Success
For the past 12 years, I’ve been on retainer, coaching senior executives at a company. In the first two years, I spotted a major issue: they were sending out far too many proposals. How did I know? Their close rate was a dismal 10%. That’s what happens when you’re wasting time on unqualified leads. So…
If you want to know how to succeed in sales, look at Bombas. That’s B-O-M-B-A-S, pronounced “bum-bus” socks. That’s right, these are the socks; they’re no-show socks. What I love about them is that they stay in place and are of great quality. But that’s not the reason I’m telling you about Bombas. When Randy…
Imagine you’re going into the office of a senior decision-maker at a huge Fortune 100 company. He’s had nothing but problems with your company. He bought 200 units of electric timestamps. Every time a trader makes a stamp, it’s the same time for all trades, and they don’t get fined by the SEC. He had…
What’s more important to you? The will to prepare or the will to win? That is a question the Vice President of Sales for Hertz equipment rental division asked me as we were flying together to his national sales meeting, where I was giving the keynote. Without thinking, I said, “The will to prepare.” He…
Recently, I had dinner with an executive in the baseball industry. He described baseball as a high-failure sport. I love that phrase. Why? Because I’ve always used it in my speeches, not that phrase exactly, but the idea. Think about it: a hitter getting three hits out of every 10 at-bats is a .300 hitter.…
If you were to tell me that you just closed the deal, my answer to you would be there is no such thing as a closed deal. You see, a while back, I was involved in repositioning a major chemical manufacturer with the largest player in their industry. They only had 40% of their demand,…
Two weeks ago, the number one golfer in the world was racing to the golf course for the second round of the PGA Championship. He was about to tee off, and all of a sudden, he ran into traffic in the dark, early hours of the morning. He needed to get there to warm up.…
Who says the market can’t handle high prices? Just ask Del Monte Foods and Melissa’s Produce in California who sell high-end premium fruit and vegetables. It took Del Monte Foods over a decade and a half to develop a Ruby-hued pineapple. There are no others like it in the world. Melissa sells this one pineapple –…
In 1927, JW Marriott opened up a root beer stand. That’s right, Marriott Hotels started as a root beer stand. The first Marriott Hotel did not open up until 1957 in Arlington, Virginia. Since then, you have 4400 Marriotts worldwide. What a success story. Now, what was the reason behind that success? Well, if you…
The number one reason why sales cultures are not performing the way CEOs want them to is simply because they’re concentrating on the wrong people. That’s right. You see, last Sunday was the annual Met Gala in New York City. The Met Gala was started in 1995 by Anna Wintour, who is the editor-in-chief of…
25 years ago, when I started my speaking and consulting business, I started my first office in an executive suite. I met this person who worked for a computer company and we developed a friendship. Every morning we’d come to work, we would meet in the kitchen, and we’d have our morning coffee. We would…
Now that we have started 2024, and we’re looking at our New Year’s resolutions, the question is, “How do we execute them?” Here’s what I want you to think about: If you have more than one New Year’s resolution, and you’re trying to work on more than one at a time, that is a problem. This…
So, what’s all this talk about mindset? Mindset is so important because it dictates what your actions will be. Mindset is everything about your state of being. It’s about your skill sets, it’s about your belief system. It’s about how you see the world. That state of being leads to the decisions that you make.…
As you create your sales plan for 2024, what’s the one issue you must pay special attention to? That one issue is your ideal customer profile, because that’s going to determine whether or not you gain velocity in your sales efforts. Picture business 2012: I was just voted as the Vice President of the National…
Gratitude fuels success! Your leadership lights up the business world, and I’m thankful for the opportunity to support your journey. May this day of thanks recharge your Velocity Mindset® for even greater achievements ahead. May the food taste great with the company of friends and relatives providing you with all the warmth your heart desires.…
So, what is the one element that can bring Velocity to everyone on the project? Awhile back I was the opening keynote speaker for a luncheon hosted by the International Council of Shopping Centers. The room was filled with mall owners, construction company owners, and big real estate tycoons. The first line of my speech…
This week, we’re going to be talking about fasting. That’s right. We’re going to be talking about “The Negativity Fast,” a great book that I just read by Anthony Iannarino. Why is this so important? It’s simple. You cannot have both a negative and a positive thought in your brain at the same time. The negativity of…
Do you know that being present in your conversation is the key to gaining Velocity in life? When I’m presenting, whether virtually or in person, I like to engage the audience in a fun game. It’s called “Build a Story One Word at a Time.” Here’s how it works: Someone in the audience suggests a…
A few years ago, my opening story for a keynote involved reenacting a CPR scene. CPR is what you use when someone’s heart stops beating. In my twenties, I was a volunteer medic in Fair Lawn, New Jersey. The whole point of the story was this: “Look, I’m not here to suggest that you start…
Do you know why McDonald’s doesn’t sell onion rings? The reason why McDonald’s doesn’t sell onion rings is because of the old adage: rinse and repeat. That’s right! If you really want to scale an organization, how can you rinse and repeat the steps so that they’re easily replicable? That is where the profit is. You…