When working with sales managers and sales departments, I am often asked how to increase sales and how to be more productive. I believe it is very important for sales professionals to break up their daily activities into revenue generating activities vs. non-revenue generating activities. In this video, I discuss why it is important to block out time for revenue generating activities on a daily basis.

Have you ever experienced your motivation going up and down like a yo-yo? The key to staying motivated and obtaining your goals is to focus on the process. In this video, I share what to focus on to keep your motivation more consistent.

One of the biggest killers I observe when working with sales professionals is how they are inundated with so many administrative responsibilities that prevent them from prospecting, visiting customers, or creating new value for their existing clients. The executive team wants to grow sales but sometimes fails to see the roadblocks they place in the way. For example, tracking, managing, and measuring three sales activities are excellent, but when a sales professional has to record more and becomes inundated with creating reports, it negatively impacts their level of effectiveness. Part of my Productivity Sales Process teaches sales professionals and sales managers how to free up their time so they can focus more on revenue-generating activities. One strategy we use is called "The Sales Professional Time System" where we have them break their day into two parts. Preparation and Productivity. Preparation: Non-Revenue Generating Activities - 2hrs. a day We ask them to write down all of the administrative tasks that they do on a daily and weekly basis. We look to see what can ...

A story/puzzle When Mike first started his career, he came to work early, left late, and never had to be told twice to get something done. Mike feels that the generation entering the workforce today has no clue what hard work is. Instead of managing projects with his people, Mike finds himself playing the role of babysitter and micromanaging; something he never thought he would do. As a result of this inauthenticity, he sometimes feels like a fraud. He finds himself in conversations with his team about reasons and excuses rather than results and performance. "That's not my responsibility." "We didn't know." "It's not my fault." These are common phrases that surface multiple times throughout the week. Instead of thinking creatively and producing results, Mike's internal dialogue revolves around the question, "Is my team doing what they are supposed to be doing?" He is also unknowingly creating an unmotivated culture of "Abdication of Accountability," where the good employees get punished with more work, and the underperforming employees do less work. He finds it easier to giv ...

Change Very few people like to play a game with someone who changes the rules when they start losing. A company that alters its commission structure halfway through the year or a sales manager that increases the team’s target will just be viewed negatively as a cheat. There are two types of change: Self-Imposed Change and Organization-Imposed Change. Self-Imposed Change is the kind we commit to and work towards with a high level of self-motivation. Organization-Imposed Change is the kind we have little to no say over. Finding the "Why" and Keeping Curious When we embark on self-imposed change, we know our "why," and the stronger we believe in that “why,” the better it will serve us for motivation. When a change happens at work, it is our job to find out “why” and then to remember that it doesn't matter if we believe in it or not. The more meaning you place on an organization-imposed change, the harder it will be to adapt. It is not the strongest sales professional that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to ...

Selling in today's complex and ever-changing environment requires us to adapt, learn, and grow continually. We must be aware of obstacles that stand in the way of our desired future. After working with thousands of business professionals, here are the two most common productivity killers I have observed. Comparison You might have heard that "Comparison is the thief of all joy." And while this statement can be true for some, it doesn't have to be for you. Comparison is something we do as human beings and maybe even more if we are competitive by nature or in sales. Clearly, we shouldn’t compare ourselves to others but when we do what is the outcome? Does that comparison make us feel inferior or provide motivation? You choose. Miserable vs. Motivated Imagine, you break a personal sales record this quarter, and feel pride, confidence, and achievement. Then, you find out that your friend at another company sold that same amount three years ago. Your internal perception of confidence and growth quickly turns to unhappiness. What happened? We let comparison hijack our success ...