SALES PROFESSIONAL
Steve sold payroll services to small- and medium-size business. When we first met, he told me, “I want to be the number 1 salesperson in the company.” He was not only ambitious, but tense. He typically worked 70 hours a week, including weekends. He was recently married and spending little time with his bride. He came to me for help in working smarter, so he could meet his sales goals and spend more time at home.
Steve spent the first two meetings explaining the complexities of his work schedule. The way he had it set up, he was personally visiting between 15 and 25 potential clients and recommenders of his services, every day, five days a week. Now wonder he was tense. In our meetings, he began to look “outside the box.” He discovered a way to be more effective by calling only on key people. He spent more time going deep with prospects, rather than trying to visit as many as possible. As a result, his sales went up and his hours went down.
In three months, he went from the number 50 salesperson in California to number 1. During that same time, he reduced his weekly hours from 70 to 35. He started taking off Fridays at noon and no longer worked on weekends. He spent much more time with his wife.
Steve was so successful, that his company asked him to train its reps to work the way he did. Because of his outstanding performance he was promoted to a sales management position.
