Category: Blog

Quick Question . . .  . . . has got to be the best email subject line ever. When a prospect didn’t call me back, I sent the following email. The subject line was: “Quick Question.” The body of the email read: Cliff, I still have you on my ‘waiting for’ list of people I’m expecting ... Read More

Tattoo is our 14-year old Abyssinian. Right before New Year’s Eve, I found her in our bedroom closet limping. A quick trip to the veterinarian confirmed she had dislocated her back right knee. Who knew that could happen? She had surgery on January 5th and will have to wear a cone until ... Read More

You were minding your own business and selling up a storm. And then . . . BAM! . . . you got promoted. You’re the new sales manager. The “Paradox of Management” is this: You get paid for doing less of what you got promoted for doing more of. As a salesperson, all ... Read More

If you want to save yourself from another bad hire, then ask this question toward the end of your first interview: We’re about finished with this interview. After this, I will start my reference checking and due diligence. Is there anything you would like to tell me now rather than have ... Read More

I am a 24 year old know-it-all salesperson. On this particular Tuesday, I am meeting with Len Mattioli, the owner of American TV and Furniture. We are sitting at a dinette set in the furniture department. The meeting keeps getting interrupted by Len’s employees. When they aren’t interrupting, Len’s loses focus on the meeting to make sure ... Read More

I picked up The E-Myth: Why Most Businesses Don’t Work and What to do About It in the St. Louis airport. I read it on the flight home. Few business books have moved me to tears, but Michael Gerber’s book did. Shortly thereafter, Sarah and I signed up for a seminar with ... Read More

I know. I know. 1984 has come and gone. But sometimes you need to act like Big Brother when it comes to your salespeople and their customers. Here’s how to do that the right way: I went to a seminar when I was a new sales manager. The speaker said that sales managers should call ... Read More

A few years ago, I read Dr. Murray Sperber’s book Beer and Circus: How Big Time College Sports Is Crippling Undergraduate Education. Sperber is a professor of English and American Studies at Indiana University. In the New York Times, Morris Berman’s book review captures the big ideas and themes of the book. American college students, ... Read More