Sales Gravy: Jeb Blount

Brian Kemski wants to know how to stop prospects from ghosting him. He asks a question that plagues salespeople everywhere: “What can I do about prospects who go through the process, seem interested, and then disappear into the witness protection program after I give them my information?” If you’ve been in sales for more than a week, you know exactly what Brian is talking about. You have a great discovery call, you build rapport, you send over your proposal or pricing…and suddenly—radio silence. The prospect ghosts you, leaving you frantically checking your email every five minutes and wondering what the hell happened. In this Ask Jeb episode of the Sales Gravy Podcast, I’m going to teach you how to prevent it. You Gave Away Your Leverage for Free During our conversation, I asked Brian to consider what he’d do if I offered him $100 to go get me a Big Mac. He wasn’t interested. When I upped it to $200, he started considering it. At $500, he was ready to make the trip. Why? Because at $500, the value exchange made sense to him. Your sales information works exactly the same way. Your pricing, specs, and solutions have real value. When you hand them over without getting anything in return—especially before completing your sales process—you’re essentially giving away hundred-dollar bills for free. And once you give away all your value, the prospect has no more reason to talk to you. Understanding Power and Leverage in Sales In most sales situations, your prospect has more power than you do because they have more alternatives than you. They can choose your competitors or simply decide to do nothing. The only way to level the playing field is through leverage—something you have that they want because it provides value to them. It’s like that hurricane example I gave Brian: If there’s a hurricane in Miami, all the power is out, and you’re the only person selling ice, you have all the power because there are no other options. But in normal business situations, your prospect has plenty of options, which gives them power. Your information is the leverage that gets prospects to “dance to your tune.” Once you give that away without getting anything in return, you’ve surrendered all your power. Your Sales Process Should Be a Value Exchange Here’s what your sales process should look like instead: Use discovery calls to build value: Ask questions that help prospects think differently about their problems. Create insights they can’t get elsewhere. Meet multiple stakeholders: Insist on speaking with everyone involved in the decision. This builds relationships across the organization and prevents ghosting. Present your proposal in person: NEVER email a proposal. Your proposal meeting should be a closing meeting where you’re getting a yes or no. Look for engagement at every step: If prospects aren’t willing to invest time and effort in your process, they’re showing you they aren’t serious. Each step of your process should involve the prospect giving something (usually time and information) to get something from you. This creates what psychologists call the “investment effect”—the more effort people put into something, the more they value it. The RFP Trap The clearest example of giving away leverage is responding to RFPs without conditions. When you fill out all that information and send it without meeting the decision-makers, you’ll rarely hear back. My approach? “I’m not filling out all that information until you meet with me.” If they want your solution badly enough, they’ll meet. If they don’t, you’ve saved yourself hours of wasted time. I practice what I preach, but I’m not perfect. Just last November, I spent 12 hours on a proposal I knew had little chance of closing because I’d skipped steps in my own process. I gave away my leverage for free, and they ghosted me—exactly as I predicted they would. I have to relearn this lesson once or twice a year. Maybe you do too.= You Need the Power to Walk Away For this approach to work, you need a full pipeline. Because a full pipeline gives you more alternatives allowing you to walk away from prospects who won’t engage in your process. This is precisely why I’m so fanatical about prospecting. When your pipeline is full, you have options. You can afford to lose deals that were never going to close anyway. You can sell without selling. Look for the Warning Signs As you engage with prospects, watch for these warning signs of future ghosting: Unwillingness to introduce you to other stakeholders Reluctance to share budgets or timelines Resistance to following your sales process Lack of engagement in discovery conversations Pushing for pricing or proposals too early When you see these signs, address them directly: “I notice you’re hesitant to introduce me to your team. For us to create the right solution, I need to understand all stakeholders’ needs. Is there a reason you’re uncomfortable with that?” The Bottom Line on Ghosting Prospects ghost you when they’ve gotten what they wanted without having to commit to anything. The solution is simple but requires discipline: Don’t give away valuable information for free Insist that prospects follow your sales process Look for reciprocal investment at every stage Be willing to walk away when prospects won’t engage Keep your pipeline full so you can afford to lose bad deals Remember: What are prospects willing to do for your information? Hold the line on that question, and you’ll dramatically reduce the number of people who ghost you and disappear into the “witness protection program.” To learn more about how to avoid being ghosted take Jeb Blount’s course on Sales Gravy University: The Real Secrets to Avoiding Stalled Deals and Prospects Who Ghost You

Your quota doesn’t take a summer vacation, so your pipeline-building efforts can’t afford to either. This is a reality check. Summer is coming fast, and if you don’t get your pipeline positioned for success now, you’ll be scrambling come mid-July. The summer sales slowdown is a documented phenomenon across almost every industry. According to data from HubSpot, prospecting response rates can drop by as much as 25% between June and August.  Appointment conversion rates decline by similar percentages. And overall deal velocity—how quickly opportunities move through your pipeline—slows dramatically during this period. Why does this happen? It’s simple: Decision-makers take vacations. Buying committees become fragmented with staggered time off. Business momentum slows as organizations shift to a summer mindset. And you are distracted with the pool, the beach, your kids, and fun travel.  Salespeople Wait Until it is Too Late That’s reality. Now, here’s the brutal truth. Each summer salespeople make the same bad mistake—they wait until they’re already in the summer slump to try to climb out of it. By the time they realize their pipeline is drying up in late June, it’s already too late to course-correct, leading to stress and anxiety as their sales numbers and income drop as the temperature rises. If you are not focused on building your summer pipeline now, you are in big damn trouble. First, your prospects become harder to reach, which means your connection rates drop. With lower connection rates, you get fewer meetings. Fewer meetings lead to fewer opportunities entering your pipeline. Meanwhile, your existing pipeline is moving slower than normal due to vacation schedules. These factors don’t just add up—they multiply.  And here’s the kicker—while you’re experiencing this slowdown, your quota isn’t taking a vacation. Your revenue targets remain unchanged. In fact, for many organizations, Q3 is when quota ramps up higher and the pressure really starts to build to hit annual targets. The Sales Psychology of Going Into Summer Prepared to Make Quota Beyond the pure mathematics of pipeline building, there’s a psychological advantage to preparing now. When you’re proactively filling your pipeline ahead of the summer slowdown, you operate from a position of confidence and abundance. Sales professionals who hit the summer slump with a thin pipeline typically find themselves in panic mode. When you’re in panic mode, prospects can sense it. Your conversations become more about your needs than theirs and your willingness to discount increases. These behaviors ultimately reduce deal profitability and your income, and damage your relationships with potential customers. Contrast this with the sales professional who’s already built a healthy summer pipeline. They can approach each conversation with genuine curiosity and patience. They can focus on value creation rather than transaction acceleration. They can maintain price integrity because they’re not desperate for the deal. And they can actually have summer fun rather than summer stress.  Double Down on Prospecting Now The simple reality is that connecting with prospects will get harder during summer. So you need to double your outreach volume now. If you normally make 30 prospecting calls daily, bump that to 60 for the next six weeks. The 30-Day Rule states that the prospecting you do in this 30-day period will pay off for the next 90 days. In other words, the seeds you plant today will determine your harvest in July and August. Knowing your pipeline is healthy going into summer allows you to enjoy any vacation time you take without constantly checking emails. When you’re not scrambling for deals, you can be more selective about which opportunities you pursue, focusing on ideal customer profiles rather than anyone with a pulse. A well-built summer pipeline might actually allow you periods of lower activity that you can use for skill development, process refinement, or strategic planning. While your competitors are experiencing the summer slump, you’ll be maintaining momentum—potentially winning deals with less competitive pressure. Take Proactive Action Now to Protect Your Summer  Quota Summer sales slowdowns are predictable and, with the right preparation, entirely manageable. The key is taking proactive action now. Remember these three principles: The best time to build your summer pipeline was last month. The second-best time is today. Your quota doesn’t take a summer vacation, so your pipeline-building efforts can’t afford to either. The confidence that comes from preparation will be evident in every customer interaction, creating a virtuous cycle that boosts your win-rate. I challenge you to block time on your calendar today—not tomorrow, not next week, but today—to double down on prospecting. And remember, when at the end of each of those blocks, always make one more call.  Want to make more prospecting touches, in less time, with better outcomes? Then learn Jeb Blount’s H.I.P.S. Prospecting Method. It could change everything for you.

Here’s a hard truth most salespeople never hear: The most dangerous thing you can do is think like an employee. On this week’s episode of the Sales Gravy Podcast, business consultant for entrepreneurs David Neagle says: “You’ve got to see yourself above the place that you actually want to accomplish.” The highest-earning reps? They think like owners. They take responsibility for their number, their mindset, and their mission. They don’t wait for leads to be handed to them or settle for “good enough.” They build a pipeline like a business, because it is.  So whether you run a company or just run your territory, these lessons from a successful entrepreneur will harden your mindset and help you sell with more purpose, more urgency, and more grit. Making Money Isn’t Hard. You need to come around to a simple idea: Making money isn’t the hard part. Getting over your mental baggage about making money is infinitely more difficult. Most salespeople riding the feast-or-famine rollercoaster find themselves desperate more often than not. When that happens, they unconsciously sabotage themselves. They discount too quickly, hesitate to ask for the sale, or talk themselves out of big goals. Here’s the truth: Money is everywhere, and opportunity is endless. But if you believe sales is a grind and success is for “those people,” you’ll work three times harder for half the reward. Don’t undersell yourself. Entrepreneurs don’t apologize for making money—they design their lives around it. If you want to earn like a business owner, stop treating money like a taboo topic. Start treating it like a scoreboard you want to climb. Stop Caring What People Think (Especially About You Winning) The moment you start succeeding—wildly succeeding—is the moment people will have opinions about it. You close a big deal or hit the top of the leaderboard? Somebody will whisper. Someone else will be resentful. That’s not your problem. It’s theirs. You’ll never hit your peak if you can’t stomach a little hate from the nay-sayers. Entrepreneurs learn early that approval won’t pay your bills. If you want to win in sales, stop seeking validation from people who aren’t playing game at your level. You can’t serve your buyer and care what others think at the same time. Choose your future over fitting in. Believe You’re Worth the Win Most reps think their biggest problem is weak leads or tight markets. It’s not. It’s that they don’t believe they’re worthy of success. They don’t think they deserve the close, the commission, or the praise. Instead of swinging for the fences or building consistency, they settle for mediocre wins some of the time. Instead of dealing with confidence, they let insecurity take over. Business owners don’t have that luxury. Their livelihood depends on selling themselves—and believing in what they offer. The same should go for you. When you believe you’re worth the success, your tone changes. Your body language shifts. Your presence becomes undeniable—and buyers feel it. Push past doubt by honing your skills through practice and reviewing past successes. You deserve everything you’ve worked hard to gain. Sales Isn’t About Getting—It’s About Giving A lot of people treat sales like they’re trying to take something. That’s why they feel pushy, needy, or “icky.” But the best sellers think like business owners—and owners know they’re in the business of solving problems. They’re giving value, outcomes, and transformation. If your mindset is “I need to get this deal,” your buyer will feel that. But if you shift to “I’ve got something that can truly help them,” everything changes. You show up with confidence, not desperation; with curiosity, not pressure. Sales isn’t just hunting. It’s serving. And your commission is just the reward for solving someone else’s problem. Start thinking like a consultative seller. Listen closely to your prospect’s needs and position yourself as a trusted advisor who has the answers to their specific challenges. You Can’t Do It All Yourself This one hits especially hard for both entrepreneurs and lone-wolf reps: If you try to do everything on your own, you’ll burn out or stagnate. Business owners grow when they learn to delegate. Sales pros grow when they learn to lean on their team—mentors, coaches, marketing, support, and systems. You don’t have to be good at everything. You just have to be great at the one thing that moves the needle: selling. Protect your time. Focus on high-value activities. Trust your support system to help you execute faster and smarter. Think Like a CEO You don’t need a corner office. You just need to take ownership of your attitude, activity, and outcomes. Entrepreneurs don’t wait for permission, and neither should you. They don’t second-guess their worth, apologize for winning, or try to do it all alone—and if you want to level up your sales game, you shouldn’t either. Own your number like it’s your business. Sell like you mean it. And remember: You are not just in sales—you are the CEO of your results. Don’t just think like a C-suite level exec, act like a CEO.  Download our Small Business Owner’s Guide to Sales Training here.

Tyler Goss, from Tampa, has two critical sales questions: 1) How do we achieve those “crazy” prospecting numbers I talk about in my books? 2) When should a lead become a pipeline opportunity? In this podcast, I break down these answers in plain English. When to Create a Deal: Finding the Sweet Spot There’s no shortage of opinions on when to create a deal in your CRM. Some sales leaders will tell you to create a deal before you even make the first call (ridiculous). Others won’t let you create one until the contract is practically signed (equally absurd). Here’s my take: Both extremes are problematic. You need a pipeline that gives you meaningful data. Here’s how we handle this at Sales Gravy: For Inbound Leads: We categorize inbound leads into three distinct groups: 1. List LeadsThese are people who sign up for our newsletter or download basic resources where we only ask for a name and email address. They’re joining our community, and while some might become customers down the road, they’re not pipeline opportunities yet. 2. MQLs (Marketing Qualified Leads)These folks have given us more detailed information through webinars or content downloads. They’ve provided their phone number, email address, company, role, etc. There’s an implicit understanding that we might reach out, but they haven’t expressed a direct interest in buying. I don’t want these in my pipeline just yet. 3. Hot LeadsThese people come to us with their hands up, saying things like: “We’ve got a team of nine and want to do sales training” or “Our SKO is in February, and we want to hire Jeb. How much does he cost?” These leads have an open buying window and go straight into the pipeline. We’ll close 95% of these because they’ve already self-identified as buyers. For Outbound Prospecting: When prospecting outbound we only put opportunities into the pipeline after the prospect has agreed to a first-time appointment (FTA). Here’s why: First-time appointments are your Money Ball metric—they indicate the health of your prospecting efforts. When an FTA is in your pipeline, you can measure critical data points like: Show/no-show rates by rep Advancement rates from FTA to next stages Conversion rates from FTA to closed business If I have a rep setting tons of FTAs with only a 10% show rate, I need to diagnose that problem. If another rep is advancing 50% of their FTAs to the next stage, that tells me something completely different. The qualification point is simple: Both parties have agreed to step into the sales process. That’s when it becomes a pipeline opportunity. Some organizations resist this approach because they only want “fully qualified“ opportunities in their pipeline. I get it, but you’re missing valuable data if you wait too long. Consider this example: If you work in an industry where everyone’s under contract, and you know contract expiration dates, you might be tempted to automatically add prospects to your pipeline as their contract end dates approach. I wouldn’t do that. Wait until you’ve had a conversation where they agree to meet with you to discuss options. That agreement to step into the process is your trigger. If you’re putting everything into your pipeline, you’re diluting your data. If you’re waiting until deals are practically closed, why even have a pipeline? The sweet spot is somewhere in between—and for most B2B sales organizations, it’s at the first-time appointment stage. Maximizing Prospecting Efficiency: How We Make So Many Calls Tyler also asked about those “crazy” prospecting numbers I mention in my books. How do my teams make hundreds of calls during designated call blocks? The answer boils down to three key principles: 1. Separate List Building from Prospecting Research and building lists is NOT prospecting. When we’re prospecting, we’re just chopping wood. We have our lists ready in advance, and when it’s time to prospect, that’s all we do. Too many salespeople mix research and prospecting, which kills efficiency. They take 12 minutes between calls, check email, watch cat videos, and then wonder why they can’t get anything done. 2. Use High-Intensity Prospecting Sprints In our Fanatical Prospecting Boot Camps, we run high-intensity prospecting sprints. If I give you 15 minutes to make calls with the goal of setting one appointment, most salespeople will make at least 10 calls. Run four of these sprints, and you’ve made 40 calls minimum. Do that three times, and you’ve made 120 calls in just three hours. This isn’t theory. We run these events for clients all over the country. Sales teams are consistently stunned by how many calls they can make when properly focused. 3. Create the Right Conditions The key is setting the right conditions. Use a simple dialer that lets you click and move to the next call quickly. Have your list ready. Eliminate distractions. Focus solely on making calls during your designated block. The Hard Truth About Prospecting Most B2B salespeople don’t need to make hundreds of cold calls daily. With one solid hour of focused prospecting every day, most will set all the meetings they need. But here’s the kicker—almost no one actually does this. They don’t set the conditions for success. They don’t separate list building from calling. They don’t eliminate distractions. They don’t create a cadence. Everyone is capable of hitting extraordinary prospecting numbers. They just need to decide to do it. Most people don’t make that decision. Putting It All Together So, when should you create a deal? When both you and the prospect agree to step into the sales process, which is typically at the first-time appointment stage. And how do you hit those crazy prospecting numbers? By separating list building from calling, running high-intensity sprints, and creating the right conditions for success. The beauty of these approaches is that they’re simple. No fancy technology or complex methodologies required. Just disciplined execution of the fundamentals. What I’ve learned over decades in sales is that success isn’t about finding the magic bullet—it’s about consistently executing the basics better than everyone else. Whether that’s knowing exactly when to create a deal or understanding how to maximize your prospecting efficiency, the fundamentals will always drive results. Got a sales question or tough challenge and need answers? Then go to https://salesgravy.com/ask and Ask Jeb!

During a practice round at a major golf tournament recently, one of the players hit an exceptionally beautiful shot. A fan in the gallery exclaimed, “Man, I wish I could hit a shot like that!” The player walked over to the fan and said, tongue-in-cheek, “No, you don’t.” The fan looked confused. “What do you mean?” The player replied, “You don’t want to hit a shot like that because that means hitting a thousand balls a day, every day, for the next 20 years. That’s what it takes to hit a shot like that.” And that’s true for pretty much everything you want to accomplish life—whether it’s playing golf, the piano, selling, investing, or mastering AI. If you want to be elite, you have to do a lot of repetitions of the same thing to reach the top.  Adopt The Mamba Mentality You’ve got to practice constantly. And this is what a lot of people miss. See, the truth is you can have anything in life you want—pretty much within reason—as long as you’re willing to do the boring work. You know what separates Warren Buffett, the greatest investor of our generation, from other investors? He’s read over 100,000 financial statements in his lifetime. Think about that. 100,000 financial statements. That’s not exciting work. That’s not sexy. It is sitting alone, poring over numbers, analyzing balance sheets, income statements, cash flow statements, day after day, year after year, decade after decade. But that boring work made him one of the richest people on the planet. Or look at Kobe Bryant. Kobe was famous for his “Mamba Mentality” which meant showing up at 4 AM to practice, hours before his teammates. It meant shooting thousands of the same shots over and over. His trainer once said Kobe would practice one simple move 700-800 times in a single session. Not 10 times, not 50 times. 700-800 times. The same move, over and over and over again. That’s the boring work that made him a legend. Going out to the driving range and hitting a thousand balls with your seven iron is one of the most boring things you can possibly do. Crap, hitting 50 balls with your seven iron is boring. But that’s what separates the top performers from the low performers—they’re willing to do the boring things. Top Performers are Always Working at It In sales, top performers are constantly studying. I meet them all the time. They show up in my seminars, read my books and listen to my podcasts. They’re taking courses on Sales Gravy University. They invest in learning and practicing every single day.  When we run role plays, they jump right in. They recognize that, yeah, that’s boring work. But you’ve got to do the boring things, the repetitive things, to get what you want.  Be Careful What You Wish For So the questions you have to ask yourself when you make that wish for what you want or set a goal is: How bad do you want it? Are you willing to do the work?  Are you willing to make the sacrifice?  Are you willing to grind day in and day out?  Are you willing to do all of boring reps that nobody ever sees in order to reach the very top?  Success is Paid for In Advance With Boring Work You can accomplish anything once you accept that the price for success is paid for in advance. The price of admission to the elite levels of any profession is doing the boring work that most people aren’t willing to do. Let me give you an example from my own life. Years ago, when I was starting out in my sales career, I made a commitment to make 100 cold calls every single day no matter what. Rain or shine. Good mood or bad mood. Whether I felt like it or not. You know first hand that cold calling is not exciting work. It’s tedious, repetitive, and rejection dense. Honestly, most people—including my boss—thought I was nuts.  But those 100 calls a day allowed me to out perform and out earn all of my peers. It made me the top sales rep in my fortune 200 company. It bought houses, made me wealthy, and eventually gave me the platform to write books, speak on stages and build Sales Gravy. The Michelangelo Principle  I like to think about it as the Michelangelo Principle. You know the story—someone once asked Michelangelo how he created his masterpiece David from a block of marble. And he replied, “I just chipped away everything that didn’t look like David.” Excellence works the same way. You chip away at your limitations through practice and repetition. Every cold call you make chips away at your fear of rejection. Every role play you participate in chips away at your awkwardness around handling objections. Every book you read chips away at your ignorance about your industry or your craft. The Invisible Work Nobody Every Sees It’s not glamorous. Nobody’s going to film you making your hundredth cold call of the week and post it on social media. Nobody’s going to celebrate you for doing pre-call planning on a Sunday evening. You are not going to give you a standing ovation for waking up an hour early to invest in professional development before work. This is the invisible work that no one ever sees. The small, seemingly insignificant actions, performed consistently over time, yield massive results. This is the Law of Cumulative Impact. Michael Phelps, the most decorated Olympian of all time with 28 medals, trained for 5 straight years without missing a single day—even on Christmas, even on his birthdays. His coach said that by training 365 days a year, Phelps gained a 52-day advantage over competitors who took Sundays off. Those single days compounded into the most dominant swimming career in history. The problem is, most people quit before the compound effect kicks in. They do the boring work for a week, maybe a month, don’t see immediate results, and give up. They never experience the exponential growth that comes from consistent, boring effort applied over years. Embrace Discomfort Look at Tom Brady. For 23 seasons, he was typically the first player to arrive at the facility and the last to leave. At 44 years old, he was still doing the same boring drills he did as a rookie.  His former teammate once said that Brady would spend hours studying game film that most quarterbacks would skip over. While other players were enjoying their off-seasons, Brady was working with his receivers on timing routes. While they were taking vacation, he was perfecting his footwork. That commitment to uncomfortable, boring work is why he has seven Super Bowl rings. But that discomfort? That’s where growth happens. It’s like working out. If you’ve ever done any serious physical training, you know that muscle growth happens when you push past comfort. When your muscles burn, when you feel like you can’t do one more rep—that’s precisely when you need to do one more. Sales excellence works the same way. When you’re tired of practicing your pitch, do it five more times. When you’re dreading making another cold call, make ten more. When you think you think you’ve prepared enough, do more. Get into the habit of Eating the Frog. “Do the thing you least want to do first thing in the morning.” That thing you’re avoiding is exactly what you need to do to move your career and income forward. Tedious Discipline is Your Competitive Edge Recently I was working with a sales team.There was this one rep, Mike. He was middle of the pack—not terrible, but not stellar either. During our training, I emphasized the importance of research and reading to develop industry knowledge. Most of the team nodded along, but Mike took it to heart. He committed to spending 15 minutes each morning specifically to gain a better understanding of his industry and grow his business acumen.  Six months later, I got an email from Mike’s sales manager. Mike was now the top performer on the team. His close rate had doubled. His average deal size had increased by 40%. All from a simple, boring discipline of spending 15 minutes learning about his industry. . When I called Mike to congratulate him, he made a confession. He said, “Jeb, to be honest, I hated doing the research at first. It was boring and felt like a waste of time. But after about two months, I started noticing patterns and understanding my customers better. Discovery calls went deeper. I saw opportunities to help them that I would have missed before. My customers gave me a seat at the table because they viewed me as an expert.” That’s how the boring work transforms. What starts as tedious discipline eventually becomes your competitive edge. There is No Such Thing as Natural Talent Before going any further, let’s address the myth of natural talent. I hear it all the time: “Oh, she’s just a natural salesperson.” “He is a born closer.” It’s pure BS. I’ve coached plenty of “naturals” who failed because they relied on charm instead of working to master the craft.  True sales excellence isn’t about what you were born with—it’s about process and skills. And skills are built through the discipline to do the boring, repetitive work. Take Jerry Rice, widely considered the greatest wide receiver in NFL history. Was he the most naturally gifted athlete? No. He wasn’t the fastest, strongest or the tallest. But his work ethic was legendary. His off-season hill training program was so grueling that teammates who tried to join him would literally vomit. He would run the same routes thousands of times until they were perfect. He would catch hundreds of balls after practice when everyone else had gone home. That’s not natural talent—that’s an unnatural commitment to doing the boring work. The truth is that repetition is the mother of skill.  Greatness Has a Price Before the Beatles became famous, they played over 1,200 live shows in Hamburg, Germany. They would play eight hours a night, seven days a week. That’s over 10,000 hours of practice in just a few years. That’s what made them the Beatles—not just natural musical ability, but thousands of hours of repetitive performance when nobody knew who they were. So here’s the bottom line: Greatness has a price. And that price is paid in advance through boring, repetitive, often uncomfortable work. If you want to be elite—whether in sales, sports, music, leadership, or any other field—you must embrace the boring work. You must fall in love with the process. You must find joy in the small improvements, the tiny victories, the gradual mastery that comes from doing the same things over and over again, but doing them better each time. There are no shortcuts. There are no hacks. There is only dedicated focus and putting in the work.  So when it’s the end of the day and everyone else around you is packing up and going home, when that little voice inside your head tells you it’s ok to quit, shake it off and make one more call because that is the price of greatness.  Learn how to master LinkedIn for prospecting sequences and pipeline building in Jeb’s brand new book: The LinkedIn Edge

Here’s the brutal truth: Self-awareness is the ultimate sales skill. We obsess over skills like closing techniques, objection handling, and prospecting cadence. But self-awareness is the real make-or-break. Self-awareness is the lever that separates ethical, high-performance sellers from out-of-touch order takers. If you’re not self-aware, you’re leaving money on the table and damaging trust. Sales Without Self-Awareness is a Wrecking Ball Let’s get honest. Lack of self-awareness is a deal-killer. It’s what causes reps to: Over-talk and under-listen Project their objections onto the buyer Miss subtle cues because they’re too focused on a static script Push when they should pause This isn’t just a skill gap—it’s a blind spot. When you don’t know how best to connect with your prospect because you’re not listening—that’s a dangerous place to sell from. Self-awareness is your internal compass. Without it, you can’t navigate objections, establish trust, or conduct a real discovery conversation. You can’t be Here’s the brutal truth: Self-awareness is the ultimate sales skill. We obsess over skills like closing techniques, objection handling, and prospecting cadence. But self-awareness is the real make-or-break. Self-awareness is the lever that separates ethical, high-performance sellers from out-of-touch order takers. If you’re not self-aware, you’re leaving money on the table and damaging trust. The Ego Trap: Overconfidence Kills Awareness It might seem counterintuitive, but your biggest blind spot in sales might be your own ego. Close a few deals, and suddenly you stop prepping, shortcut discovery, and assume you know the buyer. That’s when self-awareness can tank. Confidence is good until it turns into arrogance. When you stop reflecting, stop asking questions, and stop listening, you lose your edge. Sales is a what ’s-happening-today game. Yesterday’s win doesn’t guarantee today’s deal. Top sellers stay humble enough to ask:  “Did I connect, or just perform?”  “Am I guiding, or just trying to sound impressive?” “Does my solution fit their problem, or am I just trying to land a quick deal?” The most crucial part of self-awareness? Checking your mindset—and your overconfidence—before it derails a lucrative deal. Ego says you’ve got it handled. Self-awareness asks if that’s really true. Only one of those gets you to President’s Club. The Two Lanes of Emotionally Intelligent Awareness Awareness in sales isn’t just about having “emotional intelligence” and keeping arrogance in check. It’s about two critical lanes: 1. Seller Self-Awareness You must know how your tone, presence, and mindset affect the buyer. That means recognizing when: You’re chasing approval instead of guiding decisions You’re hesitating out of fear of rejection You’re overexplaining because you’re insecure You’re emotionally reacting instead of staying neutral Top sellers audit themselves for these moments constantly. They ask:  “Was I too defensive there?”  “Did I listen or just wait to talk?”  “Am I showing up with certainty or neediness?” A self-inventory is no picnic. But this self-audit allows the elite to stay composed, curious, and in control—especially when things get tense. 2. Buyer’s State Awareness A self-aware seller is tuned in. They’re not just listening to what is said, but why it’s being said, and what isn’t being said at all. Consultative selling is all about sensing, so it’s: Knowing when a buyer’s guard is up Being alert to when they’re overwhelmed Learning when they’re intrigued but afraid to say yes Watching the micro-expressions Noticing the shift in tone The best lead by aligning with the buyer’s state. By understanding the buyer’s motivations, emotional triggers, and decision-making pace, self-aware sellers engage in deal-making, not manipulation.  Self-Awareness Might Be New to You So there’s no doubt self-awareness nets meetings and closes deals. But here’s the problem: Most sellers have never been coached to insightfully reflect.  They’re trained on scripts, not self-regulation. They’re told to “just make the calls,” but not how to manage the emotions that come with rejection, hesitation, or being ghosted. It’s easy to understand the challenges. Not everyone is naturally wired to be self-reflective. Many think confidence means speaking first, talking fast, and sounding “impressive.” But what buyers respond to—what makes real deals happen—is slowing down, paying attention, and showing up with awareness instead of ego. Want to change? Practice more, seek more feedback, and become coachable. Spend time reflecting on past sales and buyer needs. Most importantly, listen—to buyers, mentors, and yourself. How to Build Awareness (Because It’s Not Optional Anymore) If you want to become more self-aware in sales, start with these actionable items: Record Your Calls – Listen back not to critique performance, but to observe how you show up. Were you tense? Rushed? Defensive? Detached? Ask for Feedback Often – From your coach, your peers, even your buyers. How do people feel when they interact with you? Track Emotional Triggers – What rattles you in a sales conversation? Is it a certain objection? A tone of voice? A personality type? Practice Presence – Before each call, take 60 seconds to breathe and ground yourself. Think: Where are my feet? What am I doing right now? How can I be more present for my buyer? Rainmakers are Masters of Self The best sellers aren’t just good at tactics. They’re masters of self. They can read the room, check their own ego, and adapt in real time, because they’re paying attention to what actually matters. They’re watching their buyer, keying into clues about their mindset, and putting the prospect’s needs first. If you want to become a consultative, trusted advisor—and sell with ethics, excellence, and compassion—start by turning inward. That’s where the real work begins. And the best part? Self-awareness is a skill. That means it’s trainable. It simply demands intention. So look honestly into the mirror and start turning your self-awareness blind spot into an asset. Ready to double-down on your self-awareness and set a goal to become a more consultative seller? Download our FREE Sales Gravy Goal Planning Guide here.

If you’re doing any kind of cold calling or prospecting, you’ll eventually hear this objection: “I’m in a meeting right now.” Paul Wise, a heavy cold caller from Normandy, France, targets product managers at software companies and says that nine times out of ten when he gets a decision-maker on the phone, they claim to be “in a meeting.” Three Ways to Handle the “I’m in a Meeting” Prospecting Objection As I explained to Paul, how you respond in that moment can make or break your opportunity to move forward. First, let’s acknowledge something important: If someone is genuinely in the middle of an important meeting, they typically don’t answer calls from unknown numbers. The fact that they picked up your call suggests they might not be as unavailable as they claim. That said, they might be between meetings, heading into a meeting, or simply using this as a brush-off technique. Regardless of their true situation, you need an objection handling strategy. Based on my conversation with Paul, here are three effective approaches to handle this common situation: Approach #1: The Quick Pitch Strategy This is what Paul has been doing: When he gets someone on the phone who says they’re in a meeting, he delivers his DMX (Decision Maker Express) pitch as quickly as possible, then tries to secure a meeting. Paul mentioned this sometimes works for him. He gets the meeting scheduled, then works hard to ensure they show up by engaging with them on LinkedIn, sending follow-up emails, and basically “surrounding” them with touch points. The upside: You’ve got them on the line, so why not take your shot? The downside: Rushing through your pitch can make you sound desperate and reduce your effectiveness. When to use it: If you have a high-energy personality and can deliver a compelling, concise pitch without sounding rushed, this approach can work. It’s especially effective if you have a solid follow-up strategy to ensure they show up to the meeting. Approach #2: The Acknowledge and Pivot Strategy Instead of trying to pitch someone who’s claimed to be busy, simply acknowledge their situation and pivot directly to scheduling: “I totally expected you to be in a meeting and not able to talk. That’s exactly why I called—to find a time that’s more convenient for you. Why don’t I send you a meeting invite for Thursday at 2:00, and then we can get together when you do have time to talk?” This approach demonstrates respect for their time while simultaneously accomplishing your objective of setting an appointment. What happens next reveals a lot: If they agree to the meeting, you’ve accomplished your goal without the rushed pitch. If they ask, “Who are you again?” they’re actually signaling they have more time than they initially let on. If they say they’re not available Thursday, they’re engaging in a scheduling conversation—which means they’re interested enough to find an alternative time. When to use it: This works particularly well when you sense the prospect is genuinely busy, but they might be interested with the right approach. It’s respectful, professional, and surprisingly effective. Approach #3: The Non-Complementary Behavior Strategy This is my personal favorite because it uses psychology to your advantage. When the prospect answers with high energy, saying they’re busy or in a meeting, don’t match their energy. Instead, deliberately slow down and use a calm, relaxed tone: “Totally get that. I figured you would be busy. Look, I only have two questions.” Then—and this is critical—be quiet. Let the silence do the work. If they truly have no time, they’ll hang up. But most won’t. Instead, they’ll likely say something like, “Okay, but go fast.” Now you need to ask a question that gets them engaged—something they can easily answer that reveals qualification information: “How many data points are you connected to in your current configuration?” The magic happens in what follows: If they answer quickly and try to end the call, say: “That’s exactly why we need to get together. Let me send you a meeting invite for Thursday at 2:00.” If they slow down and give you detailed information, you’ve got them talking. Ask another question and build momentum. The key to this approach is using non-complementary behavior—when they speed up, you slow down. This pattern interrupt makes you stand out from every other salesperson they’ve encountered. When to use it: This approach works best when you sense the prospect isn’t actually as busy as they claim, but is using “I’m in a meeting” as a reflexive defense mechanism. Reading the Situation Matters Regardless of which approach you choose, pay close attention to how they respond to your first question: If they answer slowly and thoughtfully, they likely have more time than they initially claimed If they’re genuinely rushing, respect that and pivot to scheduling If they hang up immediately, you’ve lost nothing—they weren’t going to talk anyway The best strategy depends on several factors: Your personal style: Paul has a high-energy, engaging personality that makes the quick pitch approach viable for him. Know your strengths. Your results: As I told Paul, if what you’re doing is working, keep doing it. If your show rate for meetings is poor, try a different approach. The prospect’s tone: Listen carefully to how they say “I’m in a meeting.” Sometimes their tone will tell you which approach is most likely to succeed. Test and measure: Try all three approaches with different prospects and track your results. The data will tell you which method works best for your specific situation. How you handle this moment separates average salespeople from top performers. The best reps have multiple strategies ready and know when to deploy each one. Remember, in sales, objections aren’t roadblocks—they’re detours that lead to the same destination. Master these three approaches to the “I’m in a meeting” objection, and you’ll turn what most salespeople see as a dead end into a pathway to more meetings and more deals. Want more sales tips and strategies for overcoming prospecting objections? Download Jeb Blount’s FREE Objections Book Club Guide

Self-talk, what you say to yourself internally, manifests itself in your outward attitude and actions. As any elite athlete will tell you, the mental games you play with yourself between your ears will make or break you. When all things are equal, mindset is one thing that separates winners and losers. This is one of the reasons that I love golf so much. Once you understand the basic mechanics of the golf swing the only thing that really matters is mindset. On every shot your ability to focus, calm your mind, and remain mentally disciplined is the thin line between brilliance and disaster. Allow the wrong thoughts to creep in and before you know it you’ve shanked your shot into a water hazard.  You Become What You Think In golf and in sales, you cannot afford the luxury of a negative thought.  Self-talk is crazy powerful. You become what you think. When you expect to win, you’ll win far more often than the person who believes they are going to lose. When you learn how to block out negative thoughts and inputs and remain focused on your process you’ll consistently out perform those who don’t.  Understanding this is crucial in these crazy times full of volatility, uncertainty, negativity and divisiveness. In this environment where everything can hit the fan in an instant on any given day, it is super easy to become mired in stinking thinking.  Beware of Stinking Thinking Stinking thinking is the toxic inner soundtrack that loops in your head after a bad conversation with your boss, seeing a negative story on the news or social media, a lost deal, a bad quarter, or hitting five straight voicemails on cold calls. It’s every “Nobody answers the phone anymore,” “No one’s buying in this economy,” or “I’m just not cut out for sales.”line you feed yourself. It’s catastrophizing. It’s victim-talk. Imagine the impact on your mindset when your internal conversation is constantly filled with negativity. It’s the mental equivalent of leaving a half-eaten tuna sandwich in your backpack for a week—eventually the smell becomes unbearable. Mindset drives attitude, attitude drives behavior, and behavior drives outcomes. When stinking thinking settles in: Your Reticular Activating System—the brain’s spam filter—starts looking for evidence you’re doomed, and sure enough, you find it. Call reluctance skyrockets. You protect your fragile ego instead of filling the pipe and asking confidently for the sale. Every “maybe” sounds like a “no,” every objection feels personal, and every tiny setback reinforces the lie that you’re stuck. Left unchecked, that negative monologue becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. Your pipeline shrinks, numbers dip, confidence tanks, and pretty soon you’re blaming the market instead of owning the mirror. Thoughts are Just Choices The good news is that thoughts are just choices. You control your mindset. You have the ability to flip the switch from victim to driver. From rain barrel to rainmaker.  What you must never forget is that momentum follows mindset, not the other way around. Manage your self-talk and the results follow suit.  When your self-talk turns negative, take control and change it. Learn to replace negative self-talk with positive affirmations and statements. Get in the habit of looking in the mirror and answering the question: “What can I control right now?” Focus on that.  Knowing vs Doing Now, here’s the rub, everybody knows self-talk matters. Socrates hammered on it. Marcus Aurelius journaled about it. Your grandmother probably told you to “stop being so negative.” The concept of mental discipline isn’t new, it’s universal. But intellectual agreement and day-to-day execution are two very different zip codes. You can post quotes from every Stoic on LinkedIn and still spend the morning telling yourself, “I’ll never hit quota in this economy.” Knowledge without application is just trivia. So flip the switch from knowing to doing. The instant a negative phrase spins in your head—“This deal is DOA,” “The client hates our price,” “I’m terrible at cold calls”—pause and label it: stinking thinking. Then replace that rotten thinking with a power statement tied to action. “I’m terrible with cold calls.” becomes “Each dial sharpens my skills and makes me stronger.” Be ruthless about this exercise. Set an hourly chime on your phone if you have to. Negative thoughts are squatters; the longer they occupy space, the harder they are to evict. Kick them out in real time and your attitude will gain altitude. The Trouble With Doom Scrolling  One of the challenges you face in today’s environment is that you’re under a constant barrage of negativity from external forces on social media, in your news feed, on coming through the speakers of your car. When you are reading, watching, listening to, and scrolling through negativity it will shape your mindset and self-talk Attention is currency. News organizations and social media platforms make money by selling your attention to advertisers. They know that the easiest way to grab your attention is with bad news. Their entire apparatus is set up to take advantage of the way your brain works.  In the mornings you wake up and, like a moth to a flame, you are drawn to your phone. You roll over and open your news app or social media app. Instantly you are immersed in negativity. As you watch news, scroll through your news apps, and follow the chatter on social media you feel panic and fear. Your mind turns to the worst-case scenarios. Rather than focusing on what you can control, you dwell on doom and gloom.   Perhaps the most depressing aspect of modern society is the news. Disaster is always the story of the day. As they say: “If it bleeds it leads.” Spending an hour watching a cable news channel or scrolling through a social media feed will leave you in need of an antidepressant and a therapist. And the more you watch, the more addictive it becomes.  So stop. Turn it off. Put your phone down. Right now. Putting an end to this destructive and negative input will have an immediate, positive impact on your attitude. You will feel better and your belief system will strengthen. 8 Ways to Improve Your Mindset Right Now Focus on what you can control. Here are eight things you can do right now to mind your mindset.  Block at least 15 minutes on your calendar every day for professional reading. Listen to an audiobook while you take a walk or exercise.  Take an online course on Sales Gravy University. Listen to motivational and professional podcasts. Podcasts are free and the content is amazing.  Spend 10 minutes each day in silence for spiritual contemplation or prayer. Get focused and anchor your mindset. Exercise a minimum of 30 minutes every day. It doesn’t matter what you do. Just get up, get moving, and break a sweat. Eat a well-balanced diet and never skip breakfast. Go to bed early and get enough sleep. Posture is a Shortcut to Mindset One of the fastest attitude-adjustment hacks on the planet sits right on top of your spine. Stand up and roll those shoulders back. Plant your feet like you own the ground beneath them. Lift your chin so your eyes are on the horizon, not the floor.  Do that and—bang—your biochemistry follows orders. Cortisol (the stress hormone) drops, testosterone edges up, and your brain gets a fresh hit of confidence. Harvard research calls it “power posing.” I call it common sense. You can’t slouch like a question mark and expect to sell like an exclamation point. The next time you’re about to dial a prospect, step out from behind the desk, stand tall, and smile so wide you can feel it in your ears. Your voice will warm up, your pace will steady, and the person on the other end will hear a pro who believes in their own value. Same thing before a big presentation or a tough negotiation—straighten up, breathe from the diaphragm, and let your body tell your mind, “We’ve got this.” Your prospects will feel the difference, and so will you. Misery Wants You to Join the Team It’s also crucial that you understand that misery loves company, and it desperately wants you to join the team. Picture a lone crabber easing across the bay at dawn. He hauls up a wire trap, shakes the catch into a five-gallon bucket, and keeps working his line. Before long, one ambitious crustacean decides he’s not sticking around for the boiling pot. Claw over claw, he inches up the plastic wall—almost free. But every time he reaches the rim, the other crabs latch on and drag him back to the bottom. No escape. No hope. Everyone loses. These days there is plenty of misery to go around. Miserable people whine about the economy, inflation, prospects, customers, too-few leads, and that no one is buying. They complain about the company, the commission plan, and the boss.  Negative, miserable people grab you with their claws and pull you down into the bucket with them. Pretty soon the words coming out of your mouth are negative too. You’ll start to believe that you are stuck in that bucket and there is no way out. You’ll begin to feel contempt for your company, customers, and boss.  Proximity is Power You and your mindset are a composite of the people you spend the most time with. Hang out with people who have a negative mindset, and they’ll destroy yours.  Start by excusing yourself from negative conversations. Just walk away. Seek out people who build you up rather than tear you down. Connect with people who see opportunity in adversity.  Stick close to peers who bang out their call blocks every morning, the ones that consistently hit their number, the rainmakers who accept no excuses and believe that they alone control their destiny. Their pace becomes your pace. Their standards become your standards. Your mindset will quickly shift from impossible to possible.  Mindset and momentum have a tendency to rub off. Remember, you don’t rise to the level of your aspirations, you fall to the level of the company you keep. Proximity is power. Stop Looking for the Easy Way Selling during the economic uncertainty we are facing at this moment is brutal. You are going to face setbacks, frustration, failure, unending rejection, panicked customers, unscrupulous competitors, unrelenting pressure to perform, along with the massive stress that comes from worrying about your family and finances.  It is critical that you awaken from the delusion that somehow you are going to find a way to make this easy. You are not.  These days, nothing is easy. You’ve got to get your ass up and go out there and make it rain yourself. Don’t count on easy leads, any help or for anyone to pick up your slack. There are no days off. No lunch breaks. It’s just damn hard work. The highest earning sales professionals are skipping meals and doing deals. Which is why they win in any environment.  So focus relentlessly on the only three things you can control. Your actions, reactions, and mindset.  And remember, when you’ve spent your entire day grinding and your mind is telling you to pack up and go home, always make one more call because this is your way to telling the world, I am here, I am resilient, and no matter what you throw at me, I will always find a way to win! In volatile times, it is hard to sell. Yet, you are still under the same pressure to make your sales number. In my FREE Selling in a Crisis Workbook, you’ll gain the confidence and tactics you need to win when everyone else is losing. Download Here.

Let’s kill the myth: sales coaching isn’t just for newbies or underperformers.  It’s for closers, leaders, and the ones who want more—more pipeline, more wins, more control over their career. If you’re in sales, you need coaching. Period. This isn’t feel-good fluff. Sales is a performance sport. Every high-performance athlete has a coach, and every inspiring performer has a mentor for a reason. Everyone, and I mean everyone, needs a coach. From the elite to the desperate, everyone can benefit from guidance. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCOY793fA5E 1. The Desperate: The Bottom 20% You know who you are. You’re missing quota—again. Every call feels heavier, your confidence is tanking, and you’re out of answers. Here’s the truth: you don’t need more time—you need better habits, tighter processes, and someone to call out your excuses. You need guidance. Sales coaching forces you to stop guessing and start fixing. A good coach will rip the blinders off: Are you dodging the phones? Are you hesitating at the close? Are you talking too much and listening too little? You’re not going to claw your way out of the bottom 20% by working harder. You get out by working smarter, with someone who’s done it before and won’t let you off the hook. Find yourself a coach—do it now—before the hole you’ve dug gets any deeper. 2. The Mediocre Middle You’re not bottom of the pack, but you’re not standing out either. You’re just … fine. Quietly average. Here you are, coasting on a couple of decent months, dodging attention, not making waves, paying your bills but treading water accomplishment-wise. And that should scare you. This is not where you want to be. This is where most reps stay stuck—not because they don’t care, but because they don’t change. Coaching breaks the cycle of complacency. It’s the flashlight in the dark that shows you exactly what’s holding you back. Weak discovery? Inconsistent follow-ups? Soft closes? You don’t need a miracle. You need fresh eyes and someone who pushes you past the edge of “fine.” Seek out a coach who’s been there and knows how to break through the ceiling you’re trapped under. 3. The Ultra High Performer You’re already top tier. You’ve pushed your way into the 5%. President’s Club. You’ve got the trophies, the income, and the T-shirt to prove it. So why do you need coaching? Because the best never stop training. They don’t rest on wins—they refine, seek out marginal gains, and build muscle when others relax. Coaching helps you identify the 2mm adjustments that turn a winner into a legend. The ultra-high performers I’ve seen who get coaching consistently shorten deal cycles, multiply referrals, and close with precision. The ego stays in check, the mindset stays sharp, and the momentum stays up. They’re breaking into enterprise-level sales on the regular. The moment you stop chasing growth is the moment someone else starts catching up. Your ideal coach has climbed to the top of the mountain themselves and is willing to help you scale it, too. 4. The Solopreneur You’re running a business, selling the service, delivering the product, and following up with the clients. You’re building the plane mid-air. But let’s be real—most solopreneurs need some help to truly master sales. With your passion, you’re the best sales rep for your product you’ll ever have—but right now, you’re winging it. “Coaching helps you build a real sales process—consistent outreach, confident pricing, and predictable revenue.  You can’t afford wasted time or wasted energy. A coach helps you cut distractions, stop chasing bad-fit leads, and finally build the kind of pipeline that scales with you. If you want to play a bigger game, you’ve got to start selling like a pro—not an amateur. Go land a coach who’s as committed to making you a top-tier sales rep as you are to your business. 5. The Sales Leader You coach your team, run the numbers, and lead the meetings. You’re trying to hit your own number while calling all the plays. So who’s coaching you? Sales leaders need a different kind of pressure. A coach helps you rise above the daily chaos and lead with vision. They help you recognize your blind spots, develop your people faster, and build a culture where coaching is the norm, not a rescue mission. If you’re not growing, your team won’t grow. If you’re not learning, they’re not learning. You can’t preach growth if you’re not showing it—and that includes being coachable. You want your reps to invest in themselves? Start by investing in yourself first. Sales Coaching is Absolutely Necessary If you’re in sales and you’re not getting coached, you’re leaving deals, dollars, and development on the table. Coaching is the edge that keeps you ahead—not the crutch you reach for when you’re behind. It builds skill, confidence, and the consistency that separates the average from the elite. If you’re still thinking, “Do I really need coaching?”—you’re already answering your own question. You don’t need to wait until you’re struggling. You need to decide you’re worth it—because staying the same is the most expensive decision you can make. Ready to stop winging it and start winning it? Get a coach. Get serious. Download our FREE How to Find the Right Coach guide.

Kyle, a field sales rep from British Columbia, is struggling with a common prospecting challenge: how to consistently prospect when you’re constantly on the move. Kyle’s situation likely resonates with many of you in outside sales. He described his typical day—starting at job sites at 7:30 AM, running between appointments, sending proposals from his truck, and working from Starbucks in between meetings. Sound familiar? He had read my book, Fanatical Prospecting, where I advocate for dedicated time blocks for prospecting. But Kyle’s reality made traditional time blocking nearly impossible. So what’s a field rep to do? What follows is the advice I gave Kyle, cleaned up and expanded so every field seller, territory manager, and outside sales road warrior can put it to work—right now. Focus on Activity Count, Not Time Blocks If you’re in Kyle’s shoes (or truck), here’s my advice: Stop obsessing over time and start focusing on activity counts. Instead of trying to carve out a rigid one- or two-hour block, set a daily activity goal. For someone in Kyle’s position, committing to 30 quality outbound touches per day is likely sufficient. In my early days, I personally made 100 dials daily, no matter what—but you need to find your number. It’s amazing what you can accomplish in small pockets of time. Got 10 minutes between appointments? You can make 10 dials. These micro-prospecting sessions add up throughout your day. Instead of asking, “How do I find two uninterrupted hours?” ask, “How many outbound touches do I need to hit my pipeline goal?” Reverse-engineer your math. If 30 dials typically create two meetings—and two meetings a day keep your funnel fat—commit to 30 dials, period. Activity over chronology. Whether you burn those calls in one block or in six five-minute bursts between site visits doesn’t matter. Hitting the activity target does. Prospecting is like push-ups: the muscle only cares that you completed the reps, not whether you did them all at once. Practical Fanatical Prospecting Implementation for Field Reps Here’s how to make this work in the field: Set up your list the night before: Don’t waste precious morning energy building your call list. Have everything ready to go when you start your day. A pre-built list eliminates the mental drag of figuring out who to call while you’re juggling mud, invoices, and traffic. Use the gaps: Those small windows between appointments are prospecting gold. Five minutes here, ten minutes there—use them. Capture information efficiently: Most calls will go to voicemail. For the ones who answer, quickly note any important information to input into your CRM later. Don’t try to update your CRM in real-time between every call. Be safe: Obviously, don’t text and drive. Pull over if you need to take notes or send follow-up messages. What Kyle is experiencing is common for outside sales professionals. You can’t prospect the same way as an inside sales rep with a dedicated desk and phone. Your office is your vehicle. Your desk is wherever you can find a flat surface. Your schedule is dictated by customers and job sites. Create a Mobile Prospecting Kit Salesforce is great—when you have stable Wi-Fi and two hands on a keyboard. Field reps need something that works when the LTE bars dip to one. Print or export your list with phone numbers and a skinny note column. Hyperlink mobile numbers in a notes app so a single tap dials the next contact—no scrolling, no fumbling. Use a hands-free auto-dial app (tons exist) if local regulations allow. Safety first; quotas second. Capture notes on paper or dictate voice memos. At day’s end, batch-enter critical intel into your CRM. Perfect data hygiene is optional; capturing deal-moving facts is mandatory. Rule of thumb: Log information, not activity. Managers love call-count metrics, but conversations and follow-up triggers win deals. Prospect in the Micro-Moments I built my career on a simple principle: five dials fit in five minutes. Waiting for the site supervisor? Dial. Stuck at a railroad crossing? Dial. Early for lunch with a GC? Dial. If you rinse and repeat ten times a day, that’s 50 dials—without ever blocking a formal hour. Your smartphone is a Swiss Army knife; flip out the prospecting blade at every lull. Respect the Platinum Hours—But Redefine Them Kyle also asked about “platinum hours” for prospecting in the construction world. This is where understanding your market’s rhythm becomes crucial. Kyle noted that contractors and builders are easier to reach in the morning, while homeowners are more accessible in the afternoon. This creates a “sandwich” with potentially lighter activity in the middle of the day. This midday lull is your opportunity. Use this time to build lists, handle admin work, and prepare proposals. Unlike the evening when you’re exhausted from a full day in the field, these midday hours could be your most productive for planning and organizing your prospecting efforts. Another strategy: dedicate time on Sunday evenings to build your entire week’s prospecting list. Create a master list of 100 names and work through it all week, making adjustments as needed when new leads come in. Creating a Predictable Pipeline Consistent prospecting—even in small chunks—creates a predictable pipeline. For field reps, this approach is actually more sustainable than trying to force traditional time blocks into an already chaotic schedule. When you hit your daily outbound touch goal consistently, you create a steady stream of new opportunities flowing into your pipeline. This prevents the feast-or-famine cycle that plagues so many field sales professionals. Remember, it’s not about how much time you spend prospecting—it’s about how many quality touches you make each day. Set your number, stick to it religiously, and watch your pipeline grow. Prospect the Way Your Territory Demands Kyle’s biggest burden wasn’t time—it was guilt. He felt like a prospecting slacker because he wasn’t doing textbook blocks. Let me settle it: If your role is to be on-site talking to buyers, that is high-value selling time. The goal of prospecting is pipeline, not calendar purity. Flexible, numbers-driven activity beats rigid, time-driven blocks every day of the week. Give yourself permission to sell the way your territory demands. Outside sales is messy, chaotic, and wildly fun. You’ll spill coffee on contracts, burn through playlists, and hunt for cell service in cornfields—but none of that excuses an empty pipeline. If you’re like Kyle—constantly on the move but committed to growth—focus on activity goals rather than time blocks. Your truck becomes your prospecting command center, and those small gaps in your day become opportunities to move your business forward. Keep hustling. Keep prospecting. And at the end of the day, when it is time to go home, always make one more call. Want to set more appointments from the road? Download our FREE guide 25 Ways to Ask For the Appointment on a Cold Call