|
T h e C h i e f S a l e s O f f i c e r |
In leading your people TODAY, how will you be thinking?
"JIT or JIC?" |
Sales Professionals!
This is more than the power of positive thinking. Much more.
__________________________________________________ |
|
JIT or JIC?
Are you causing your people to think in terms of Just In Time or Just In Case?
|
|
|
Martha Beck was a professor teaching various business subjects before a career change lead her into counseling. So, she knows people and business. In a recent article she challenged her readers to think Just In Time rather than Just In Case. Let's take her idea and see how it applies to sales leadership.
"Everything a leader says is amplified; everything a leader does is magnified." - Chuckism #24
If you're a leader, you're not entitled to a bad day. People who report to you are watching you more intensely than you may think. This is especially true in tough times.
What kind of message are you sending out right now? Through your choice of words, intonation in your voice, body language and other non-verbal signals, what are you communicating?
Keep your core strong! Sometimes known as our "heart", our core belief determines what we say and do and how we go about doing it.
"A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways," according to Scripture, so we need a consistent message to send out and JIT is better than JIC.
- Just In Time thinking means that we are constantly preparing for opportunity; Just In Case thinking means we are preparing for collapse.
- JIT thinking causes us to use our available resources preparing for the inevitable upswing; JIC thinking causes us to focus on how we will manage failure.
- JIT thinking recognizes that neither good times nor bad times last forever; JIC thinking only accommodates thoughts of ruin.
- JIT-focused sales teams are developing new and creative ways to prospect, solve problems and help their customers; JIC-focused teams are spending their time worrying and updating resumes.
This is not head-in-the-sand, Pollyanna thinking. This is real-world preparation. Want to believe the end of the world is near? There are folks who will help you think that way. Want to believe we're nearly out of the woods? Those folks are out there as well - and there are others everywhere in between.
It starts in the mind - in your "heart" - and your people read it like a book.
What will you lead your people in doing today that will help them prepare for the inevitable upturn?
____________________________________
|
| Eating My Own Dog Food |
|
| Our Just In Time Approach
When the economy sours my industry knows it first. Meetings are cancelled and replaced with teleconferences. What few meetings remain use only "inside" (also known as "free") speakers. Training budgets are reduced and classes delayed.
My response has been to prepare for the time when there is, once again, too much business for me to handle. My approach is based on helping those companies and individuals who are using this lull in the fighting to sharpen their swords.
- ONLINE SALES TRAINING - for companies who recognize the need to continuously develop their salespeople and who are budget-conscious, there is SaleSSuiteS.com where your salespeople can begin sharpening their skills today.
- INTERIM CSO - for companies who want to use this time to overhaul their sales from top to bottom there is "Defrag Your Sales"tm where I work with companies on every aspect of sales (organization, compensation, incentive, major accounts, sales cycle, sales process, etc.) to prepare them to capitalize early and heavily on the recovery.
- SALES FACILITATION - we are creating jobs for individuals who have decided they want to train and develop sales teams.
Meanwhile, my partner, Austen Jackson, and I continue to expand our ability to strengthen companies whose owners plan to sell in the next couple of years. I overhaul the top line, he fattens the bottom line. Yes, there are business owners who are taking a JIT approach to selling their companies - they'll be ready when the buyers are. |
Vistage Chairs |
|
 Pass This Along
Forward this to any of your members who can benefit from it. Use it for dialog in your 121's. |
