How to use Sales Coaching to Drive Excellent Millennial Results (Forbes Articles)

How to use Sales Coaching to Drive Excellent Millennial Results (Forbes Articles)

“Coaching my Millennial sales team….now? You’ve got to be kidding! I have too many other fires that need attention ASAP!”

I could see Dan was ready to give me the eye-roll, but instead, he just sighed and said, “Danita, I’ve tried, but I don’t have time – I’ve got more important things to do with this economic crisis we’re facing.”

Dan isn’t the only leader I know who feels frustrated when we talk about coaching millennial salespeople.  Why waste time on someone who’s distracted with what’s happening on their social media, not focused on keeping and getting business?

Your Millennials need your Guidance During Chaotic Times

When I wrote a series of articles for the Forbes Coaches Council, it was meant as a resource for sales leaders who know deep down that their leadership matters to the next generation…and, they are frustrated in finding the best way to positively impact their millennial salespeople.

Now, with the impact of the coronavirus health crisis making headlines 24/7, your Millennials need your guidance more than ever.

Now is the time to move coaching millennial salespeople, including those working virtually or remotely for the first time in their careers, to the top of your priority list.

Here’s the link where you will find all my Forbes articles.

How do you Tackle your Priority List?

There are many ways to tackle a priority list.  Some of us start at the top with the big rocks and crunch down to work through the pebbles and sand and water to get to the bottom.  Others start with the fun items, regardless of priority, leaving the big rocks for later in the day (or, the next day…or, the next). Others start with the easy items, regardless of importance.

So, what’s all this talk about big rocks and pebbles, and sand, and water…

I vividly remember the first time I heard the Big Rock Story at a Franklin Covey workshop lead by Ken Ritterspach, who has since become a trusted colleague and friend.

Most of us have heard or read the story somewhere on our leadership journey.

But, maybe some younger readers haven’t heard of it before.  So, I invite those who haven’t heard the story to read on.  Or, considering your responsibility as a leader to build great leaders, this is a great reminder of why coaching your millennial salespeople is a Big Rock on your priority list.

Here’s the story…

Make room for what’s important

One day, a philosophy professor showed his students a big glass jar, filled up to the rim with big rocks. He asked them if the jar was full, and they all agreed that it was.

He picked up a container with tiny pebbles and poured them on top of the rocks.  He shook the jar around to allow the pebbles to fill the space around the big rocks.

“Is the jar full now?” he asked.

The students hesitated, trying to find the catch, but insisted that the jar was full.  The professor, however, was not finished yet…

Now he poured sand in between the pebbles and the rocks.  When he held the jar up this time, the students didn’t hesitate.

“Surely, Professor, the jar is completely full now?”

He smiled and reached under his counter. Out came a bottle of water. He tipped it into the jar until it filled up all the remaining space. The students looked at each other, slightly annoyed that he caught them out again, and laughed. 

What is this analogy telling us about our leadership?

The jar represents our personal lives, but how does it relate to our work lives? We can get bogged down, doing lots of work, but not making any progress.

Rocks: the important things you need to reach your goals – for example, at the quarterly meeting, clarify tasks and give weight of the actions needed over the next 90 days.

Pebbles: other things that are important, but with manageable consequences if they don’t get done right away.

Sand is everything else that sneaks in and gobbles up our time – like sorting through emails, less important telephone calls, and yes, constantly checking those pings from your social media apps. 

If you fill-up the jar with sand and water first, you won’t have space for the pebbles or the rocks. The same goes for your business. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the important things – like coaching your millennial salespeople.

I invite you to try this out, especially as we are seeking ways to improve our emerging leader’s performance, raise the bar on employee engagement, and capture new markets even in unstable and unpredictable circumstances.

Your Leadership Matters

My series of articles for the Forbes Coaches Council, dives into the three main topics I have written about in Millennials Matter:

• Strengthening character,
• Leading with confidence, and,
• Engaging with collaboration.

Your leadership matters, and that’s what inspired me to re-examine some of the principles (the big rocks) of coaching your millennial salespeople and creating a high-performance team that thrives during this uncertain, chaotic, and confusing season.

Here’s the link where you will find all my Forbes articles.

Stay tuned for the first post in our Forbes Recap series:  Why is it important to strengthen character in your millennial salespeople, especially during this season?

Leadership Lesson: Your leadership matters, now more than ever. Prioritize time to coach the millennial salespeople in your life and assist them to deal with the challenges of these chaotic times.

Leadership Question:  How might you shift your priorities now to include time for coaching your millennial salespeople?