The Secret to Superior Sales Growth Coaching (5 Bold Predictions Series)

The Secret to Superior Sales Growth Coaching (5 Bold Predictions Series)

The news of the economic shutdown due to Covid-19 is a shock to all of us who are involved with Sales Growth Coaching. Minutes after hearing the TV announcement, my phone rings. It’s my 30-year-old son (who’s in sales).

“Mom, what’s happening to the world?!?” Then, “I’m going to be working from home, aren’t I? What do you recommend I do next, so I get set up and productive quickly?”

I let out a sigh of relief when I hear his last question. Why?

Because, in the midst of uncertainty, he’s taking ownership of his reality.

What about your sales team?

Are they taking ownership for their sales results? Or, expecting others to come up with solutions? 

An Ownership Mindset is the Secret to Effective Sales Growth Coaching

An ownership mindset asks, “What might I do to make a positive impact?”

Notice the word “I,” not they.

When we, and our salespeople, take ownership of our situation, something almost magical happens. Our creative brilliance and ability to find solutions is released. You, and your team, will become aware of the many gifts, talents, and strengths you have to explore – individually as well as with the team. An ownership mindset increases the effectiveness of everyone on the team.

In this series, we’re talking about my favorite question, “What might I do to make a positive difference?”

Here’s the third word in my power-packed question…

“I”

Just one letter in this tiny word.

Red Flags that Signal a Victim Mindset, that will have trouble knowing how to improve sales

In a crisis, we often witness entitlement thinking. Yes, you know what it sounds like…

• “That’s their problem”
• “They messed up”
• “They need to fix the problem for me.”

That’s entitlement.

Now, during this season, we’re seeing this trend rear its ugly head again. Here are more Red Flags that signal to you that your salespeople are reacting unproductively to their existing reality, and that your coaching will be unproductive:

• Blaming external factors – “The virus is causing me to be stuck here, not making sales.”
• Making excuses – “By working remotely, I can’t improve my pipeline.”
• Pointing fingers – “The government is not handling the challenges well.”
• Expecting others to find solutions – “My boss must do more to get us back on track.”

Long before this year changed the way we live and work, the-coffee-is-too-hot culture was already rampant in our work environment. As experienced leaders, we need to go the extra mile to root out the crippling impact of Red Flag statements (and victim thinking).

Green Flag Questions Ignite an Ownership Mindset, that will help to increase sales 

To maximize your sales coaching & sales strategy efforts, ask questions of your sales managers and salespeople that will challenge them to…

• examine their own contributions,
• accept responsibility for making a positive difference,
• take ownership of how they’re choosing to think, feel and act.

What Ownership Mindset questions do you want your salesperson to ask him or herself?

Here are some examples of questions that motivate them to start minimizing excuses and maximizing the search for creative solutions.  It’s a vital mindset shift during these times.

• What might I do to gain a deeper understanding of the real business issues my prospect is dealing with?
• What might I do to get more at the top of my sales funnel & how do I increase sales?
• What might I learn to improve my consultative selling skills?

Be intentional in spotting and leveraging Green Flag questions that include the word, “I” – a word that ignites and strengthens an ownership mindset.

Summary of Sales Growth Coaching

To ensure that your sales coaching efforts will create a breakthrough difference, stimulate the ownership mindset in your salespeople. You will increase your team’s effectiveness and their presence.

Guide your salespeople to apply an ownership mindset, where they take inventory of their own input, behavior, activities, and contributions to a situation. Remind them of the following:

• They can only control their behavior. They can’t con­trol outcomes.
• They need to watch their input and be highly inten­tional in what they’re listening to, reading, and saying. Is it positive and constructive?
• To be countercultural and to be a leader in accountabil­ity, they need to be highly intentional about their input.

Summary

“I”

This one-letter word is the difference for all of our “sons” and all of our salespeople between becoming a victim of their circumstances, or creating breakthrough solutions.

To survive and thrive, we, along with our sales managers and salespeople, need to embrace an ownership mindset. By taking ownership of our reality, we expand our adaptability, effectiveness, and influence.

Stay tuned for the next post in this series, Create an Action-Packed Sales Strategy to Inspire Superior Performance in Q4 and 2021 (Strategic Sales Business Plan), to learn about the growth potential of the fourth word in our powerful sentence, “do.”

Your leadership matters greatly during this season.

If you’ve missed the previous articles in this series, get them here…

• 5 Bold Predictions – How to Build Breakthrough Mindsets in Times of Uncertainty
• Secrets to Improving Territory Sales Reviews (And Getting Breakthrough Results) 
• Sales Strategy Secrets to End 2020 on a High 

… as well as the next post in the series: Create an Action-Packed Sales Strategy to Inspire Superior Performance 

Join me for a free virtual coffee meeting

Having challenges keeping your team engaged and focused in a productive direction? We invite you to schedule a free virtual coffee meeting with us. No charge, no obligation. Just 45 minutes to talk through what challenges are happening, receive personal tips, advice, and next steps on how to solve those challenges. To schedule, email me at danita@DanitaBye.com

Leadership Lesson:   People with an ownership mindset leverage their internal and external resources to expand their effectiveness.

Leadership Question:  What might you do to strengthen the ownership mindset of your Millennial salespeople so that they will expand their sales capacity?