The majority of people are not born to sell, selling is something that we have to learn to do, and rejection is a critical component of sales. I see rejection as nothing more than redirection, as you can’t sell an expensive product to people who don’t have the money! If you know who your target market is then you know that they need the product and you know what their price point is, therefore, it’s all in the presentation - your pitch fixes product and price. Rejection is an indicator that something is wrong, either the product, target market or price because you are not focussing on the right target market or again your product or service presentation is not where it should be.
Are you struggling to deal with sales rejection? Contact me via e-mail to arrange a confidential 1:1 meeting to discuss your challenges.
Leadership commitments
When employees believe what you believe they will work for you with their metaphorically speaking, blood, sweat and tears. When employees don’t believe what you believe they will work only for your money. I think it’s best to be a leader who commits to their employees, and he acronym ”C.O.M.M.I.T.S“ stands for:
C = Create a shared vision
O = Own the results
M = Measure progress
M = Motivate your team
I = Inspire with your actions
T = Take calculated risks
S = Stay focused and disciplined
Embrace the challenges
Part of being an adult is that you have to plan your day. If you know you’re capable of more, a big reason why you’re not doing what you said you were going to do is because you didn’t plan out when you were going to do it. Nowadays, we are all dancing on a template trying to figure out how to deal with our current circumstances. There are always lot of ups and downs and I have accepted that it is supposed to be this way - What about you?
My mantra for April will be as follows: “I’m really excited about all the chaos in my life, and I am really looking forward to see how it all plays out.”
Be present
Decisions are not about right or wrong; they are about growth. Sometimes we win, sometimes we lose, but we always learn. Sometimes decisions leave bruises, but if they don't kill us - well, you know the rest.
What’s in your control:
- What you do?
- What you say?
- What you think?
What isn’t in your control:
- What other people do?
- What other people say?
- What other people think?
I think letting go of control takes a lot less energy and effort than trying to control everything. This will also allow you to be prepared for any outcome and spend more time being present, which is the only place we can fully live our lives.
See it and say it
It’s over 3 years since I took the Crucial Conversations education from the training company VitalSmarts (nowadays Crucial Leaning). According to their study, 65 percent of the participants said they stayed silent at work, even though it made them feel inauthentic. You can see why this is detrimental; not only are leaders missing out on the ideas, viewpoints and diversity their employees bring to the table, but the employees also feel like they can't be themselves.
Leaders and CEOs are also on an island as no-one dares to tell them what they really think. What they need is someone who can challenge them, and say, “You said this or that and you never followed through with it.” One of the most detrimental effects of workplace insecurity is when people don't speak up because they fear the outcomes: embarrassment, ridicule, being wrong, or being dismissed both literally and figuratively. And one of the roles of a coach is to hold people accountable for their words and actions. Contact me via e-mail to arrange a meeting the next time you find yourself afraid to speak up.
Self-discovery is a lost art
Coaching is a process of helping individuals or teams to achieve their goals, improve performance, and enhance their overall well-being. A coach can assist individuals in discovering their strengths and weaknesses, exploring their values, and identifying their priorities. I think self-discovery is a critical aspect of coaching as it helps individuals to gain a better understanding of themselves, both their aspirations and motivations. Many people struggle with self-reflection, and this is where a coach can be helpful in guiding them through the process.
Most people are poor judges of how introspective they are, research shows that people tend to overestimate their level of self-awareness. This is known as the “introspection illusion” and it can lead to inaccurate self-perception and decision-making. Therefore, having a coach who is honest, frank, and authentic can be beneficial in facilitating the self-discovery process by providing individuals with an objective perspective on their thoughts and behaviours. Contact me via e-mail to book a free 45 minute one-on-one coaching session to discuss your needs, and determine whether we are a good fit for a coaching relationship.
I do my best
I’m constantly taking in information, I read a lot of books and listen to loads of podcasts, I use some of the information. I don’t just copy/paste it as it’s conceptual and I like to understand what’s going on behind it, the theory, the thinking and this drives people mad because I can speak about methods and models all day long. Fundamentally, this is how I like to work – taking things down to its deepest level of understanding and then construct it relative to the context or situation, and how I can apply to what you are doing. One should always take the time, effort, and energy to think about the information you are receiving. When you get a real understanding for something, then you can see whether you really agree with the fundamental principles and either follow them or question them and develop your own ideas.
Accepting responsibility
It’s always less desirable to give nuanced, complex, or sophisticated answers which require input from multiple parts, be it society or yourself. People have always wanted simple answers. Whenever anything happens people need to know whose fault it is and if possible, embody blame into one person, for example, immigrants, the European Union, it’s always somebody else. “It’s never us!” because people love to have a solution that is both not nuanced, not sophisticated and not our fault. Acknowledging the effects of your behaviour and choices will open you up to new experiences, improves your mental health which in turn, allows you to build a sense of control over your life. I think taking responsibility for your own actions is how you’ll gain a deep understanding of your true self.
Simple answers
Here’s a 3 step plan to achieve whatever you want:
Define
Plan
Execute
Contact me via e-mail if I missed anything?
““One of the best lessons you can learn in life is to master how to remain calm. Calm is a superpower.” ”
It sounds like
One of the reasons why people resist change is because they focus on what they must give up instead of what they have to gain. In business, money is money, and time and services are also money. When people get more value, they will do more, pay more and give more in return. I think that it is possible to change the world, but to change the world, you have to change yourself first.
Human concerns before money
c/o Forbes
Before money was invented, humans were concerned with the following five things:
Status
Humans have always been concerned with their social status and their place in society. This includes their reputation, position, and influence in their community.Certainty
Humans have always had a need for certainty and predictability in their lives. This includes a sense of security, stability, and the ability to plan for the future.Autonomy
Humans have a need for autonomy and the ability to control their own lives. This includes the freedom to make their own decisions and the ability to pursue their own goals and interests.Relatedness
Humans have a need for social connection and the ability to form relationships with others. This includes a sense of belonging and the ability to establish meaningful connections with family, friends, and community members.Fairness
Humans have always been concerned with fairness and justice. This includes a sense of equality and the ability to receive a fair share of resources and opportunities.
I think although money has become an important aspect of our lives, these fundamental concerns continue to be important to us as humans.
Stories of change
c/o Harvard Business Review
What kind of stories should we be telling to help people rekindle hope as we come out of the war in Ukraine, and is connectedness the route to achieve this?
All marketers tell stories and as individuals we tell ourselves stories as this is what guides our behaviours, decisions, and choices. So many of the big stories people believe in have crumbled away, stories of progress that tomorrow will be better than yesterday. We have lost so much that we don’t have the stories that provide the scaffolding we can use to climb out of all our difficulties. We must decide personally and as a community about where we are going as we are looking at a world that is making new rules, new connections and new decisions. Change is happening and as marketers this is what we do - We make change!
The capacity to increase the valuation
Here’s a framework for creating marketing value for your organisation (V.A.L.U.E)
- Understand how VALUE is created within your organisation and how it is created for customers.
- Be ACCOUNTABLE to your organisations value creation metrics.
- Use the LANGUAGE of value creation.
- Scale the UNDERSTANDING of value creation across your organisation.
- Have an EVIDENCE based mindset and report regularly using the agreed value-based metrics.
Creativity is critical not only to brand building, but also to value creation as a whole.
a) Do you understand where your brand value is created?
b) Do you understand how your customers perceive and receive value?
c) Do you understand the value your brand delivers both short and long term?
Contact me via e-mail for a meeting on why you should use business language and not marketing jargon deeper when speaking about your organisations brand value.
Can we control our minds?
The benefit of a good education is the ability to think on your own, and your words start to lose value when your actions don't match. You may think this is heavy stuff as all you wanted was a little help in climbing out of the strange crack between life’s floorboards that you unexpectedly fell into. First, you have to understand what you’re doing there, and then you’ve got to see why it’s important to stay there for a while - and then we can talk about what to do.
Today’s mantra includes affirming, declaring, observing, and allowing:
“All is well, everything is working out for my highest good and out of this experience, only good will come, and I am safe.”
Contrast and compare
I am a very big collaborator and I think the most successful salespeople are. Just like a professional athlete, successful salespeople are always in training, in practice and open to learning new skills. Just like a professional athlete, sales definitely involve a “performance state”, gearing up to act, rallying energy, visualising on what you are about to do, preparing to take hits and be resilient. If you compare this to most knowledge work jobs, then the performance nature of sales becomes even more clear. People buy from people they like and if you cannot have a conversation with them, it is unlikely to go very far.
Advice on Mother’s Day
Mother's Day is a celebration honouring the mother of the family or individual, as well as the influence of mothers in today’s society. Mother's Day is celebrated on different days in many parts of the world. Here’s some advice from my mother RIP:
Character is a door opener, so be honest.
You may be wrong, so be humble.
Luck seeks the thankful, so be grateful.
Givers end up with more, so be generous.
Artists believe in their craft, so be courageous.
You will also make mistakes, so be forgiving.
You will be happier., so always be yourself as everyone else is taken.
Forget football
How do you tell the right story to the right people?
The best way to learn marketing is to do marketing, and you can do marketing in lots and lots of different ways. This is because you don’t need a budget anymore as marketing is not advertising. This is the decade of change, and we must figure out the narratives that we want to tell to bring connection and possibility to people. It’s a fact that making people feel bad for drinking water out of plastic bottles isn’t going to solve the environmental crisis. I think we must weave things together to make things better, not just to make profit because we can’t shrink ourselves to greatness. Why are people not shouting from the rooftops that solar power is cheaper than coal?
Small steps stick
When trying to make a change in your life, a too big a change is not sustainable. It’s far easier to make small, incremental changes and make them stick. It’s important to reframe change into a positive and stick to it. Try telling yourself that change isn’t a chore, improving isn’t a chore! It’s the stickability over time that makes us different.
When we feel good about ourselves, we are going to be happier, more engaged, and willing to make more changes. It’s not about what happens to us, it’s about how we deal with it. When people think about habit loops, they often have a reward at the end of it. It’s really important to think about the suffering, as I think change happens when the pain of staying the same becomes greater than the pain of making a change.
Think differently
Image c/o Vector Stock ©
Authentic leaders know they can learn a lot from those that think differently than they do. Leadership is not just about skills and abilities, it’s more about having the right mindset to inspire and empower others. The most successful leaders are really good at keeping people informed and making them feel valued.
““I’m a big believer ability takes you so far and personality takes you that extra yard. When you’re a player it is down to you to go out and perform. You need leaders, people who drive standards in training and on the pitch with the intensity levels.” ”
Don't be afraid to admit it
The term 'affinity bias' is used in neuropsychology to describe an unconscious bias that causes people to gravitate toward others who appear to be like them (including those with similar interests, backgrounds, and appearances). I think the best way we can reduce unconscious bias and achieve a culture of equality is to become aware of them. It’s important to note that biases, conscious or unconscious, are not limited to ethnicity and race.
One of the greatest values of interacting with people who are different is the mirror it provides on seeing my own identity. Contact me via e-mail if you want your employees and leaders to learn more about discrimination, biases, and stereotyping, through unconscious bias training workshops.
“”Diversity training doesn’t work!” ”