'll look at that in our Thought of the Day. And in our interview segment, one of the world's top sales authorities shows us why and how emotional intelligence is the difference-maker in sales as well. That and more on today's show.   Bob's Thought of the Day   You'll discover:   Why talent and ability can now be considered more of an entry-level to success rather than an indicator of success. A definition of emotional intelligence. The key to long-term, sustainable influence. Why there's nothing more potentially dangerous than a bad person with good people skills. An insightful reminder from Dale Carnegie's classic How to Win Friends and Influence People.   Interview with Jeb Blount   You'll discover:   How Jeb defines emotional intelligence, and why he wrote Sales EQ. Why the relationship between buyer and seller is different than any other relationship. Who has the greatest control in any sales conversation. The difference between ultra-high sales performers and others salespeople. Two stories from Sales EQ that illustrate how ultra-high performing salespeople distinguished themselves from their competitors. Why it's not about how you (the salesperson) are different from your competitors, it's about how your prospective client is different from their competitors.  Click to Tweet   When you speak someone's language, it causes them feel more connected to you. @SalesGravy The very best salespeople look at the relationship as an opportunity to serve another person rather than taking something from them. @SalesGravy When you speak your prospect's language, your probability to win the deal goes up. @SalesGravy   Interview Links   SalesGravy.com Sales EQ by Jeb Blount Fanatical Prospecting by Jeb Blount People Buy You by Jeb Blount Sales Gravy Podcast Jeb's Blog Connect with Jeb on Facebook Connect with Jeb on LinkedIn Follow Jeb on Twitter   Resources   Sell The Go-Giver Way Webinar GoGiverSalesAcademy.com The Go-Giver Leader TheGoGiver.com GoGiverSpeaker.com Burg.com How to Post a Review

This week we officially kick off the celebration of two years of The Fitness Business Podcast and to mark the occasion, We've invited back some of our most popular guests, starting off with the bestselling author of eight books, one of the world’s most respected thought leaders on sales, leadership, and customer experience and a sales acceleration specialist  - Jeb Blount. Jeb has just released a new book called Sales EQ and during todays show, you will learn • How a membership sales consultant best use Sales EQ in their role • Jeb shares his top tips on becoming an Ultra High Performer in your business • and we discuss 6 key tips to developing self-awareness. Also, to celebrate our second birthday we are introducing a new segment to the show called In The Trenches where we chat to owners, managers and staff across the globe who are doing cool stuff in their businesses. Todays guest for In the trenches is Program Development & Social Media Director for Brick Bodies – Gabriella Waters, and we chat about some great ways to get your team and members involved in creating social media content for you.

Jeb Blount is the author of Fanatical Prospecting and has devoted his life to help people make more sales through the art and science of prospecting. His new book Sales EQ explores the new psychology of selling. In this interview he'll explain how ultra high performers are leveraging emotional intelligence to close more deals. PLUS! This episode contain multiple giveaways. Listen to find out how you can win breakfast on us and more. 

Jeb Blount is a Sales Acceleration Specialist who helps sales organizations reach peak performance fast by optimizing talent, leveraging training to cultivate high-performance sales culture, developing leadership and coaching skills, and applying more effective organizational design. His last book, Fanatical Prospecting, has been the number one ranked Sales and Marketing textbook on Amazon since its release two years ago. Through his companies Sales Gravy, Channel EQ, Level 4 Training, and Innovate HCG—Jeb advises many of the world’s leading organizations and their executives on the impact of emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills on sales, leadership, customer experience, channel development, and strategic account management. Jeb spends more than 250 days on the road each year delivering keynote speeches and training programs to high-performing sales teams and leaders across the globe. As a business leader, Jeb has more than 25 years of experience with Fortune 500 companies, SMBs, and start-ups. He has been named one of the top 50 most influential sales and marketing leaders (Top Sales Magazine), a Top 30 social selling influencer (Forbes), a top 10 sales experts to follow on Twitter (Evan Carmichael), a top 100 most innovative sales blogger (iSEEit), a top 20 must-read author—People Buy You—for entrepreneurs (YFS Magazine and Huffington Post), and the most downloaded sales podcaster in iTunes history; among many other accolades. He is the author of seven books. Topics Covered: Jeb’s books Why emotional intelligence matters in sales Why the sales profession finds itself in the middle of a perfect storm What ultra-high performers - the top 1% of salespeople - are doing differently How to align your selling process with the buying process The 5 most important questions in sales How to decrease corporate sales cycles Aligning stakeholder expectations The power of micro-commitments and reciprocity How to measure and increase your sales EQ Show Notes: Sales Gravy website: www.salesgravy.com Jeb on Twitter: @salesgravy Jeb on Instagram: @salesgravy Jeb on Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/jebblount Sales Gravy podcast: www.salesgravy.com/jeb-blount-sales-podcast Jeb’s website: www.jebblunt.com Get Jeb's books on Amazon: Fanatical Prospecting: The Ultimate Guide to Opening Sales Conversations and Filling the Pipeline by Leveraging Social Selling, Telephone, Email, Text, and Cold Calling - https://amzn.to/2pcdTOJ   Objections: The Ultimate Guide for Mastering The Art and Science of Getting Past No - https://amzn.to/2xoho8a   Sales EQ: How Ultra High Performers Leverage Sales-Specific Emotional Intelligence to Close the Complex Deal - https://amzn.to/2OoeGHa   People Buy You: The Real Secret to what Matters Most in Business - https://amzn.to/2OxdRf6   People Follow You: The Real Secret to What Matters Most in Leadership - https://amzn.to/2OoeKqo   People Love You: The Real Secret to Delivering Legendary Customer Experiences - https://amzn.to/2OolB33   Sales Guy's 7 Rules for Outselling the Recession (Quick & Dirty Tips) - https://amzn.to/2xlp5MG   --- Join the conversation on Facebook: www.facebook.com/groups/futuresquared/where you can discuss episodes, request guests, propose questions for forthcoming guests and access exclusive content and special offers! Listen on iTunes @ goo.gl/sMnEa0 Listen on Spotify @ spoti.fi/2G2QsxV Listen on Stitcher @ www.stitcher.com/podcast/future Listen on Google Play @ bit.ly/FSGoog ‍ If you've got any questions on this podcast feel free to send an email to steve@collectivecamp.us or tweet me on Twitter @steveglaveski or @future_squared Follow me on Instagram: @thesteveglaveski Like us? ‍ It'd make our day if you took 1 minute to show some love on iTunes, Stitcher or Soundcloud by subscribing, sharing and giving us a 5 star rating. ‍ To sign up to our mailing list head to www.futuresquared.xyz For more information on Collective Campus, our innovation hub, school and consultancy based in Australia and Singapore check out www.collectivecampus.io ‍ ‍

Matt's guest in this episode is Jeb Blount. Jeb Blount is a long time sales trainer, prospector and the best-selling author of eight books including Sales EQ, Fanatical Prospecting, People Follow You, People Buy You. He is a Sales Acceleration specialist who helps organizations reach peak performance fast by optimizing talent, leveraging training to cultivate high-performance sales culture, developing leadership and coaching skills, and applying more effective organizational design.  When Matt asked how the salesforce looks today he suprised us with his answer, "It looks the same as it did three years ago, five years ago - the things sales people are doing are the same things they did then.  But, there are more ways to fill your pipleline and channels - more opportunities than ever before. Older salespeople are benefitting, but can be overwhelmed with the addition of so many places to interupt the day of prospects and connect." Channels are being clogged, though, because they are so readily available. Matt asked, "How do you break through using these tools?" Jeb tells us, "It's always been hard to break through, even when we had email and door knocking, before social became core channels. Prior to that - doors, phones and networking events." Listen to this - the story of Richard from the UK and how he was persistent until he got through. He KNEW Jeb was a buyer, he KNEW. It's a great success story of knowing your target market and not giving up. Through his companies – Sales Gravy, Channel EQ, and Innovate Knowledge - he advises many of the world's leading organizations and their executives on the impact of emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills on sales, leadership, customer experience, channel development, and strategic account management. Under Jeb's leadership Sales Gravy has become a global leader in sales acceleration solutions including sales recruitment and staffing, sales on-boarding automation, custom sales training curriculum development and delivery, sales coaching, and online learning. As a business leader Jeb has more than 25 years of experience with Fortune 500, SMBs and start-ups. He has been named one of the top 50 Most Influential Sales and Marketing Leaders (Top Sales Magazine), a Top 30 Social Selling Influencer (Forbes), a Top 10 Sales Experts to Follow on Twitter (Evan Carmichael), a Top 100 Most Innovative Sales Blogger (iSEEIT), a Top 20 must read author (Yes Magazine & Huffington Post), and the most downloaded sales podcaster in iTunes history; among many other accolades. His flagship website, SalesGravy.com, is the most visited sales specific website on the planet.

Every SDR gets nervous when picking up the phone to talk to a prospect. We get scared of pushing too hard and getting a rejection, and we worry about offending our prospect or making them uncomfortable. How do you manage your own disruptive emotions so that you have the ability to influence the emotions of other people? On this episode of Predictable Prospecting we’re joined by Jeb Blount, founder and CEO of Sales Gravy and author of Fanatical Prospecting and a new bestseller: Sales EQ. We’re discussing how to push past the flight or fight response that comes up when talking to clients and how to manage the emotions that make prospecting difficult. Episode Highlights: Jeb Blount’s inspiration for writing Sales EQ The fight or flight response in sales How to control your own fear and anxiety while on the phone with a prospect The Universal Law of Awareness in Sales Identifying the different types of intelligence and making them work for you Doing qualification the right way Walking away from a prospect that doesn’t value your time The differences between having discipline and having habits Jeb’s steps for continuing your education Resources: Books Mentioned:   Insight Selling by Mike Schultz and John E. Doerr Challenger Sale by Matthew Dixon and Brent Adamson Thinking Fast and Thinking Slow by Daniel Kahneman     Jeb Blount:  Fanatical Prospecting Sales EQ: How Ultra High Performers Leverage Sales-Specific Emotional Intelligence to Close the Complex Deal  Visit SalesGravy for resources from top sales professionals Check out Jeb’s personal website for blog posts and other content Follow him on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and Linkedin      

With all the technology and social media we have at our fingertips, it only makes sense that connecting with our customers & prospects and blowing out our numbers is a piece of cake, right? Think again.  As it turns out,  all that tech, in combination with some well-known knee jerk emotions can be holding you back. Jeb Blount is a very busy speaker and author, and head of the sales consultancy Sales Gravy. He's also the author of the brand new book, Sales EQ.  He’s joins host Dan Walker with some terrific insight in this 10-minute podcast.  

"Sales EQ: How Ultra High Performers Leverage Sales-Specific Emotional Intelligence to Close the Complex Deal" by Jeb Blount   Click here to view the show notes! https://www.salesartillery.com/marketing-book-podcast/Sales-EQ-Jeb-Blount