A while back I was asked by Donald, a CEO I advise, for my top best practice on increasing revenues generated by his sales team. I told him what I tell all my clients: the most effective way to sell more is by doing less selling. I could tell by his expression this was not the answer he expected, and he confirmed this when he asked me to explain.

His staffing and RPO company, like many organizations, was engaging buyers in a selling experience. They used a number of the traditional…

Redundant systems and a co-pilot who can take over if the pilot suddenly becomes ill have made commercial flight safe and efficient. Long-haul flights even carry a second crew, ensuring there are enough qualified people to do the job of flying no matter what occurs. Sports teams also have redundant people as they plan for inevitable injuries and fatigue by having a second and even third string of players ready to take the field at a moment’s notice.

These types of redundancies are…

Preparation in selling is often overdone or overrated. Surprised? If too much emphasis is put on preparation, salespeople focus more on what they have planned instead of what actually happens in the meeting with a buyer.

Today, I watched a sales veteran I work with conduct a masterful sales meeting. Alex’s mastery had nothing to do with what he planned on selling or what he planned on saying.…

Organizations often struggle to connect vision to action. I’ve seen it many times in my advising and consulting work. Regularly, organizations take their entire leadership team off to a beautiful, inspiring place—a ski resort in Utah or beachside in the Bahamas—and they spend days or a week coming up with a great strategy. Then when I check in with them a few months or even a year later, I hear that no action has taken place on the vision since that leadership retreat. At…

To Lead or Persuade, Master the Art and Science of Asking Effective Questions

When you are in selling situations, do people from time to time ask you to repeat what you’ve just asked them? If the answer is yes, chances are you are using too many words. You are causing people to think too hard about your question, when you’d rather have them thinking about their answer.

I have noticed this pattern not just with salespeople talking with…

The major airlines and many other types of companies have a problem in common—both want to be more competitive, yet, perpetuate the very business practices that keep them stuck in coach class. Southwest Airlines, on the other hand, is the perfect case study of the positive impact of new and improved best practices that have won the hearts and minds of many…

Some would say we are currently in a candidate driven market. While true, it’s always a candidate driven market. The perceived shift from a buyers’ market to a job seekers’ market is a myth often spoken of in the staffing and recruiting business. Even the very best of firms won’t fill every job, yet, they can find assignments or jobs for quality candidates regardless of market conditions. Candidate acquisition and retention always rules the day.

While building a strong…

Why did the man in business attire suddenly drop his pants in the middle of the “B” Concourse at Atlanta’s international airport? That’s a question many of us in the terminal were pondering yesterday. I decided not to stick around to see the outcome of his odd choice as there are some things I just don’t need to see. And this was one of them.

Most of us avoid…

On this Labor Day in the United States, may your day be filled with a complete lack of labor and a full day of relaxation. And may you take the spirit of reduced labor with you when you return to the office. Reducing labor intensity at work is a worthy goal for all. The time it saves can be invested wisely — on employees, customers, or even on more time off.