Summary:

Mike Simmons has risen through professional sales roles for the past 25 years as an individual contributor, VP of sales, and CRO. He founded his company Catalyst, A.C.T.S to help SaaS founders and team leaders scale their organizations from $2M - $80M ARR. He coaches sales people, speakes an ed tech conferences, and also runs a podcast.

I this episode, we talk through the concept of selling by being human and how sales is about connecting the dots between problems and solutions. Mike emphasizes the importance of serving others and asking the right questions to help people discover answers on their own.

We explore the misconception of sales and the negative stereotypes associated with it. Mike shares his personal journey in sales and how he learned from observing and working with experienced sales professionals.

Mike shares practical tools like the hexagon framework to problem solving and how to ask subtle but powerful questions to get anyone to reach decisions on their own and address problem solving from a more productive perspective. You'll learn how to sell ideas internally, how to move others with high indecision, and to practice different ways of asking good questions on your own.

Key Moments:

00:00 Introduction and Background

03:01 Selling by Being Human: Connecting Problems and Solutions

10:00 Serving Others: The Key to Successful Sales

24:08 Learning from the Best: Observing and Emulating Experienced Sales Professionals

27:06 The Importance of Alignment and Perspective

32:47 Being Comfortable with Imperfect Decisions

39:19 The Power of Asking Questions

46:21 Documenting the Decision-Making Process

Connect with Mike

• Website - Find My Catalyst

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Summary:

Lyndsay Dowd is a Speaker, Founder, Author, Coach, Podcast Host, and Disruptor. She was recognized as a Top 10 Business Coach by Apple News and was the recipient of the 2023 Award for Innovation and Excellence, also named Business Coach of the Year. Lyndsay was also a Featured Guest Lecturer at Harvard University. She is an accomplished leader, decorated seller and has successfully managed large, diverse, high-performing sales teams over the last 25 years. 23 of those years were spent climbing the ranks at IBM.

In creating her company, Heartbeat for Hire, she has devoted her career to transforming leadership through building irresistible culture and modern leadership practices to get the best results from their teams. She is a thriving coach focused on sales, leadership, career, and culture. She has been featured in Fortune Magazine, HR.Com, Authority Magazine, Business Management Daily, Valiant CEO and many other publications. Lyndsay also hosts the top 5% globally ranked podcast, Heartbeat for Hire, and is a frequent guest speaker on live and recorded shows.

This episode is about the sales skills of exceptional leaders. Specifically how important it is to practice the skills of transferring belief. She shares how exceptional leaders create cultures of mutual respect and understanding. Lindsay shares her experiences with inspiring leaders who empowered her and helped catapult her into an executive role with IBM. You can learn how to be more intentional with showing others you believe in them.

Moments:

00:00 Introduction and Overview

03:07 The Power of Human Connection in Sales and Leadership

07:25 Creating Cultures of Mutual Respect and Understanding

12:49 Advocating for Your Team and Empowering Others

15:36 The Impact of Recognition and Appreciation

28:07 Building a Personal Brand and the Power of Testimonials

33:09 Modernizing Leadership and Creating a Positive Work Culture

36:00 The Importance of Trust, Feedback, and Inspiration in Leadership

46:29 Guest Lecturing at Harvard: Sharing Stories of Resilience and Leadership

51:56 The Role of Human Connection in Sales and Building Relationships

Connect with Lyndsay

• Website
• LinkedIN

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Summary

Brian Miller believes everyone deserves to feel heard, understood, and valued. He is a former magician turned author, speaker, and consultant on human connection. Today, Brian works with organizations and educators who want to build connected cultures.

He is the author of Three New People, a manifesto on human connection that Publishers Weekly said, “Brilliantly outlines a system for deepening relationships.” Brian’s podcast Beyond Networking cracked the Top 200 under ‘careers’ on Apple. And his TEDx talk “How to Magically Connect with Anyone” has been viewed 3.5 million times.

After meeting Brian, audiences are not just inspired to join the human connection revolution - they’re ready to lead it.

Brian shares his personal journey with magic and how it helped him overcome social anxiety. We explore the importance of understanding others' perspectives and beliefs in sales and communication.

Some people don't realize the idea that despite our differences, we all want the same things in life and can find common ground.

Takeaways you'll get - the power of asking meaningful questions to deepen conversations, techniques for remembering names, and emphasizes the importance of making people feel understood and valued. The conversation concludes with Brian sharing a personal story that taught him the power of perspective taking and understanding others.

Key Moments:

00:00 Introduction to the Sell By Being Human podcast

01:25 The Power of Human Connection

07:03 The Emotional Impact of Magic

14:04 Brian's Journey with Magic

23:02 Understanding Perspectives in Sales

27:52 Connecting Beyond Agreement

29:09 Finding Common Ground: Connecting Despite Differences

31:24 The Power of Meaningful Questions

34:48 Remembering Names: Making People Feel Valued

40:46 Perspective Taking: Understanding and Connecting with Others

43:36 Beyond Empathy: Making People Feel Understood

Connect with Brian

• LinkedIN
• Website

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