Tom Richard - EzineArticles.com Expert Author

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Tom Richard conducts seminars on sales and customer service topics nationwide. Tom is also the author of Smart Salespeople Don't Advertise: 10 Ways to Outsmart Your Competition With Guerilla Marketing, and publishes a free weekly ezine on selling skills titled Sales Muscle.

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Close Your Mouth - Your Secrets Are Showing
[Business:Presentation] No matter how private you may think you are, there is no such thing as a private thought. We reveal ourselves to everyone around us through the words we speak and through the actions we take. Our words, our actions, and the way we carry ourselves are mere effects caused by whatever we have going on inside of us. If we wish to change the effect, we must address the cause.

Shine Your Light Into Their Eyes
[Business:Customer-Service] As a boy, I used to bounce the sun off of my watch while in class and make the little disc of light dance on the wall behind the teacher. I remembered how funny it was as the light danced around the classroom; all of the kids laughed and I felt like the most popular kid in our class. Twenty years have passed and I felt like a boy again as I sat in a meeting doing the same after discovering sunlight reflecting off my watch. However, instead of being amused by the dancing disc of light, it gave me pause as I realized something about my ability to focus, to learn new things and to control the awareness of the people around me. As I moved the reflection of the sunlight around the wall, I noticed how the eyes of everyone around the table would follow it. They would watch where the little, bouncing disc of light would go and what it was shining upon. It amazed me. It was just a reflection of the sun shining through the window. I wasn't creating the light; I was simply deciding where to shine it.

How to Make Your Clucking Marketing Work
[Business:Marketing] Imagine this: You own a chicken shack, and you need to sell more of your ten piece buckets. You decide to come up with a flyer and you wonder, "Who should I target? Should I use the same piece for everybody or should I create different versions? Should I test them out somehow first? Is there even a way to find out which one works best before I spend a bucket load of my hard-earned profits?" The answer to all of your questions is "YES!" Now stop clucking around and get started!

Truth Telling - How Baring it All Can Grow Your Business
[Business:Marketing] At the ripe young age of seven, I discovered there was no such thing as the Easter Bunny. As truth flooded my seven-year-old mind, skepticism was born. Our customers have every reason to have this same skepticism as they evaluate our fancy guarantees, promises, and unbelievable offers. By definition, an unbelievable offer is, well, unbelievable. If you understand that unbelievable offers are born out of the need to grab attention, then you can logically agree that the real way to grab attention is to do what others are not doing: telling the truth.

To Play Catch With Your Prospects - Throw Out Your Elevator Pitch!
[Business:Marketing] Baseball's opening day does more than draw thousands of fans to downtown Toledo; it brings out tired baseball analogies to conference tables all across the city. As you inaugurate your 2009 baseball-watching season, forget all of the over-used analogies and think like the guy who is next at bat when the bases are loaded. He is concentrating on knocking that ball out of the park, and the only way to do that is to connect with it.

How to Lose a Customer in Ten Days Or Less
[Business:Sales] One would think that having the highest prices in town, not having all the answers to customers' questions, or telling the bold-faced truth would be reason enough for your customers to take their business elsewhere. No luck? I guarantee that, using these seven proven profit repellents, you'll successfully lose your pesky customers (and all of your profit) in ten days or less.

How to Create Jaw-Dropping Moments of True Understanding
[Business:Marketing] True understanding can strike a customer like a bolt from the blue; its an absolute jaw-dropping experience at which time a thorough understanding of your unique selling proposition floods their brain and fills their heart. Much like you need to see the hole before you whack the golf ball, you need to be able to see the target before you can create a marketing campaign. Your target is creating an experience that gives your prospects true understanding and sets you up for success.

Locked Out? Get in and Get Customers, Today!
[Business:Sales] How does a grown man get locked out of his own house? That was my thought as I stood shaking my head on my front porch. In this economy, when many businesses are searching for new customers, there is a similar feeling of being locked out. Many individuals are finding themselves standing on the front porch wondering how to get into new businesses to present products and services. This can leave a feeling of loneliness, weakness, and wonder as to why, after all the years of success, there are no apparent options. But do not despair; you have many options!

How to Get Prospects to Return Your Call
[Business:Sales-Training] How effective are the messages that YOU leave for your prospects? Your prospects form an opinion about you and your company every time you contact them. In fact, the messages you leave on their voicemail or e-mail may be a determining factor in their decision to call you back and consider doing business with you. So make a good impression!

More Ways to Get Prospects to Return Your Call
[Business:Sales] Know why your prospects aren't calling you back? Because your voicemail messages stink! They're boring, ineffective, and sound just like the messages your competitors leave. With this strategy, why would your prospects want to call you back?

Smart Discounting - The Right Way to Discount Your Products
[Business:Sales-Training] Discounting can be appropriate when the discounting is done for legitimate reasons and it is properly promoted. Get the word out. Your customers will thank you for letting them know as they are handing you money. WOW...handing you the money!

Objections Are Buying Signals - Usually!
[Business:Sales-Training] The fact is, most people think they handle objections with ease. The reality paints a different picture. I claim that you could have closed as much as 25% of last year's lost sales by simply understanding why the customer is objecting. Oh...and by keeping your noisy trap closed for a minute or two.

Picking Your Home Gym Equipment
[Health-and-Fitness:Fitness-Equipment] Make sure your equipment purchasing strategy is one that is well thought out and takes into consideration all of the necessary factors. After all, the reason you are buying fitness equipment in the first place is to reach your fitness goal. The pieces of equipment are simply the tools that you need to reach your goals.

Guerrilla Marketing - 4 Ways to Generate More Traffic Next Week
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Traffic-Building] You can create more traffic for you and your business without spending any additional money on marketing. With guerrilla marketing, it is more about out-smarting the competition than it is about out-spending the competition. Boundless opportunities and countless positive effects on your business await you when you take advantage of the guerrilla- marketing concept.

Customers Do Not Know How to Ask Good Questions - That is Your Job
[Business:Sales-Training] Customers do not know what questions to ask. So instead they ask a question that they are comfortable with hoping that you will find out what they truly want. By getting to the heart of the matter and finding out why they ask what they ask, you will unlock the key to the sale.

Prospecting - Not a Wild Goose Chase - It's a HUNT
[Business:Sales-Training] Prospecting for future customers can be fun if you approach it the right way. It is not a wild goose chase; it is a wild goose HUNT. Cold prospecting requires you to start from nothing and end up with the name and contact information of the person who can say "yes" to you. If you are in a situation where you have to use cold prospecting as a way to generate sales, you should go in fully prepared.

Your Marketing - From the Couch to the Cash Register
[Business:Marketing] When you put time or money into any marketing plan, your only objective is to MAKE A SALE. Are you sure your marketing is going to get your customer from their couch to your cash register?

Making Sales is Easy When You Learn How to Make Friends
[Business:Sales-Training] You must change the focus of the sales experience on making a friend rather than making a sale. When you focus on making a friend at all costs, you will find ways to serve your customers beyond the scope of what you do in your business.

Five Steps For Expanding Your Customer Base With Guerrilla Networking
[Business:Networking] The goal of the guerrilla network is to expand your customer base by being a part of a diverse web of companies that will appeal to a wide range of customers. Because your company will be the only one in this web to offer your unique product category, every customer who enters into the web will be referred to you for that specific service.

Objections - Are Your Customers Playing Hard to Get?
[Business:Sales] A customer's objection may actually be an indicator of their true interest in purchasing your product. Your reaction may determine whether or not they choose to act on that interest.

Creativity Isn't Just For Kids - It's For Salespeople, Too!
[Business:Sales] So it's been a while since you've played house or made art out of macaroni noodles-that doesn't mean that you aren't creative! With effort and continued practice, ANYONE can be creative, and ANYONE can use this creativity to set their company and product apart from their competitors.

3 Keys For a Great Follow-Up - The Science of Being Pleasantly Persistent
[Business:Sales-Training] Do YOU recognize the power of a great follow-up? Most sales books and processes don't! They teach you how to close on the spot with high-pressure and alienating techniques.

Four Things to Do Before Cold Calling
[Business:Sales-Teleselling] "I hate cold calling!" Of course you do. It's the worst way to generate qualified business leads, it's the hardest form of selling, and it's often tasked to those who are least qualified to do it. It usually leaves you disheartened with its minimal results. But, unfortunately, there's no way around it: sometimes it must be done. "So how can I make the most of a cold call?"

Getting Motivated and Getting Results - How to Build the Right Sales Staff
[Business:Sales-Management] Being aware of what your employees like and dislike will help you create an environment that encourages each of your employees to reach full potential. This means happier, more productive employees, which will lead to better results and more sales!

Focus on the Value, Not the Price
[Business:Marketing] There are many factors that influence a customer's decision to buy, and price isn't the most important. The problem is that you think it is. You're so busy focusing on the price that you are forgetting about the value of your product and your customer, causing you to lose sales that could be yours!

Does Your Sales Presentation Have What it Takes?
[Business:Presentation] How well do you present yourself and your company to a prospect? Are you too busy bashing your competition to tell your prospect what YOU have to offer? Stop telling your prospects that you're the best choice and show them you are with an approach that your competition won't be able to duplicate!

Sales Philosophy - What You Believe Determines How Well You Sell
[Business:Sales-Training] You may think you have a good sales philosophy, but chances are it needs improvement. Does it accurately represent YOU? Is it as effective as you think it is?

Fewer Calls, More Appointments, And, Best of All, No Script!
[Business:Sales-Teleselling] You've planned the delivery of your message so well that you've anticipated your listener's objections and can fire quick responses. Finally, you pass the infamous gatekeeper and have your chance to talk to Mr. Big. You feel so close to making that sale...

If You Want to Sell, Don't Be a Salesperson!
[Business:Sales-Training] Salespeople are infamous for making others feel bad. They cold call complete strangers to judge their business decisions and make them feel sorry and stupid for choosing their current provider. They feed on every negative emotion to get the only thing that matters: the sale. They treat their prospects like numbers, instead of living, breathing people.

Which Customers Are Worth Your Time?
[Business:Customer-Service] How's business? Overflowing with customers? Thought not. Then why are you ranking your prospects to determine which ones to go after and pushing away smaller customers you think aren't worth it? That's as silly as only playing the lottery when the jackpot is up to $350 million; as if the $50 million jackpot isn't worth your time.

Sales Meetings - Let Your Staff Do the Work and Get the Results You Want!
[Business:Sales-Management] By having a production based organization, you will be able to facilitate sales meetings that will keep EVERY member motivated to contribute to the team! Giving each member the chance to own their individual goals and brainstorm ideas will give them the drive and desire to do just what you hired them to do-produce sales!

Get to the Point - What Do You Sell, and Why Would Anyone Want It?
[Business:Sales] What are you selling? If you're already rambling about the benefits and features of your specific product, STOP RIGHT THERE! You're getting way ahead of yourself.

5 Ways to Build Rapport With a Complete Stranger
[Business:Sales] Point being, if you want to successfully establish rapport with your prospects, you'll have to do it quickly, before they get the chance to assume you're just like every other salesperson. Fortunately, there are 5 keys to help you get this friendship off to a quick start!

Can't Get an Appointment? 7 Rules You Should Know
[Business:Sales] Are you frustrated with the process of trying to set appointments with prospective customers? You've tried every trick in the book to get appointments, and nothing seems to work? Well, stop! THERE'S the problem!

Training Your Staff - 13 Things EVERY Employee Should Learn
[Business:Sales-Management] People buy from people; not from systems, pretty brochures or crafty verbiage. Training your team DOESN'T mean restricting them to a rigid sales process or trying to assimilate them into the company! There's no need to memorize silly systems and philosophies that you think will generate sales. Dry systems like that only produce unhappy, unmotivated employees and a high turnover rate (which leads to unsatisfied customers and fewer sales).

What's the Best Sales Method For YOU?
[Business:Sales] Salespeople have spent countless years trying to find the perfect way to sell. Unfortunately, they've been looking in the wrong places.

Telling Your Customers What They Want to Hear
[Business:Sales] How often do you use stories to color your sales presentations? Answer: Not enough!

Are Your Customers Lying to You?
[Business:Sales] The customer says they want one thing, and it turns out that they really wanted another. Before you could figure it out, the sale was gone. You complain and whine about the lost sale. It was the customer's fault! Right?! Wrong.

Reputation Precedes You
[Business:Sales] Your reputation is the most powerful marketing tool you have. When a great reputation precedes you, it speaks volumes about the value of your business and immediately distinguishes you from the competition.

Complaining About Work? Here's the One Change You Need!
[Business:Careers-Employment] How often do you think or say something like: "That's not my job." "They don't pay me to do that" "This company couldn't function without me!" "I should be making more money!" If that sounds like you, you have no one to blame but yourself. You are complaining about the outcome of decisions that YOU have made. YOU choose your job, the compensation you receive, and the way you conduct yourself.

Lowering Your Price Could Cost You a Sale
[Business:Sales] For some reason, many salespeople assume that lowering the price of their product will lead to an easier sale. Here's the truth: You will make more sales by NOT lowering the price of your products.

Is Buying From You Too Risky For Customers?
[Business:Sales] No matter how wonderful your product appears, no one will buy it if the purchase is a hassle. Sure, the product itself may be great, but if the means of having it aren't, a person won't risk it. Customers will buy your product ONLY if they see that the benefits of having it in their life will outweigh the risks in buying it.

Turn Your Slow Season Into Your Best Season
[Business:Sales] Has your slow season turned into a lazy season? Many times, it's just an excuse for salespeople who lack the creativity and determination to make sales. Their sales are slow because they allow them to be. They would rather take a nap and let the time slip by.

Customers Know Why They Buy - Do You?
[Business:Sales] Still looking for a way to improve your sales performance? The problem is that you've been going to the wrong places, talking to the wrong people and reading the wrong books. To get the right answer, you must know where to find it!

Boost Sales With Your Next Promotional Event
[Business:Sales] So you want to have a special sales event - great idea! But why are you slashing your prices and having big discounts? You can have a successful income buster without even touching your prices! You just need brains, guts and real (and I mean real) excitement.

Hard Truths For Sales Successes
[Business:Sales] Is it possible to be successful in sales without overworking yourself and barely having time to see your own family? Of course; if you know what's important. Understanding and using these 11 hard truths will give you the direction and focus you need to determine your success.

Failure to Engage Customers Can Be Costly
[Business:Sales] This week I went to a new bank to open a savings account. After telling the bank teller why I was there, I was told that someone would be with me shortly. As I took a seat, I noticed the tellers give each other a high-five and say, "That's two new accounts already!" Boy, did I feel special.

If at First You Don't Succeed - Quit Whining, Keep Selling!
[Business:Sales] The road to a sale can be a bumpy one. While some travel that bumpy road with ease, many waste their time whining about the bumps and eventually end up quitting. These people quit because they are looking for quick answers, perfect scripts, and easy "how to" instructions. They just don't have what it takes to keep trying for that sale.

Horror of War - Reality of Business
[Business:Sales] They marched for one reason - the man on their left and the man on their right depended on them. This kind of loyalty and brotherhood is an amazing part of humanity that isn't just present in the horrors of war. It inspires people in all areas of life and is especially powerful in business. Within your company, it can prepare your staff for any business plan set before them.

Drop Your Baggage and Chase That Money!
[Business:Sales] As I walked through the airport garage, something on the ground caught my eye. It looked like wadded up money. Curious, I crept up on the crumpled paper like a lion on its prey, eyes permanently fixed.

Reaching Full Potential Through Positive Influences
[Business] Many business people with tremendous potential will never achieve success, simply because they give into the influences of the wrong people. They choose to commiserate with others at the water cooler and spend their meetings talking about why something cannot happen instead of how it can. Instead of shaping their future with their own hands, they simply accept what others give them.

Avoiding the Rotten Apple Comparison
[Business:Sales] Through engaging questions, they will realize that the "apples to apples" approach is not the best way to address their particular purchase. They will see and consider everything you have to offer, rather than just focusing on price. Because of this, it will be much harder for your competitors to win. Rather than just beating your price, they will actually have to compete with all the wonderful aspects of your product and company.

Invasion of the Body Snatchers - Your Guide to Personal Success
[Self-Improvement:Success] The real business opportunity is the one that you've been neglecting while you sit at your desk daydreaming about the easy life. Instead of pouring your time and energy into something downright silly, invest your time and energy into becoming the best at what it is you love to do. Go after your dream with a passion that is frightening to those who lack the drive you feel. Make the decision to do what you love and love what you do. Make the choice to become what you have always wanted to become - a success.

There's Some Magic Left in That Old, Blue Pen of Yours
[Business:Sales] The hardest part of courting a new customer is getting your message heard. For some reason, most salespeople make this task even harder on themselves by delivering their message in an impersonal and forgettable way. They have abandoned the personal touch that separates them from all the "buy me!" messages that whiz past their customer every day.

A Picture is Worth One Thousand Sales
[Business:Sales] Too many salespeople rely on lists, brochures, FAQs, and comparative charts to aid them in the sales process. They don't understand the power of a good story. Using stories to illustrate the quality and service of your company engages your customers and makes it easy and entertaining for them to digest all the wonderful information you give them. By visualizing your stories, they will have a clear understanding of what your product and company is all about.

Shorten Your Leash For Sales Success
[Business:Sales] It is far too easy to make excuses or talk yourself out of getting things done. Instead of becoming distracted with little things that don't support the bigger picture, aim for small steps that lead you toward those bigger aspirations. You don't need a posted sign to remind you of that leash (and if you do, this is it). Shorten the leash yourself and you'll stay on the path towards sales success.

You Bet Your Butt Honesty Pays Off
[Business:Sales] Do these pants make my butt look too big? No. Your butt makes your butt look too big.

Sales Lessons From Simple-Speak
[Business:Sales-Training] Retain the energy and excitement, but boil down the product information. Use language that is so easy to understand that even a second grader could understand it. You'll guarantee that your customers won't be staring at your product wondering, who asked for the ketchup?

Are You Setting Your Team Up For Failure?
[Business:Sales-Management] Changing your recruitment process will change your organization and the people within it. Rather than constantly replacing your staff, you'll attract talented salespeople and become a successful company just by letting your sales team be themselves.

Consider This Your Slap in the Face
[Self-Improvement:Success] Becoming a better version of yourself is not rocket science. It does not require you to finally discover the magic formula that has, until that moment, been locked inside the ancient texts of the Romans. The answers have always been staring you right in the face. You simply have not been ready for them.

Emotion Trumps Logic
[Business:Sales] There is a huge difference between a fan and a customer. That difference lies in the customer's emotional involvement in the experience. Fans support their teams with unwavering loyalty. They are personally connected to the foundation upon which the company stands, and they are emotionally attached to the people and the products the company represents.

Do You Know How to Fire Up Your Sales Staff (When Money Isn't Everything)?
[Business:Sales-Management] Money is the only thing that motivates a salesperson, right? Well, maybe it is time to give your sales staff a little more credit.

Are You Driven to Succeed?
[Self-Improvement:Success] Take control of your own performance and use the pressure that is there to bring out your drive to succeed. You're in charge of your life, your career and you're ability to sell. Unlock your drive and nothing will stop you.

Invest Time in a Night on the Town
[Business:Sales-Training] Well, welcome to the real world. In the real world, you make more friends and do more business outside of work than you do within it. Because sales is a people business, every sale begins with a relationship. You can not build a relationship by being a strange voice on the other end of a cold call. You make sales relationships in the same places you make real friendships.

When Salespeople Finally Snap
[Business:Sales] Having the fortitude and courage to develop your own style of selling will give you a little more say over the breaks you get in life. You'll stand tall after staggering defeat and have the clarity and purpose of a world class sales professional. You have the strength to proudly snap off the winning side of the giant wishbone.

Preventative Medicine For Buyer's Remorse
[Business:Marketing] These marketing relationships will prove to be some of the most mutually profitable relationships you can have in business. When local businesses unite in a spirit of service and gratitude to the community at large, customers feel proud to support them. Your customers will drive home with more than a crinkled credit card slip; they'll have confidence in their purchase and in you.

Service Cuts Through the Fog of Tough Times
[Business:Customer-Service] There are opportunities everywhere; whether or not you see them is completely up to you. If you waste your time at pity parties, you'll never find them. During economic difficulty, we realize why we are in business in the first place. The lessons we learn now are those that will propel us to success in times of great prosperity. Only those who hunker down and focus on the customer will make it through to see it.

Supporting Your Most Important Investment
[Business:Sales-Training] In sales, we often forget the pressures our new employees put on themselves. Managing these pressures while learning new products and adapting to the personalities and procedures of a new company can stymie growth and extend the learning curve required for sales success.

Warming Up For the Stadium Pitch
[Business:Presentation] Imagine standing on the field of a stadium packed with 100,000 people. Every one of them is a potential customer, and in front of you a microphone waits. Your task is to deliver your sales pitch to every single person there. As you reach for the microphone, the murmurs subside. The stadium is silent. The vast field and towering stadium consume you like a hollowed crater. You wonder if your nerves will be heard in the echo of your words.

Race to the Bottom
[Business:Sales] And so the race to the bottom has begun. As the phone calls between your competitor and yourself continue, the prices keep dropping as the prospect sits in amazement at how fast things can change. The fax machine is humming and the emails are flying as each company continues to sweeten the deal.

Calendars, Popcorn, and Fruit - Oh My!
[Business:Sales] The days of sending calendars, popcorn, and fruit to your current customers are over. Most executive offices look like FEMA warehouses, littered with absurd amounts of food. Stop contributing to this gross display of corporate gift sending ignorance by taking advantage of the opportunity to stand out from sales teams all around the country. This is your chance to be different. Choose gifts that will be appreciated and recognized, not thrown into a pile of other identical gifts.

Breakfast of Sales Champions
[Business:Sales] Regardless of what you think you know about your current numbers, get them in front of your face every morning like a hearty breakfast. When you start your morning off right, you will be equipped to make decisions and take actions towards hitting your numbers the rest of the day.

Stamp Yourself and Go by Mail
[Business:Marketing-Direct] To get your mail piece noticed, start by working backwards. Take a stack of mail from your home to work tomorrow. Place it square in the middle of your oversized conference table. Sit and stare at that pile of mail for awhile. What could you do to get your envelope noticed among all the others?

Shocked by Learning
[Business:Sales] Some experiences make it easy to learn what to do and what not to do. While learning in the sales profession might not happen with a flash of light, the lessons can still throw you from your chair. After all, you are the one who is most affected by how little or how much you learn. The choice is yours: you can succeed from taking the time to learn, or you can suffer without it.

Balancing the Personal and Professional You
[Business] Keeping your personal and professional lives balanced can be tricky when you are in sales or running your own business. While every person has a different definition of what living a balanced life means, every definition includes some variation of having enough time for family, community, and, of course, work.

Make This Your Best Selling Year Ever
[Business:Sales] The first week in January is the week when employees are all flying high, ready to change the world, get themselves organized, or land those big accounts. However, by the time February rolls around, everything is back to usual. This is because they lack the strong foundation needed to carry out their resolution.

Thin Line Between Love and Selling
[Business:Sales] Selling comes easy when you're in love with your product. Your personal excitement will shine through every aspect of the sale and eventually grab hold of your customer. However, when you aren't fully and personally thrilled with your product, your confidence, energy and excitement diminish. You can successfully sell all of the products in your repertoire by securing a strong foothold in these three core beliefs.

Master of Your Domain
[Internet-and-Businesses-Online:Email-Marketing] In business, your email address can be as influential in representing you as your birth name is in your everyday life. The email address you choose could affect how clearly communicated it is over the phone, how well it is remembered, and how quickly it can be found when someone needs it most.

Networking Your Way to Fiscal Fitness
[Business:Networking] A common reason salespeople are not spending more time meeting people is because they don't understand some of the basic principles of networking. Networking is more than just getting in front of those who can say yes to buying your product.

The Sales Floor Shuffle
[Business:Sales] The store is packed. Customers and questions seem to be coming at you from all angles. You feel like you are in the middle of it all, being pulled in seven different directions at the same time. It's time to start doing the sales floor shuffle. All you need to know are the right steps.

Selling While Shackled by Professionalism
[Business:Sales] During a sales presentation, the room is often stuffy, filled with the awkward tension and discomfort of trying to relate with a complete stranger. You pull out your dry power point presentation and informational packets to outline the return on investment and prove the difference between you and you competition. Then you ask for a large sum of money based on your promise to deliver results. When you're so busy perfecting your dry presentation and looking great in your smart suit, you forget what true professionalism really is.

Sales Presentations With Love
[Business:Sales] A unique sales presentation is the best way to spark curiosity and engage customers. Don't resort to brochures, comparison charts or the dreaded power point presentation. Be bold. Be different.

A Sale So Simple, A Child Could Do It
[Business:Sales] Closing a sale isn't as complicated as many professionals make it seem. Let the innocence and sincerity of a four-year old inspire you to simplify your sales approach. Don't be afraid of your potential customers or what they may say. Be fearlessly persistent, and one day you'll be sitting in the "big boy" seat.

Are Your Communication Skills Sickening?
[Business:Sales] All over the country salespeople are suffering from a verbal virus. It strikes at any time and often without warning. Those who are afflicted say it happens most when talking with prospective customers.

Opportunities Don't Knock on Closed Doors
[Business:Sales] Forget about building power teams, master alliances, and ideal referral partners. It's not about finding people just like you or only making deals with those who can do something for you. Just focus on meeting people, making friendships, and opening up as many doors as you can.

Love the Customers Who Love You Back
[Business:Sales] Giving your immediate full attention to a customer with a problem comes naturally. While these types of calls certainly require your time, don't let yourself be consumed by them. Instead of spending all your time putting out fires, dedicate a fraction of your week to make a phone call, a visit or a lunch appointment with one of your satisfied customers.

Free Offer Rejection
[Business:Sales] Take a good look at your free offer. Does it require that you or your employees enter the home of your customer? Does it require your customer to purchase something or give you unnecessary personal information? A "yes" to any of these questions will lower your customer's comfort level and push them farther from you and your product.

Serving Customers a Side of Personality
[Business:Customer-Service] Right now, you may be so busy creating a method on paper to make your customers like you that you are missing the opportunity to make it happen. Stop worrying so much about finding new customers, overcoming price objections and explaining the advantages you have over the competition. Spend less time in your office meetings and more time with your customers.

Nice Guys Finish First
[Business:Sales] Whoever said "Nice guys finish last" was likely one of these one-hit-wonders who is so focused on crossing the finish line that he steps on every person who gets in his way. Ironically, people like this also make claims that their company has a 97% satisfaction rate and their customer service is the best in the industry. Little do they realize that every action they make and every word they speak directly contradicts these hollow statements.

There is No Experience Like Snow Experience
[Business:Sales] When your customer has a real and personal connection with your product, they will see the real and personal benefits of buying it. Having it in their hands will help them envision owning the product and using it in their daily lives. Once they gain a true understanding of what you have to offer, the product will sell itself.

Overcoming the Reputation of a Salesperson
[Business:Sales-Training] Every salesperson has experienced the fallout from working in a profession with a bad reputation. Regardless of whether they sell cars, insurance, or cute, cuddly puppies, people seem to turn their nose with just the thought of talking to a salesperson.

Learning to Speak the Customer's Language
[Business:Sales] It may be easy to subconsciously lump customers who sound alike into similar categories, assuming they all need the same thing. Realize that each customer is unique and try to understand the distinctive concerns and needs of that customer.

Silence is a Sale's Best Friend
[Business:Sales-Training] Salespeople, too, are often guilty of giving into the pressure of silence. They mistakenly interpret silence as an objection. Having a propensity to assume the objection is price-related, salespeople automatically sweeten the deal with free product, better terms or a lower price.

Selling With a Picture Perfect Memory
[Business:Sales] Opening night for the Toledo Mud Hens is like a grownup's Halloween. Like children, you put on your chosen outfit and eagerly await the evening. As the stadium fills and the sun goes down, you rush from face to face, getting as many handshakes, business cards and appointments as you can before your time is up.

Smart Questions Eliminate Objections
[Business:Sales] Customers do not know how to ask smart questions. That is your job. While giving the customer exactly what they are asking for may seem like the right thing to do, if you want to truly match your customer with the best product, service, or experience for them, you're obligated to take a few additional steps.

Make Impressions Last With a Memory Hook
[Business:Sales] Being unique and memorable should not be by pure happenstance. It is your choice. With a memory hook, you can help create unforgettable relationships at networking functions and even create a notable reputation.

Thinking Positive is a Choice
[Self-Improvement:Positive-Attitude] While browsing through a bookstore, I overhead a conversation between a ten-year-old child and his parents. He was holding a book in his hand and carried an expression that led me to believe he had just asked if he could buy it. The insidiously sharp rebuke that followed drew my attention instantly.

The Power of Laughter in Sales
[Business:Sales] The Denver Convention Center took this concept one step further and was using the same type of laugh track to lift people's spirits before entering trade shows and spending money. I have to admit, it worked on me. By the time I reached the top of the escalator, I was in a better mood, and was busy having pleasant conversations with everyone around me.

Are You There When the Sale is Ready?
[Business:Sales] Bruce wasn't sure why he did what he did, but it certainly seemed like the right thing to do. Something came over him as he reached for the phone with one hand, and his credit card with the other.

Positive Thoughts Lead to Sweet Success
[Self-Improvement:Positive-Attitude] Goals can only be achieved by first taking control of your thoughts. All of them. Positive thoughts backed with worry and fear will not bring the positive results you desire. The only way of creating the world you desire is by filling your mind with right thoughts and simply leaving no room for wrong ones. Celebrate your goals and grab them fully, without any negative thoughts to weigh them down. When you stop thinking about the bitter, you'll only taste the sweet.

Dare to Dream by Day
[Business:Sales] How could this salesman possibly win such a large account with so much ease? Was it his flawless performance? Was it his point-by-point presentation? No. The truth is that our young salesman belongs to an exclusive club. It is a club made up of those who have a definite purpose in life - those who are not afraid to dream by day.

A Different Kind of Deference
[Business] High level business executives put their pants on one leg at a time, just like everybody else. So, why do we insist on using false formalities that only distances ourselves from them as business partners? The only way to give others the respect they deserve is by giving yourself the respect they deserve and treating them as you would anybody else.

Avoiding Holiday Sales Slack
[Business:Sales] For salespeople, consistency can be hard to maintain, especially during a holiday week. Our own inability to stay focused and disciplined through constant, predictable daily activity leads us through our own tumultuous ups and downs in sales. To keep sales at a consistent speed, you need do nothing more than have the discipline to maintain regular activity doing what you do best - talking to people who have the ability to say "yes" to you. This shouldn't change the week before or after major holidays - it only changes because you allow it to.

Discover Solutions With Your Subconscious
[Self-Improvement] Do the old-fashioned methods you use to problem solve leave you nothing but a thought-tangled mess and the same regurgitated answers you've always had? This is because these methods make you rely on the weak conscious mind instead of the bigger, more competent subconscious mind. When you learn how to tap into the power of the subconscious, you'll find you have the creative power to find the perfect solution to any problem.

Making Sales is More Than Taking Orders
[Business:Sales] Salespeople today have lost the art of the personal sale. They have become nothing more than order takers. The results are confused and unhappy customers and, of course, lost sales. By speaking with customers in simpler and more personal terms, you can make their decision an easy and enjoyable one, while you enjoy the rewards of many successful sales.

The Golden Rule of Sales
[Business:Sales] True selling comes by understanding who you are as a salesperson and, more importantly, as a customer. The golden rule of selling is not "Sell to others as you think they want to be sold." It's, "Sell to others as you would like to be sold." By discovering how you like to be sold and why, you will unlock a natural and successful style of selling.

The Smallest Exchange Leads to Bigger Opportunity
[Business:Sales] In business, and especially in sales, everything is about momentum and getting things off to a good start. The offer and acceptance of a beverage at the start of an appointment, meeting, or while waiting in a lobby is the simplest form of establishing a relationship of mutual giving and accepting. With this simple exchange, the distance between the two parties is shortened, even before any business has started, making a friendship and sale easier to establish.

The Mistake of Multitasking
[Business] The biggest obstacle in business today is being present with each and every task that is in thrown our way. We find ourselves multitasking to a point of watered-down effectiveness, doing multiple things poorly instead of one thing with solid efficiency. Learn how to give each job your undivided attention, and you will make the most of every moment.

Get the Business You Wish For by Standing Out
[Business] Standing out is more than having the best service, the best product and a fair price. It requires getting noticed, immediately and easily. Every single piece of communication you have says something about you and your company. Freshen the visual appeal of your company's business communications by being creative with every interaction you have with your customers.

Do Your Emails Send the Right Message?
[Business] Because of its rapid growth and frequent use, email is often overlooked as a true form of business communication, and is deprived of the guidelines and standards we adhere to elsewhere. In reality, email should be treated the same way as a printed letter. If you wouldn't print it out and put a stamp on it, then you shouldn't be typing it out and pressing "send." Mix technological advancements like email with the solid standards of an old-fashioned letter and you will create a strong and effective form of business communication.

Price Doesn't Always Match Your Customers' Real Needs
[Business:Sales] Customers are not obsessed with price, they are simply looking to fill a need. It is the salesperson who is insecure about price that forces it onto their customers, bringing unneeded attention to an overrated issue. Learn how to focus on what really matters to the customer, and you'll discover what motivates them to buy.

Make Success Your Only Option
[Self-Improvement:Success] Many say that people have a fear of failure, when, in fact, the exact opposite is true. Too many people have a fear of success. People are afraid to test what others call impossible or are ashamed to look ridiculous chasing after success and pounding on its door until it gives in. Yet, success takes relentless determination, and a strong resolution that failure is not, and never will be, an option.

A Good Mood Leads to Good Fortune
[Business] The truth is that there is no such thing as a private thought or feeling. Just because we may not share them verbally does not mean that they are hidden or incapable of being passed to another person. Your thoughts and feelings have the ability to not just determine how you experience the world, but also how others experience the world as well.

Investing in Your Business Now Has Long-Term Benefits
[Business] In your business, every phone call, networking function, and extra hour put in is an investment. Like the stock market, this activity can fluctuate, and these ups and downs may trick you into making immediate and drastic changes. However, you must remember that your business, despite its current state, relies on your continuous investment for your desired long-term plan.

True Connections Come With Understanding
[Business:Networking] As adults, there is an unnecessary layer between ourselves and others when we network. We often forget that real communication comes through understanding, not just hearing and responding. If we can change the way we listen to one another, we can instantly change how effectively we connect with one another, and also how we work with one another.

The Sticky Truth About What Customers Really Want
[Business:Customer-Service] Customers may not know the right questions to ask to get what they want or know enough about your product to know what to ask. Although they mean well, their innocent questions may lead both of you into a sticky mess of insignificant details. By helping the customer refocus on what is really important, you will both be able to wash your hands of the sap and get back to what really matters to the customer.

Keep Your Head in the Game With Consistent Coaching
[Self-Improvement:Coaching] In business, true champions discipline themselves by making the most of the present moment. They take one thought at a time, one action at a time, and do, in this moment, what is necessary to be ready for the next customer, next sale, or next presentation. Those who embody this great leadership quality understand that great achievements come not by focusing on more things, but by focusing intensely on only one thing - the present moment.

Today's Advances Create a New Technical Difficulty
[Business] In this technologically advanced business world, we have allowed our gadgets and gizmos impair us. We are lazy and impersonal, automating everything simply because we can. No matter how technologically advanced we become, nothing will ever replace the power of simple human exchanges. Learn how to let technology help you make the personal connections that are the heart of all business.

Straight Talk on Direct Response Marketing
[Business:Marketing-Direct] Free went the way of the disco, so stop with the free offers. Even if you are truly giving something away for free, the chance that your customers will believe you is slim to none. So, when constructing your offer, stay honest, stay true, and stay believable.

What's the Story Behind Your Customers' Questions?
[Business:Sales] Many times in business, we become so comfortable in our own world that we forget, or fail to pay attention to, the fact that our customers come from a different world. Each customer comes to us with their unique story, and perhaps their own preconceptions, reservations and fears. In order for them to approach us comfortably, they ask simple questions to get the ball rolling and offer an invitation for us to help them.

Using Empathy Creates the Perfect, Simple Sale
[Business:Sales] Intelligent empathy means putting yourself in your customer's shoes to understand their needs and better help them with a solution. Without this important ingredient, you fall into the trap of oversimplifying your product knowledge or making it too complex for your customer. To put it simply, the more you understand your customer, the easier it will be to use your knowledge to give them the best service possible.

Business Welcomes the Individualization Revolution
[Business:Sales] The necessity of individualism within business boils down to one simple fact: a person's productivity is maximized through combined harmony and industry. That means that when an individual can recognize and celebrate their own style, and they have an attitude of wanting to be industrious, they are able to produce at the utmost level with the world's highest business performers.

Warm Up to Work When Business is Cold
[Business:Sales] So, what is the internal component responsible for our outer characteristics? What is it that some people have that determines their success in the business world? Love. Love for their products, love for their customers, love for doing what they do every single day. No amount of training, tools, incentives or scripts can produce the love that drives passion and brings success in business. In the absence of true love, there is little a company can do to have their employees warm up to their work and their customers.

Destined to Fail - The Truth Behind New Year's Resolutions
[Self-Improvement:Goal-Setting] True change happens in the blink of an eye. It comes suddenly and without notice. It stems from an emotional trigger that speaks to you, stirs something within you and opens your eyes to recognize that something must change. In that very moment, you have the strength and desire to make that change immediately. If a resolution does not carry with it this immediacy of action, it is destined to fail. Therefore, any resolution that can wait until the stroke of midnight on New Year's Eve lacks the emotional power to have any lasting effect on your life.

There is Such a Thing As a Stupid Question
[Business:Sales] There is a natural tendency - rather, a natural need - for humans to make a connection at the start of conversation. It helps us feel comfortable enough with one another to share our thoughts and make engaging conversation. The problem is that when left to our own devices, many of us don't know a successful way to make that important connection.

Lessons From the Wheel of Fortune
[Business:Sales] Picture yourself standing next to Pat Sajak. Now it's your turn to introduce yourself to the audience and the rest of America watching the show. How would you sum up who you are in the limited time you have? Would you rely on the same formula the previous contestants used or find a new way to share who you really are?

Strengthening Communication and Beliefs Through Disagreement
[Business:Sales] The real beauty of disagreement is that it activates thought. It means that you are thinking for yourself instead of relying on someone else to do it for you. It challenges blind acceptance to what you are taught and opens your eyes to your unique thoughts and beliefs. Whether you are in a church congregation or within a board room, disagreement can lead to a wonderfully enlightening experience.

Make the Most of Every Moment With Confidence
[Self-Improvement] Like puzzles, our days consist of tiny pieces of time. Separately, they may seem meaningless, but when assembled together, they create the picture of a beautiful day. The problem is that many people fail to realize the importance of every piece of their day. They focus 100% of their energy on the slim 25% of their day that is made up of colorful and exciting events.

Take the Turkey Out of Public Speaking
[Writing-and-Speaking:Public-Speaking] If you're like most people, just thinking of standing up in front of a room to give a speech can be enough to make your palms sweaty, your pulse race, and your stomach sink into your shoes. Oftentimes, it doesn't even matter what the subject matter is. The very act of having to perform in front of others can cause a great deal of debilitating anxiety.

Show Gratitude For Everything You've Got
[Self-Improvement:Positive-Attitude] When we shift our thinking from "getting" to "thanking," we create a calming clarity and fulfillment in our professional and personal lives. As we show love and appreciation to those around us, we feel ourselves being recharged in every cell of our body. We become alive with a new energy as the weight on our shoulders lightens.

Dreamer by Day
[Self-Improvement] With the truth that there is no such thing as a private thought, ask yourself one question-are you helping to clean this world by cleaning your inner space? Are you bold enough to take a risk in your business, in your life, or even in your dreams? Those who recognize, in the quiet spaces of their mind, that they could be doing more, I ask you to applaud and be inspired by those dreamers by day, for they have the courage to stand up and say, "Yes, I believe!"

You Are Smarter Than You Think You Are
[Self-Improvement] There is a time to learn and a time to act. Learning takes place before and after moments of action. You will know you are not in a moment of action when that little voice in your head begins to talk to you. This little voice helps you evaluate new material, contemplate important decisions, or absorb important lessons from past experiences. The key to using this knowledge is to make sure that the little voice is not present when it is your moment to act.

Slow Down to Improve Personal Efficiency
[Business:Sales] Every single salesperson has a finite amount of energy, or fuel, to get them through the month. Therefore, to consistently hit your monthly sales goals, you must improve your personal fuel economy.

Allow Customers to Discover Truths on Their Own
[Business:Sales] A day doesn't go by when a salesperson is faced with the need to point out a visible flaw to a potential client. As a salesperson hears more about a business, they instantly recognize that the company has probably been paying too much for its current service, is using the wrong product for what it is trying to accomplish, or is not getting the service that it deserves. Yet how can one point out these flaws with tact?

Slay Dragons by Giving Sales Team Freedom
[Business:Sales] Much like the cartographers of old, businesspeople today create the best ways to present a product, choose which customers to target, and dictate the best uses for your products. Selling a product or service to a wide-open marketplace bears many similarities to sailing in open water, especially for those who are simply given a handful of business cards and sent out.

Create Experiences That Confirm Promises
[Business:Sales] As a child, I remember putting my hand on a hot stove and hearing my father laugh as he said, "Ha! I bet you won't do that again, will you?" Apparently I didn't learn my lesson, and I'm reminded of this every time I go out to dinner and the waitress puts a hot plate in front of me.

Sell the Next Step to Improve Sales Pipeline
[Business:Sales] When our prospective customers run away, we do not have the good fortune of being able to follow their footprints in the snow to track them down. Instead, we find ourselves on the back porch yelling for them to see if they respond.

Know Your Role to Navigate Troubled Waters
[Business:Sales] When you are able to clearly understand the role that you play in your business's canoe, not only do you get where you are going with ease, but you enjoy the trip along the way. Often we fail to understand what we are able to control and what our required role is as a member of our vessel's crew.

Ease Customers by Speaking Their Language
[Business:Sales] Just as I never picked up fluent Spanish, many business professionals never make the leap to speaking their customer's native language. Instead of sustaining an intelligent, fluent conversation, their words come out sounding memorized and regurgitated. To the customer, these rehearsed and canned conversations sound just as foreign and hilarious as I would sound if I tried to speak fluent Spanish.

The Ability to Learn and Adapt Lies Within
[Self-Improvement:Techniques] Watching a mouse work its way through a maze to find cheese is extremely interesting when seen first hand. Ignoring the countless cliches and metaphors that have been developed from the old mouse-in-the-maze scenario, it is truly amazing to watch a small fury animal learn a complex maze and remember the easiest way to find its cheese. The only thing more interesting than watching a mouse learn its way through the maze, is realizing that your colleagues are only a few evolutionary bumps away from the mouse in terms of how they learn and adapt to new situations.

Make Goals Known to Others to Reach Them
[Self-Improvement:Goal-Setting] Maintaining a healthy weight has always been a struggle for me. Over the past ten years, my weight has risen and dropped drastically three times. I have learned every diet trick and exercise technique there is, but I have struggled with consistency and allowed the application of my knowledge to wax and wane.

A Little Research Goes a Long Way in Sales
[Business:Sales] Undoubtedly, you have heard the phrase, "There is no such thing as a stupid question," but that is dead wrong. There are, indeed, stupid questions. You'll know you have asked one when you feel like you've just been stung on the eyeball by a bee.

Growing Profits in a Shrinking World
[Business:Sales] Those in business who are able to see the technological revolution as a way to connect with more people are the ones who are going to be able to recognize the advantages of our shrinking world. Conversely, those who still refuse to accept that websites, telecommuting, and instant communication are now required tools of the trade will still argue that the internet is making business more difficult.

Ride Pendulum Back to Old-Fashioned Sales
[Business:Sales] Whether you are a baby-boomer or a millennial, understand that business is done when two people connect. Life is simple. We are born to communicate with one another. The world has not grown larger, it has grown smaller and as things grow smaller, relationships grow stronger. Embrace and enhance your ability to connect with other humans using whatever tools are available and sales will climb as you ride the pendulum back into good, dare I say, "old fashioned," relationship selling.

Answers Come With Continued Curiosity
[Self-Improvement] Why don't everyday people go after extraordinary things? I'm not talking only about money, for we are only truly rich when we have perfect balance; I'm talking about going after the things that we want and deserve. We share a common lack of willingness to drive toward obtaining those things.

Control Your Mind to Act With Purpose
[Business:Sales] If we want to take control of our lives, we have to take control of our minds first. For example, just as you should have a clear and deliberate expected outcome before you respond to a heated email, you should have the same deliberate focus when you get out of bed in the morning. Ask yourself, "What do I want to happen today? What is my plan to make things happen today?" Then, make it so.

Optimistic Thoughts Create Positive Change
[Self-Improvement:Positive-Attitude] Something as simple as telling a child not to forget his or her lunch or telling your spouse not to be late will only serve to increase the likelihood that the event will occur. We have grown so accustomed to these words of negation that we hardly even notice them. However, even though they may go unnoticed, their ability to create contradictory images remains strong.

Overcoming Life's Spin Cycle is a Choice
[Self-Improvement:Techniques] The fact is we're all going to be tossed around, put through spin cycles, and tumbled on high heat. That is why people change throughout their lives. Much like an oft-laundered shirt's composition changes, they change based upon the choices they make.

Feelings of Gratitude Lead to Wonderful Things
[Self-Improvement:Positive-Attitude] The ability to feel this gratitude for your customers on such a fundamental level causes you to do wonderful things. Those who give you the honor of serving them cause you to complete sales in a way that gives birth to customer loyalty. When you truly feel grateful for those with whom you do business, you become untouchable by your competition and by waning markets. You are able to blur the line between customer and personal friend.

Bolster Strengths to Give Skills a Quick Fix
[Self-Improvement:Techniques] There are few people that are both confident with what they are good at and also willing to admit their weaknesses. Those who are able to do this in the course of day-to-day business will often be the same people who are exceptionally talented at what they do.

Use a Positive Spin to Net Business Wins
[Business:Sales] It may be natural to respond to a negative thought by thinking even more negative thoughts. But harboring these negative thoughts, let alone perpetuating them, serves no purpose. If you are faced with a problem or are confronted with negative news, ask yourself what good it serves to allow the thought to sour your attitude. What possible good outcome can come from being negative? Unlike multiplication tables, in real life, two negatives do not make a positive.

Avoiding Guessing Can Be Hard in Business - How Not to Hear "Go Fish"
[Business:Sales-Training] As you look around the table of six, you rely on your intuition to help you decide the best target for your inquiry. You pick the person seated across from you who is avoiding eye contact: "Do you have a Jack?" He looks at his cards and gives a wry reply: "Go Fish!" Business success, much like a game of "Go Fish", relies on being able to make a match between what you are holding and what the person you are talking to is holding. So the first question is, what, exactly, are you holding?

All Generalizations Are False
[Business:Sales] Regardless of whether you are trying to win a vote or a sale, everything always boils down to trust and likability. While the details of the policy or proposal may sound important, and may matter a great deal to you, everything begins with an emotional connection.

Putting on Your Boss's Hat
[Business:Careers-Employment] It only makes sense that you can be your own best boss. Who could possibly know you better? Who could better encourage and inspire you? Begin each day by putting on your "boss's hat", and use the time to create your day as if you were instructing an employee. You'll quickly find that the best boss to work under is yourself.

Boost Productivity by Reducing Stress
[Business:Productivity] If you have the power to feel stressed at work, then you also have the power to simply let it go and focus on what really matters. You have the power to focus on something positive. You have the ability to focus on the moment you find yourself in, instead of worrying about something that may happen in the future or something that has happened in the past.

Learn From Those With More Experience
[Business:Sales] Every day we are faced with situations with which we are not familiar. As we navigate through these difficult decisions, we have many available resources. It is our job to successfully combine and utilize all of these resources. Unfortunately, many younger and less experienced business professionals place too much trust in "book knowledge" and "expert" opinions and do not place enough trust in the advice of those who have been working in the business world since their younger co-workers were in diapers.

Try a New Seat to Gain a Fresh Perspective
[Business:Sales] There are always things sitting in the room that we don't notice because we grow accustomed to seeing things in a certain way. While the obvious instances occur for the visual items, conversational objects can also hide just below our radar when we are talking to our customers.

Overcome Rejection With Passion, Confidence
[Business:Sales] The difference between toughness and intelligence is all in how you digest rejection. You should use the rejection to make you tougher, letting it propel you toward intelligence.

Stop Procrastination With Right Surroundings
[Business:Sales] Every goal is accomplished one step at a time, and there is always a first step. Make it count and create momentum towards the steps that must follow.

Clean Palettes Paint Clear Pictures
[Business:Sales] The "numbers game" approach is so simple that even a two-year-old can master it. However, when you act like a two-year-old, you'll be treated like a two-year-old: you'll be told "no" more often than you'd like. This ignorant approach may lead to the majority of the frustration and rejection that salespeople encounter on a daily basis.

Truly Listen by Silencing Thought Chatter
[Business:Sales] We are all trying to listen with other noises in the room, which makes it difficult to give our undivided attention to the person standing in front of us. The noises we hear have been present for so long we don't even realize they are there. They are the incessant voices of the thinking mind.

Focus Now to Seize Moments Before You
[Business:Sales] There are some stories that are memorable enough to stick with you. My seventh grade math teacher's story about her bicycle accident is one of those stories that has stayed fresh in my mind since the day I heard it. As she rode down the concrete bicycle path, she noticed that the path was built around a tree.

Daily Optimism Leads to Clear-Headed Thinking
[Self-Improvement:Positive-Attitude] A clear head is a direct result of disciplined optimism, and it is only with a clear head that you are able to make the best decisions. Only with a clear head can you realize that you have everything you need at this moment to get exactly that for which you are searching.

Take a Well-Worn Path to Clean Communication
[Business:Sales] Too often we lead our customers down the path of "yes" when the right answer is actually "no." We try so hard to close a sale that we fail to establish a clean understanding of the situation. In the absence of this clean understanding we can drag out the sales process with no acceptable conclusion, or we convince our customer to take a path that is wholly inappropriate. You may get a sale, but you will kill the long-term relationship as you and your customer tumble down in the wrong direction like a top-heavy ATV.

Recession is Only a State of Mind
[Business:Sales] Regardless of the state of the economy, you and your business still need to make sales. However, you cannot simply muscle your way through difficult times. No matter how hard you try, if you are giving off a vibe that things aren't well, people know it. While they may not be able to readily put their finger on it, or they may not have the sharp intuitive senses that your spouse has, they still can feel it.

Marketing Lessons From Lunatics
[Business:Marketing] Every business in the world has something that provides help, answers, or solutions to the people they represent. This will be your opportunity to stand on your overturned bucket and shout through a megaphone about your own.

What NOT to Learn From Super Bowl Commercials
[Business:Advertising] Spending money on advertising can sometimes leave a strange feeling in your stomach. However, if you keep a few things in mind when choosing your advertising, you can relax, knowing that the money you spend on advertising is going to translate directly into new sales.

Survivorman Meets the Business World
[Business:Productivity] In what could only be a terrifying dream, you find yourself in a parked vehicle on the side of a deserted road in what appears to be in the middle of nowhere. When the reality of your dire situation sinks in, you find yourself asking, "What would The Discovery Channel's Survivorman do in this situation?" When starting a new job in sales, you are, essentially, in the exact same predicament not knowing where to begin, not knowing in which direction to head, and not knowing how to get to your final destination of business success. Now is the time to remember your dream. Reconsider your approach and recognize that this is a survival situation, and every move you make is crucial for success.

Earn "Top-of-Mind" by Reaching to the Bottom Drawer
[Business:Marketing] Gifts, and the act of giving gifts to those who matter so much to us, remain one of the best ways to reach out to those who do business with us and to those who we want to do business with us. This fact is undisputed, yet rarely practiced in the course of everyday business. Yes, there are ways to gift that will quickly and easily earn your customers' top-of-mind...and the simplicity of how will amaze you!

Who Are You Competing Against?
[Business:Sales] You probably think that your biggest competitor is a big-name chain store, a recognized brand name or a specific salesperson. While it's true that sometimes a customer's choice boils down to either buying your product or someone else's, this isn’t always the case. Sometimes, the customer's real choice is between buying your product or simply nothing at all.

Dear Mr. Retail Salesperson
[Business:Sales] We (your customers) have been talking a lot lately. Together, we've decided to confront you about a very important matter: how to provide us with a better experience in your store.

Your Mind is a Powerful Tool
[Self-Improvement:Positive-Attitude] Imagine that it can be done, and it will be done. Visualize success, and your mental picture of success will soon materialize. The power of positive visualization is one business concept that is often written-off with little practical consideration. However, the straight fact is that visualizing something and keeping that visualization in your mind leads to the real manifestation of that mental image.

Shaking Off a Lost Sale
[Business:Sales] The difference between being an average salesperson and a great salesperson depends on how quickly you recover from a lost sale. In sales, success depends largely on your attitude, which affects every aspect of your selling cycle. It determines the words that come out of your mouth and the actions that you take.

When Faced With Change, Do You Whine or Shine?
[Self-Improvement:Positive-Attitude] While fear is natural, there is a way to manage it and even use it to your advantage. You can turn fear into positive energy by CHOOSING TO DO SO and by taking control of your attitude and actions.

Get Over Yourself; Prospects Don't Want to Talk to You
[Business:Sales-Training] Calling your prospects is only one of the many resources you have for establishing contact with them and setting up the appointment. It’s also the method most likely to leave the worst impression on your prospect. When you call, you are assuming that you are important enough for your prospect to stop whatever they’re doing at that moment just so you can try to sell them something. Get over yourself; they don’t want to talk to you. This doesn’t mean you should stop calling your prospects, it just means that you should stop relying on this method to gain that appointment.

3 Common Customer Objections: What They Mean and How You Should Respond
[Business:Customer-Service] Just because a customer questions your price or a feature of your product DOESN’T mean that they aren’t interested in buying it! As a salesperson, you must learn the meaning behind your customers’ objections in order to respond appropriately and turn each objection into a personalized sale!

Getting the Appointment
[Business:Sales-Training] What are you doing now to try and set up an appointment with your prospect? Calling? Is that all? Guess what? Every other salesperson is doing the same thing. They’re trying to get the appointment that could be YOURS! So, what are you going to do about it?

To Buy or Not to Buy? Motivating Your Customers to Take Action!
[Business:Sales] Eliminating the hassle and risks of the purchase will help your customer to focus on the benefits of taking immediate action in purchasing your product. Your customer will see that you understand the specific decision they face and will feel comfortable buying from you. When you use a tone and message that encourages them to take action, they will feel motivated and will have no excuse to wait. They will enjoy the benefits of their purchase and you will enjoy the benefits of the sale.

A Sale in 30 Seconds? It's all in the Greeting
[Business:Sales-Training] It has been said that a customer makes a decision to buy within the first 30 seconds of their experience at a retail store. That means that as a salesperson, you must create an environment that is comfortable for your customer and conducive to making a sale, all within 30 seconds of their arrival.

Change in the Workplace: Don't Fear It; Use It!
[Self-Improvement:Positive-Attitude] Every day something changes at work: your products, your customers, your delivery schedules, your company’s policies. Do these changes negatively affect your company and your sales? Why do you let them? These constant changes can cause you to lose focus and lose sales, or they can propel you into greater success. It’s YOUR CHOICE!

It Is Not The Price That Is Keeping You From Making The Sale
[Business:Sales-Training] Your customer will not buy at ANY price if you do not have value established. There are a couple of mistakes you can avoid regarding the price of your product and how you handle it.

Focus On The Customer: The Only Secret To Closing
[Business:Sales-Training] People are always looking for ways to close the sale. Often times when you lose a sale, it has nothing to do with your ability to close. The only secret to closing more sales is by focusing more on your customer.

Sales Discipline: Five Steps To Recover From A Lost Sale
[Business:Sales-Training] Ever lost a sale? Of course you have, we all have. The difference between the average salesperson and the great salesperson is how quickly you recover from the lost sale. There are five steps to recover from a lost sale and to rebuild your positive attitude so that you can quickly bounce back and start making new sales.