If you’ve followed me for a while, you may have heard me talk about a man named Spencer Hays. Spencer was the legendary majority shareholder of the Southwestern family of companies. When I was in college I worked for the Southwestern Advantage program. I made a lot of money and learned a lot of skills selling educational children’s reference materials […]
A week ago, none of the trees were blooming. Nothing outside was green. All of it was barren and not growing. But that’s what happens, right? Every single year, in certain seasons things stop growing and sometimes they die. But then they start growing again. Chances are that you’re part of an organization or a company that desires growth. You’re […]
Last weekend, my wife Amanda and I and were very fortunate to attend a conference led by Ken Blanchard. Condoleezza Rice, the former U.S. Secretary of State, was just one of the compelling speakers. We were there to learn about leadership. A really powerful idea hit me while I was listening to the different speakers. While this idea might not […]
l One of the great challenges for any leader is motivating his or her team. That’s what being a leader is: It’s motivating other people to take action, achieve and accomplish. There’s something I haven’t really understood and haven’t had 100% clarity on until recently. I learned that motivation is an external concept. Motivation is something you offer people. Or […]
There’s a huge emergence of entrepreneurship in this country right now – you can see it on social media and TV shows like Shark Tank and The Profit. There are lots of ways to run your business and work from home, and I’m a fan of the idea of being an entrepreneur. At Southwestern Consulting, we’re not 100% entrepreneurs, but […]
“My family will never be the reason why I can’t succeed. Rather, they’re the reason I must succeed.” Wow, what a powerful idea and a powerful thought, courtesy of Tracy Christman, one of our Southwestern Consulting clients, and one of the multipliers profiled in Procrastinate on Purpose. I’m back home, after traveling, and was thinking about what Tracy shared. We’ve […]
This is an important question: What should you do on your very first day in sales? It’s a question we hear at Southwestern Consulting a lot, because we’re growing very fast. Every single day, we’re bringing on new sales and leadership clients who’ve hired new salespeople. And they’re all asking this question. Let’s just pretend for a second you’ve started […]
We all want happiness. We want that secure feeling of real, sustainable joy. All of us – me, our family and friends, our coaching clients – are trying to find happiness. And we all ask, “Where do you find happiness? Where does it come from?” When you look online, you see memes with quotes like, “Don’t worry, be happy” or […]
As a Navigator it is important to understand these behavioral styles and be able to identify first your own style and then your prospects.
Checkout this podcast interview with John Lee Dumas the host of Entrepreneur on Fire and Dustin Hillis Co-founder of Southwestern Consulting. 3 Key Points: You cannot teach what you don’t know, and you cannot lead where you won’t go. Selling is the transference of emotions and expectations. Keep your principles. Stay focused on your principles. Enjoy! (Click here to listen […]
Do you believe confidence is something you are born with or not? At Southwestern Consulting, we found that confidence can be developed and strengthened through awareness and training. There are 3 Types of Confidence. We all have experienced all 3 types in some form or fashion in various ways. Our goal is to progress through the 3 types of confidence […]
What do people like Richard Branson, Elon Musk, Mark Cuban and Mark Zuckerberg have in common? Other than being billionaires, they all are decisive. They know what they want. They understand their priorities. They make decisions. You’d probably never hear any of them say, “let me think about it”. Billionaires don’t have time to “think about it”; it’s either a […]
The difference between the ordinary salesperson and the extraordinary salesperson is mindset. With the goal of becoming a successful Navigator, you must develop an extraordinary mindset.
My very first summer selling I was out in the backwoods of Missouri where I got not one, not two, not three, but 10 flat tires. My 10th flat tire happened while I was driving a rental car. By that time in the summer, I had gotten pretty quick at changing out a flat and had formed a habit of […]
In order to have a team that has a common mission and vision, there must be methodology and principles to live and operate by. At Southwestern ConsultingTM, this is what we call a creed.
Nothing great has ever been done half-hearted. You cannot accomplish something extraordinary with one foot in and one foot out. You have to be all in! Hernan Cortes figured it out when he and his 600 men went on a mission to conquer Mexico. The only way they could possibly find a way to win the battle and conquer Mexico […]
Those that cannot do, teach. The world is hypersensitive to hypocrites. The idea of someone telling me what to do that doesn’t practice what he or she preaches makes me cringe. Kids see hypocrisy in their parents when the parent tells them to not cuss, meanwhile the parent cusses away. Salespeople see hypocrisy in their sales manager when he demands […]
“There is an element of truth in every piece of constructive feedback.” In my book Navigate, I write about the 4 different buying behavior styles and how psychologically buyers make decisions based on their fears. – The Fighter’s biggest fear is “losing control.” – The Detective’s biggest fear is “making a mistake.” – The Counselor’s biggest fear is “change.” – […]
Liar. What a harsh word. It cuts to the core. No one wants to be a liar, yet we all are. Most people define “lying” as looking someone in the eye and delivering a bold faced lie. The reality is that we are all much more creative in the ways we lie. I was sitting in church at Mid-town 12th […]
4 Types of Leadership How to be a Navigate Leader Recently, I was riding in the car with a consulting client field shadowing and listening to him coach his newly-acquired team. He is a classic Top Producer who was promoted into sales management without any leadership training. (I see this happen all the time! Why do we put so much […]
What A Great 2012! These are the posts that got the most views in 2012. 1. Top 5 Things To Look For In A Job 2. Mind Over Matter 3. 7 Steps To Courageous Goal Setting 4. Leadership Tips from Dan Moore – Part One 5. Selling Systems: Self-Management Systems 4,329 films were submitted to the 2012 Cannes Film Festival. […]
