I'll admit it.  I'm a self-help book junkie.  In fact, I've met very few from the sales profession that aren't.  However, I read one book recently that will change my outlook and my behavior for a long time to come.  Last evening, I read Marshall Goldsmith's "MOJO: How to Get It, How to Keep It and How to Get it Back If You Lose It."That's right. One evening, cover-to-cover… appendices and all.&n […]

I was just in Greece.... the Temple of Zeus and the Parthenon were amazing.These impressive and beautiful structures were constructed with simple tools wielded by masters.Piece by piece they put these amazing edifices in place and thousands of years later… they are still standing. They're not anywhere near their original condition, but they're still here!Our effectiveness is built the same way. It's not a sprint -- it's the steady progression towards a wo […]

It was a sultry summer evening in 1998 and there I was, standing on the sidewalk with a gun held to the back of my head and two guys asking for money.  So what does this story have to do with Mahan -- and why is it posted on a sales blog? Read on.   The first thing that flashed across my mind was, "How could this be happening?" I was in the affluent Atlanta suburb of Virginia Highlands -- a really cool classic neighborhood infused with shops, restau […]

After a meeting with a customer you may be able to update the Call Plan from the first meeting and use it for the next meeting. This is not always the case -- but it is always worth investigating. Here's how.... One of the first questions you should ask yourself is "Did we achieve the End In Mind (EIM)?"  If the answer is "yes," then the next steps may already be clear. If the customer did not make the decision you called for at the e […]

Today I have an exercise with the blog so instead of just one minute to read it you'll need 10 minutes if you include the exercise.A Critical Success Factor (CSF) is something that is essential for an organization to achieve its mission. By defining and agreeing on three to five CSFs an organization can maintain focus and align resources to those activities which will maximize the chance of success of achieving their mission.Just as an organization can have a mission and CSFs so c […]

Last month Ninety Five 5 announced that Player Map is now integrated into our Sales Success System (S3) as a core module. It's available at no additional cost to subscribers -- all Ninety Five 5 clients now have access to it. This includes a subscription to Player Map X-Ray. But for the folks just joining the conversation, what is Player Map? Meet its creator, Scott Leland. I sat down with him the other day and the following are the highlights of our conversation. Tom: Scott, I […]

Last week we focused on time and this week we'll focus on what you can do about it.We're all too busy! We're constantly bombarded by external stimulus and all of it wants to influence our choice of action.  I could say all of it wants our time... but that label and thinking is actually part of the problem.  We have all the time in the world: 24 hours per day and each of us has the full 24.  It's not a question of time-management: it's […]

When asked what separates the average sales professional from a great one, many managers almost always draw from a list of personal attributes (trustworthy, tenacious, resilient, superior work ethic, organized, intelligent, etc.) in an attempt to capture the defining elements of those that consistently overachieve.However, these attributes often underpin success in many careers – not just sales.  And while I admit to being hopelessly addicted to life-affirming Swami […]

Last week we explored how Call Plans are designed to help plan for client meetings. Today we'll answer the question: Why use a BOW anyway?Using the Business Opportunity Worksheet (BOW) tool to structure conversations can help you to execute in meetings more effectively.   Applying the BOW effectively means: Moving off the solution to uncover problems the customer wants to resolve and results they want to achieve Finding out the real opportunity, along with an […]

Bradenton, Fla., June 17, 2011 – Ninety Five 5, an execution-focused sales transformation company, today announced that partner Mahan Khalsa has been selected to present at the 2011 Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference (WPC) July 11-14 at the Los Angeles Convention Center.  WPC is Microsoft's annual partner conference with more than 12,000 attendees from countries all over the globe converging in Los Angeles, Calif., for this year's event."Our Micros […]