1. Say what you are going to do and then do what you say!
2. Communicate, communicate, communicate. Frequent, honest communication builds trust. Poor communication is one of the key reasons marriages and work relationships fall apart.
3. Trust is built one day, one interaction at a time, and yet it can be lost in a moment because of one poor decision. Make the right decision.
4. Value long term relationships more than short term success.
5. Sell without selling out.

Fear knocked on the door. Faith answered. No one was there.

The cure for most fears is action.

I have been amazed many times by how I could spend days or weeks fearing something, only to find that as soon as I took physical action toward it, most of the fear vanished. It was like stepping through a doorway. One moment, I was dreading the task; the next, I was simply doing it.

Certainly, there are rational fears that protect us from actual harm, but most of the tasks we fear won’t kill us or even harm us in any tangible way.

According to experts, the answer isn’t clear-cut—but one thing is certain: AI is transforming sales.

In a recent panel for The International Journal of Sales Transformation, sales executives and academics discussed the growing impact of AI in the sales profession. From qualifying inbound leads and conducting research to scripting emails and even role-playing training scenarios, AI is already taking over many administrative tasks.

Some predict that outbound prospecting will be next.

Understanding non-verbal communication is critical for anyone in a position where influence is important. The better we understand the people we are working with, the better we can influence them.

Body language originates in the limbic region of the brain. It is natural and was the only way we communicated for thousands of years. It is ingrained in our DNA and very hard to suppress, making many non-verbal cues impossible for the subject to monitor or control.

Even the most skilled body language experts will leak non-verbal cues, especially when engaged in dialogue.

Video sales calls are here to stay. 

We’ve all been on calls where we have our camera on and the client doesn’t, and this can have a direct impact on our sales cycles and rep performance.

In their recent research paper, “How the Use of Camera during Virtual Sales Calls Impacts Relative Performance”, Dr Kristen M Getchell and Dr Vincent Onyemah researched how the camera on / camera off scenario impacts sales reps’ emotionally, and can thereby impact their performance.

It’s the best definition of self-discipline I’ve ever heard.

Your future self has no choice but to deal with the decisions you make in the present moment.

We all have things we’re glad our past selves did—or didn’t do. We also all have the opposite.

What are you doing today to make life easier and better for your future self? At the end of the year—or even the month—will you look back and thank your past self for the decisions they made and the actions they took? Or will you be dealing with the consequences of their poor choices?