Are you happy with the decisions you own? It’s the number one complaint I get when someone is dissatisfied at work. Ever thought you owned a decision and then found out you didn’t? – Do you get stuck in a never-ending cycle of deciding and un-deciding? Do you have peers who think they own decisions that you actually own?
read moreAt Xbox, my boss Don Mattrick used to ask this question every time we met: “Val, did you make more than a week’s progress last week?” He would want to know what he could do to speed up how I delivered my goals, what was in the way that he could help move, whether there was anything at risk of not being completed on time, and what else I needed to do to improve the probability of success.
read moreI’ve just finished a virtual session with 23 brilliant senior executives from around the world. It was a delight to hear the impact they are having in their communities and with their customers. As we were discussing what could further accelerate their business having even more impact, it occurred to me it is time for some recap Thoughtfully Ruthless advice as we approach back to school season…
read moreIn order to be a quota crusher, you have to know how to ask the right questions. Understanding your prospect’s problem better than the next salesperson (and making sure your prospect sees that you understand) will set you apart from the competition. To get there, you need to create an advanced, structured approach to questioning. I won’t sugarcoat it: This is extra work! When you become an advanced questioner, you’re going above and beyond what most salespeople are doing—but that’s exactly why you should be doing it.
read moreLast week I joined a private executive group to share the myths and realities of what I am seeing in executive teams around the world. Here are three I shared: MYTH 1: – No-one is hiring CEOs or Executive team members right now. MYTH 2: – It is impossible to be interviewed without meeting in person. MYTH 3: – It is the wrong time to reconnect with your network because of life/the world/the pandemic / economic challenges
read moreSocial media can be a beautiful tool. It’s full of inspiration, knowledge, celebrations, and ways to connect with new and old friends. On the flip side, since it’s so ingrained in our lives it can also have some negative stress-inducing effects. These are some tips I am trying to keep in mind so that I can get all of the good out of social media and leave all of the negativity behind. (okay, maybe not all of it, but I can sure try.)
read moreI have been listening to a lot of successful people lately, trying to figure out which of their habits I can adopt in my own life. I believe success is built step-by-step, not overnight (usually), so I want to be more intentional about taking those steps every. single. day. So here are some habits I am adding into my daily routine to become the most productive, healthy, efficient person possible.
read moreNot every business is failing today, in fact, some are booming. When I talk to executives at companies who are experiencing Black-Friday-like sales every day of the week or having unprecedented sales growth I tell each of them the same: Don’t feel or act guilty for your success.
read moreI am a terrible substitute teacher. With three girls aged 10,10, and 12 on three different school schedules they have had the joy of experiencing my not so great teaching skills. Of course, there are upsides, the family lunches, the extra time at home together, the endless baking, jigsaws, and building our island on Animal Crossing, but that doesn’t stop it taking a toll on your time and energy.
read moreIt’s time to jump start your inbound marketing and lead generation. Organizations used to look for what we call a “Sales Unicorn” that manually builds their prospect lead lists, manually finds contact information, manually enters it into the CRM, creates email communication and sends emails without automation, runs their sales meetings, creates the proposals, and closes the sale. Sadly, these sales unicorns just don’t exist, and relying on this method is expensive. If a salesperson spends up to 70% of their time manually doing work that could be automated, your losses mount quickly. Stop throwing money away and start building a revenue machine that generates consistent, qualified leads.
read more
