In 1988 I watched in horror as my childhood hero Carl Lewis was blown away by Ben Johnson in the men’s 100m final at the Seoul Olympic Games.

The ripped and bulging Canadian sprinter launched out of the blocks to blaze to a new world record time of 9.79 seconds. To my relief, three days later, Johnson was stripped of his gold medal and banned for testing positive to steroids. Lewis was then unceremoniously anointed as the Olympic champion, and faith was restored to my little world.

Not many records can endure the vacillation of time. Johnson’s drug assisted time was considered only possible because he used a banned substance. His time has since been broken on several occasions. Usain Bolt is the reigning Olympic champion and world recorder holder, clocking in a 9.58 seconds. May I be so bold as to suggest that one day a man of freakish ability will run it in eight seconds?

Each generation strives to be more than their ancestors. More opulent, more enlightened, more successful. Smarter, faster! To achieve this we must overcome ignorance, abolish inhibiting beliefs, and embrace change. This path is risky, but ultimately, it serves by moving us all forward. To evolve, records need to be broken and new rules set. We live in a world of flux and ceaseless movement. If you’re standing still, in reality, you are moving backwards.

Genuine innovation is challenging to achieve, because initially only you trust it. And without others buying-in to your vision, who will fund it and run with it?  Not many, which usually spells the death of a great idea. True innovators live on the edge, blazing away with new ideas and brazen beliefs. To break a long held record or tradition set by others, you’ll need a stomach full of courage, thick skin and unyielding commitment to the cause.

Never be the one to succumb to other people’s ignorance or take unconstructive feedback as a reason to give up your dream. You are unstoppable when your vision sings to your determination and inspires you to work through adversity. Sticking your neck out is never easy, especially if what you believe in runs contrary to the majority.

Ben Johnson broke both the rules and world record in Seoul, however, in an unethical way, and that will always meet with penalty. At some point, much of what you believe in today will evolve or change, so be open to it. What shouldn’t change are your self-belief and desire to be better. Keep on striving. And if you genuinely believe a rule should be broken… smash it!

Inspire,

Trent Leyshan

Sales Training

Sales is a game. Though not a numbers game as some would suggest, it’s more a mental game.

Every year, I work with hundreds of sales and service people across industries. What strikes me most is the chasm between the high and low performers. This distinction is always a matter of mindset.

If you haven’t made a sale in weeks, or hit a target in months, you should be anxious. That state should transcend to frustration, and if that persists, then raw anger! By anger, I dont mean, slapping customers in the face until they sign the contract. I refer to a deep sense of injustice for not succeeding at what you do. This sensation is essential to all creatures that compete for survival in any jungle.

Despite modern advances human beings are still primitive creatures. Just tune into the six o’clock news of an evening and you’ll get a taste of reality. We live in a ruthless world and occasionally things dont go our way. Understand this, and then swiftly get over it. When your back is to the wall… slowly stretch your fingers and flare your claws …get angry!

I observe business people blaming their lack of performance on external forces, such as; market conditions, ineffective marketing, too many time wasters, or a crack pot manager. They curse, bicker and spit at others with resentment. These people are angry all right, but their energy is directed at everyone but themselves. In this instance, the first person you need to confront is you! Look yourself dead in the eye and demand answers! And it’s the answers you’re most reluctant to hear and acknowledge that move you forward.

Are you lazy? Fearful of rejection? Do you lack passion? Not willing to do the hard yards? Are you too focused on money? Does your ego need a stroke? Are you caught-up in internal politics? Is your confidence shot? Are you exhausted? Do you feel unloved? …Ok. So what?

Dont fall into the trap of putting “your own” story above the need to get the job done. Turn your anger into action! Do the most challenging tasks first, as they often bring the juiciest rewards. Cold call that CEO! She won’t bite. Get up at the crack of dawn and knock on doors! In that big presentation today, take control, be assertive and ask for the business! Stop fluffing around the edges and cut-through to the outcome. Making mistakes is ok, just keep learning and keep going! You may be down now, but the animal is never down for long.

If you’re in sales, you’re paid to sell. If you can’t and won’t do that, then move on and find a role more aligned with your natural skills and cerebral capacity. When push comes to shove, you’re the only person that can change your reality. Yes, at times, it’s a nasty, scary and unforgiving jungle out there, so start channelling your inner animal. Dont get eaten… get angry!

Inspire,

Trent Leyshan

Sales Training

Flash point!

A micro slice of space and time where our lives change, forever. This is either a painful moment that haunts us, or a place where our wildest dreams are so vivid they become real.

A photo finish decided the 2011 Melbourne Cup. Only the benefit of technology could confirm the faintest speck of light between first and second place. This year’s winner Dunaden and connections pocketed $3.6 Million in prize money for their efforts. As for second place, well, it’s only a few days on and the name of that horse already escapes me.

In business the difference between being remembered as a winner and not being recalled at all can be minuscule. A one percenter could be the difference. Perhaps something that is relatively easy to do yet easy to forget. Often the small stuff matters most. Most markets are saturated with competitors doing the same thing. There are not many that really stick their neck out. Frequently, contracts are won on minor details not necessary major points of difference.

Failure can be measured in millimetres. It’s these crushing blows to our confidence and self-esteem that either spurs us on to greater heights, or corrals us in defeat. Whether you win by the length of the Flemington straight or a flared nostril is irrelevant, the fact that you’ve won remains above all else. If you’ve lost, it’s what you do next that best defines you.

So next time you taste defeat take some time to reflect. Did you give it your all? If not, what areas can you develop and improve? If you are competing against a worthy foe, perhaps there are some things they do you can apply too. If you resign to defeat you will never grow. And it’s the pain and learning’s from your most monumental losses that become your best asset.

Much like the Melbourne Cup ― success is a race for stayers. Sprinters dont qualify. To win you need strength, endurance and most importantly the will to succeed. If you lost by a hair this year, will we see you again next year? It doesn’t matter where you are placed on the final turn it’s how you finish that matters most. And how you finish is how you’ll be remembered.

Inspire,
Trent Leyshan

Sales Training

Unlike other performance athletes ― salespeople are expected to compete forty eight weeks or more every year.

Nearly all performance sports are structured in a way so that the athlete actually competes at a small fraction of their time in comparison to the time spent developing strategy, refining skills and training and recovering.

Sales managers for some bizarre reason believe their salespeople needn’t subscribe to the same approach. This false belief limits their sales people’s success and ultimately leads to fatigue and underperformance.

To be at their best salespeople need to be fresh in mind, body and spirit. When we are tired and under mental stress, not only does our performance suffer but the pleasures associated with what we do diminish, rapidly. I habitually ask salespeople with low motivation levels, ‘if they were succeeding more would they be more motivated?’ The overwhelming response is always a resounding, ‘yes!’

In many cases, it’s not the company nor the role a salesperson is unsatisfied with, it’s the fact they are not receiving validation for effort. As a sales manager, be sure to understand what is truly motivating your team (and individuals within it) as this could mean the difference between a salesperson becoming your best asset as opposed to leaving and becoming your competitor’s advantage.

It’s common for a CFO, or sales manager that possesses little or no relevant sales experience, to be the person who sets the annual sales budget and target. These figures are pulled from the ether and usually based on leveraging costs and profit percentage increases. In this case, there is scant regard for what constitutes a realistic target that also factors in changes in the economy. As a result targets rarely go down from year-to-year, instead they usually track north. Meaning, salespeople are forced to run themselves into the ground chasing shadows without regular timeouts to reflect, refine, and rejuvenate.

The old cliché; ‘people dont leave a company they leave a manager’ is correct. So too, salespeople leave a sales manager, particularly those that set pie in the sky expectations that stifle validation.

Give your best people the support they need with habitual training, realistic goals, related incentives, guiding processes, and most of all inspirational leadership. Let them take some space to rest and refine their strategy when they need it. This will result in greater stamina, enhanced performance and ultimately more sales.

Inspire,

Trent Leyshan

Sales Training

You will struggle to find a better example of brand loyalty than from AFL supporters.

Year in and year out, fervent fans brave the winter chill to cheer on their favourite teams. Win, lose or draw we ride every bump, “booo!” every dicey umpire decision and lose ourselves in elation with every crucial goal.

Last Friday night, I cried myself to sleep after my beloved Hawks squandered a 3 goal lead to lose to the Pies in the final quarter of their AFL preliminary final. My emotions boiled from confusion and disbelief ―to rage ― and then grief stricken. I’m still hurting.

As underdogs the Hawks played the game of the session, yet failed to capitalise. Why? A lack of belief, errors caused by inferred pressure and numerous missed opportunities cost them. Such is the weight of the occasion on the big stage to win through to an elusive Grand Final. As a result they capitulated at the final and most critical hurdle. In contrast, Collingwood never stopped believing they could win.

Sport often imitates life. I see many capable people doubting themselves under pressure. Consequently they retract instead of forging ahead with focus. This is limiting and if the opportunity is important enough, it could really cost you. Stress affects different people in different ways. Some thrive and it enhances their focus and performance. Others regress into trembling fools incapable of executing even the tritest of fundamentals.

If you’re in the game―you’re good enough to win it!  Never, ever, doubt yourself under pressure against a more successful rival. They have more to lose than you. Ignore the deceptive whispers of uncertainty. Demand excellence. And when opportunity knocks―seize the moment! The cost for not doing so is paid back in years of regret. For some people they never get over it.

Every year monumental upsets are achieved on the sport and business fields. The most memorable victories are nearly always achieved by the underdog that truly believes they can win, not just by applying their skills but through sheer will. The underdog’s best friend is called, Belief. She is an inspiring co-pilot, so never doubt her wisdom.

Inspire,

Trent Leyshan

Sales Training

Cast your mind back some 65 million years ago.

It’s a mild afternoon. Striking pink and orange shades of light paint the horizon. Forests and jungles are lush. The air is angelically pure. Seas are hundreds of meters higher than today. The earth is a sphere of splendour and energy.

Giant beasts roam and dominate the earth. Salivating meat eating predators along with their long neck tree foraging relatives panic the ground dwellers. Mighty birds the sizes of buses glide through the air with wings that cast a vast dark shadow onto the ground below. This is a terrifying time to be a small earthly bound creature.

As the sun ceremoniously sets, as it has done for millions of years before this moment, the air breaths still. Suddenly the burnt sky turns to a deathly black. A colossal earth shuddering blast is heard! All creatures gigantic and small stand alert, ears pricked. Another blast shakes the earth. This shock so cataclysmic it vaporised the seas and turns most of the earth’s surface to dust. This is the beginning of the end for the dinosaurs.

Today, many of us are easy prey for big corporations and power wielding organisations. Corrupt power brokers are largely to blame for the world’s current economic turmoil. Our world like the Mesozoic era is overshadowed by large ignorant beasts.

Another cataclysmic blast will occur within the next decade caused by debt addicted institutions and governments. We are already seeing the US and parts of Europe being battered by meteors. The average punter that believes their destiny is determined by higher powers will be in for a rude awakening.

To attach your long term wellbeing and financial security to a dinosaur is not only risky, it’s a losing strategy. I pick up a newspaper all I read is pain and suffering. I turn on the six o’clock news only to consume more fear and struggle. If I believe the hype, I may as well fall on my sword where I stand.

Dont trust a dinosaur and pay scant regard to the media. Instead take it upon yourself to carve your own path. Embrace change. Focus on your strengths. You are small, nimble, and able to seek refuge quickly. Keep your eyes peeled, cost base low and partner with other small creatures to augment your capabilities.

Dinosaurs are huge, clumsy beasts with small brains. You, on the other hand are smart and agile. Take these trying times as an opportunity to see our global climate differently ― as a victory! It’s your time to thrive.

Inspire,
Trent Leyshan

Sales Training

Despite what some entrepreneurs believe, taking risks is not a silver bullet to success.

What is, is taking a risk, experiencing challenges, and then applying what you’ve learned, time and again.

Many business people take risks and then experience overwhelming resistance, but this is not failing. You only truly fail if you abort your dream entirely. Ironically most people give up just before the finishing line, not aware that the line is within their grasp. Which demonstrates your potential is usually just beyond your breaking point if you dare to smash through it.

Quitting is very different to failing. Sometimes you need to quit something to succeed. Quit the things you’re doing wrong. Quit the need to be right all the time. Quit not listening to smarter people. Quit surrounding yourself with shallow people. Quit being motivated by ego.

Imagine you’re a sergeant in the army and your objective is to get your platoon to the top of a hill, while your enemy is on higher ground. If you chose to keep marching the troops unsuccessfully up the hill because you refuse to quit, then failure becomes disastrously inevitable. Quitting temporarily, regrouping and refining your strategy, in this case, is not failing, it’s the smartest option.

Your success in life will be in proportion to your ability to (focus) and assert discipline towards achieving your goal. But if you haven’t thought your strategy through or don’t possess the passion to see it through, then aborting your process to do something more aligned with your values is a good tack too.

Don’t take risks for the sake of it, this is called gambling. Making mistakes and overcoming challenges are part of business, but to get the best results they must be attached to something meaningful to you. This can actually be fun if you’re not harming others and you’re prepared to learn, grow and apply the lessons and keep going until you reach your destination.

Inspire,

Trent Leyshan

Sales Training

More hands can make light work. Yet, often more hands only equates to more work.

When too many people are involved in a decision making process it becomes counterintuitive. Double handling frequently occurs so insecure managers are given a false sense of control. And it’s not difficult to get bogged down in bureaucracy and internal politics either.

Sometimes you’ve just got to go it alone. Particularly if you have no one around you prepared to strive for excellence with you. In that case, take the bloodied bull by the horns and put yourself out there!

Make a stand and take a calculated risk or two. This could mean being brave enough to find a company more aligned with your values, even if it means taking a pay cut or leaving your peers. Or if you genuinely believe you can do a better job than the company that employs you—do it yourself and determine your own destiny.

Do you really need a business partner, or is it fear of the unknown and safety in numbers mentality limiting your reality? Is it really worth enduring an overbearing boss who has no respect for you? I think you’re better than that.

Cash flow, resources, credibility, security and fear are all things that can be created or overcome. But it takes courage, a belief in your own ability and plenty of determination!  With the right plan and amount of patience anything is possible.

Granted, this is not a safe path for some of us, but for those made of the right stuff—it’s the only course of action. Sometimes you’ve just got to go it alone.

Inspire,

Trent Leyshan

Sales Training

In a panicked state, I exited the terminal three hours late after my flight was delayed due to fog and inclement weather

I rushed to pick up my hire car while apologising over the phone to my client and assuring her I wasn’t far away.

Bleeding beads of frustration I anxiously took the sixty minute trek to my new business pitch.  Being late to a key presentation seldom sets a positive tone and negative first impressions are always challenging to overcome. Driving with a sense of defeat, I questioned whether my many hours of preparation, flight and now pained efforts would be all in vein.

My sat-nav directed me safely through fog to my destination. I pulled-up, checked in with reception and after a quick set-up ― launched into my presentation!

It’s easy to blame factors beyond your control for letting people down. In this instance, I could have confidently blamed the airline, but I didn’t. Interestingly, Qantas failed to offer even a token gesture for inconveniencing their passengers. In particular, those who delayed others or missed meetings altogether and some no doubt lost money or goodwill as a result.

In my introduction, I not only apologised to the ten stakeholders who came in especially and rearranged their schedules to meet with me ― I offered a gesture of goodwill to demonstrate my regret. They all accepted and appeared comfortable with my barter. This gesture will cost me, though the price is insignificant for their trust and tenure.

It is one thing to make an apology ― quite another to do something about it. If you let a prospect or client down, even when circumstances are out of your control, do your best to demonstrate your disappointed. Offer a discount, something low cost but of high perceived value or something small yet meaningful.

Often a sorry just won’t cut it so make your apology real and tangible. This helps to rebuild goodwill and you may just turn your negative into a positive. Correcting an error in a thoughtful way can and usually does galvanize your relationship and makes it even stronger.

You will be pleased to know a few days later this client gave me the go ahead.

Just shut up! You had me at hello.

Inspire,

Trent Leyshan                                 Sales Training

It doesn’t take any real skill in business to sell your soul and get paid.

I’ve been guilty of it, and if you’ve been in sales long enough its likely you have at times too. Countless salespeople follow this seductive and destructive path their entire careers and many are happy doing it.

When bills are bleeding us dry we often resolve to do anything to survive. An alternative is to simply do nothing and let the salivating jaws of procrastination consume us.

Another is to spring into action and carve a path that allows us to live dreams and monetize passion. Of course, never an easy road, yet one of the most rewarding if you have the courage to have a go and see it through.

When we’re under duress it’s easy to feel there is no choice but to take what we can. Sometimes overlooking unethical behaviour or turning a blind eye to poor business practices around us. Should that be the case, it will only be a matter of time before your conscience catches up with you.

Meaningless service, over charging, mistreatment of staff, inferior quality, lack of duty to customers and greed driven leaders are all signs of a business without conscience.

It is unwise to suffer fools and foolish to cast suffering upon others.

The business highway is littered with carcasses of those who seek only to profit in their endeavours and will resort to any means to fulfil their own agendas.

I say take the next exit. You dont need a map, just trust your instincts and believe in yourself.

You can lose many things, but never your conscience.

Inspire,

Trent Leyshan Sales  Training