The Staff Log is a simple tool to track your interactions with your sales reps. I was introduced to it by my manager when he promoted me to run a team of 10 reps. This log is so simple, you will have a hard time believing how much it can impact your effectiveness as a manager. I’ve recommended it…
Hire Weirdos to Create Outstanding Sales Teams
This post is not sugar-coated for political correctness or HR appropriateness. I work in the real world where prejudice, biases and unfair employment practices abound. Instead of pretending they don’t exist, let’s deal with them head on. I’ve built outstanding sales teams by following a few simple hiring principles: Hire weirdos. Hire people for their strengths. Build teams with diverse skills sets.
Small Rocks – How to Deal with Time Wasting Tasks
This is my final post in my Big Rocks series. A common question I get is “What am I supposed to do about all of the Small Rocks that still need to get done?“ The answer for all of them is the same. DON’T DO ANY ACTIVITY THAT DOESN’T MOVE YOU TOWARD YOUR 3 BIG…
1 Big Rock – Prioritization and Focus for Sales Managers
Sometimes 3 Big Rocks are too many. At the same company where I developed the 3 Big Rocks approach I had a manager who met with me every Friday afternoon for a 1-on-1. He was a mentor who taught me many valuable lessons. I cherished our time together. At first, we met for an hour a week. Then…
3 Big Rocks – Time Management for Sales Managers and Reps
My approach to time management is to ruthlessly prioritize what’s important and do it first. I call this the 3 Big Rocks method. Being busy was my problem. It all started when I was running a multi-state team of 3 managers and about 15 reps for a startup ISP during the dotcom boom. The internet was taking off, everyone was…