What's So Funny?

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What’s So Funny ?


A sense of humor… is needed armor. Joy in one’s heart and some laughter on one’s lips is a sign that the person down deep has a pretty good grasp of life. - Hugh Sidney


Humor is mankind’s greatest blessing. - Mark Twain


One of the greatest skills that a salesperson should keep in their briefcase is a good sense of humor. The first and foremost application of this skill is being able to laugh at yourself. Yes, we have bills to pay, mouths to feed,and quotas to meet;  but we cannot be serious all of the time. Just look at nature, and little children. They love to play. The other morning during my walk,  I saw two squirrels scampering after each other, playing tag up an oak tree , running round and round like the stripes on a barber shop pole.  It made me chuckle just to watch them.


Once we get married and have children, and establish a household ; and begin to accumulate “stuff”;  somewhere along along the way, we become like Peter Pan. No, not the peanut butter. I mean we become like the character “ Peter Pan” who lives in Neverland. The best rendition of this story, I think, was played by Robin Williams in the movie “Hook”. As a successful lawyer in his adult life, he returns to London to honor his adopted mother Wendy. While he is speaking at Wendy’s honorarium that evening, dread Pirate Captain Hook ( played by Dustin Hoffman ) kidnaps Peter Panning’s children, and takes them to Never Land. Peter must find his children, and with the help of some fairy dust ( from Pixie, Julia Roberts ) and JetBlue, he flies to Neverland. ( ok … JetBlue does not service Never Land). Once he arrives in Neverland, and ends up reconnecting with the lost boys he had known eons ago, it is discovered that Peter has forgotten. He has forgotten how to  fly, to PLAY , to laugh, to have fun, to crow; and even to use his imagination. He grew up to become a boring adult, living a dull life. A life so serious, that there was never any time for laughter or fun.


Good humor is usually self-deprecating or simply about the off- the-wall realities of life. It never seeks to put another person down to obtain a laugh. We all have our sarcastic moments, but to stay there is not a healthy practice. I have found that the use of humor usually relaxes people, including myself. It breaks up  tense and stressful situations, and turns them into enjoyable relaxing meetings. Noah Webster defines humor as “ that quality of the imagination which gives to ideas a wild or fantastic turn, and tends to excite laughter or mirth by ludicrous images or representations…”


At one point in my sales career, I represented a lightweight concrete company in the central Florida market. Although we had a corporate office not far from Orlando, each account executive operated mainly out of their home office. Since the product we manufactured was a structural element, they paired each salesperson with a structural engineer, who made sure that the sales reps didn’t promise something that might not be structurally sound( now who would do that ?). My partnering engineer was a Vietnam vet and head of his local Harley biker club - a man’s man to say the least. One day, while working in my home office, I was leaving the engineer a voicemail, when in the midst of my message, my wife walked into my office wearing her bathing suit. We had just installed a pool, and she came into my office to tell me something. At that moment, my mind disengaged from my voice mail and redirected onto my wife, standing there in her bathing suit. Then, as if observing someone else, I suddenly found myself closing out the call to the engineer by saying, “ Bye, I love you ! “ Waking up , as if hit with a bolt of lightning, I corrected, “ No, no, no, that was an accident. Sorry…” and I hung up. When arriving at the home office later that day, I discovered that the engineer had forwarded my voicemail  to the entire company. When listening to my message, the President commented in his thick German accent, “ Well, Neal must really love his work ! “ Truth is funnier than fiction.


Learning to laugh at ourselves and find humor within day to day life  is an invaluable skill that will build strong relationships; help us to enjoy the journey, and  hopefully leave a smile on our client’s faces. Laughter is good medicine for the soul.


A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.
- Proverbs 17:22 ( NIV Bible )

Hello ? A Cellular Rant

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Hello ?  A Cellular Rant


Apparently we love our own cell phones but we hate everyone else’s. - Joe Bob Briggs


As youngsters, my mother taught her children that while we might not be the smartest people around, we could be courteous, polite and considerate of others. - Zig Ziglar


How did we ever live without cell phones ? Could people of the human race actually ommunicate without this electronic device, that has now morphed into a personal computer that fits in our pocket ? When I first started my career in sales, my “ cell phone “ was attached to the wall of the local 7-11. It was called a “pay phone”. A client recently told me over a business lunch, that he was at an airport with his grandson, and his grandson grabbed his hand, dragged him around the corner, pointed to an object on the wall and said , “ Gramps, what is that ?” It was a pay phone. My, how technology has changed.


But our consideration for one another has seemed to digress as technology has increased. We seem to be communicating more, but are we communicating better ? Those of us who are a little older have watched our world change with the use of personal electronic devices. It seems like almost everyone has a cell phone now. I know parents of elementary school children that are throwing fits ( the kids, not the parents…) to have the most latest and greatest Android or I -phone. I watched an elderly couple at a local restaurant finish lunch , then he spent the next 15 minutes checking his cell phone while his wife read a book. Shoot, I even saw a man riding a bicycle down the road the other day while talking on his cell phone. Who said men can't multi-task ?


While the immediate accessibility can be a plus, I have to wonder about the long-term impacts of the stress and anxiety that accompanies the quickened pace of our lives. We have become like Pavlov’s dog, trained to jump every time our phone indicates a new message, a new text, a fresh email, or a response on social media. At times, these little devices that grant us so much freedom and accessibility, can seem to become our task master. We also seem to be less patient with one another. We demand immediate responses, and get angry when they don't come soon enough. I’m sure you’ve observed this in our culture. So how do we enfold technology into our jobs and still maintain proper relational balance and consideration of others ? Here are a few thoughts.


Meetings. Have you ever been in a meeting, maybe in the middle of a statement, and someone’s phone chirps ; and they absolutely HAVE to take the call ? Unless your wife is giving birth or you have a sick child at home, is it really necessary to take that call and interrupt the meeting ? I have been at lunch meetings with clients, and they see my cell phone light up ( I keep it on vibrate ), and they tell me, “ Go ahead and take the call. “ My response is , “ No, I am here with you now, and you deserve my full attention. That’s what voicemail is for ! “ If we plan on being somewhere, BE THERE . We must be present at our meetings and presentations without allowing technology to interrupt. Otherwise, we can send a subtle message to the client, “ you are really not that important. “


Public Conversations. Have you ever walked into a talking bathroom ? It happened to me just the other day while visiting a healthcare client. I ducked into the bathroom , and was greeted by a pharmaceutical rep discussing sales projections with his manager while on the crapper. Yes, I applaud his mastery of time management, but wouldn’t a walk outside or a 5 minute talk in his car afford more privacy ? What makes us think that the whole world should know our business ? I can recall having lunch at a poultry-based fast food establishment one afternoon, and being subjected to a lengthy conversation from a salesperson representing residential products, boasting about how he scammed some homeowners. I wanted to throw a waffle frie at this dude. You may have experienced something similar !


I polled our local postal workers at my small hometown post office one afternoon, asking them about their thoughts regarding cell phones. They told me the most frustrating thing that they deal with is someone who is on their cell phone when they enter the post office, and stays on their cell phone during their entire transaction. Why ? Because by doing so , the person on the cell phone does not provide their full attention to the attendant and thus makes them feel disrespected and slighted. We cannot treat individuals in service businesses as merely a means to our end. Who wants to feel used? This is simply rude. People deserve to be treated like, well, people ; receiving our eye contact, our smile and our full attention - without a phone or bluetooth stuck in our ear.


Sometimes, I think we use our phones as a means to escape true social interaction. We can utilize machines  to keep from making contact with a real human. Our phones can become our security blankets. While cycling a local trail one Saturday with my wife, we joined a group of young people that we knew from our hometown. Our group stopped for lunch while on the trail. I was amazed and struck by the fact that the young lady sitting next to me, stayed on her phone, primarily checking out social media, during the entire lunch . Never made eye contact once.  I felt saddened and a bit ticked off that she chose to communicate with her cyber friends instead of the living breathing humans that were sitting 6” from her. Am I the only one that has a problem with that ?


Technology should be a tool that helps bring people together , but we have to be wise in the way we use those tools, or I'm afraid that they will dominate our lives. Most of all, we must never lose site of the fact that people are more important than machines. Maybe it's time to reexamine our priorities and practices when it comes to our technology, ya think ?


Every time there's a new tool, whether it's Internet or cell phones or anything else, all these things can be used for good or evil. Technology is neutral; it depends on how it's used. - Rick Smolan

Finding Inspiration

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Finding Inspiration


Inspiration exists, but it has to find us working. - Pablo Picasso


It is so easy to compare ourselves with others in life , isn’t it ? This happens in the sales profession also. This is such a divisive and unproductive habit to acquire, because we usually end up falling short of the mark, and ultimately become unmotivated. When we compare, we usually focus on what we do not have, rather than access or appreciate what we do have. In the sales field, comparing can end up providing us with excuses for copping out. I’ve heard ( or even said ) statements like, “ They are doing so well because they have a better territory.” Or, “ He gets all the good leads.”
Or, “ She’s just lucky “.


One of our founding fathers said that “ Luck is when hard work meets opportunity.” If someone is more successful than we are, we should rejoice with them not envy them.When we compare our performance to others, and envy them for their good qualities, it stunts our own growth and limits our progress. Plus, we never know the complete story. We assume that we do, but do we even know what is going on within our own lives?
How could we ever begin to understand what is happening in another person’s life ? We never fully grasp the price that someone has paid to get to  where they are, or the journey they had to take to get there.


Instead of comparison, I would rather find inspiration. Webster defines inspired as being “ breathed in, inhaled, infused. “ Have you ever walked into a Panera Bread store right after they pulled hot bread from the oven ? Or stepped into a kitchen that was filled with the aroma of a delicious apple pie baking ? Don't you stop and breathe that aroma in ? What does it inspire you to do ? Eat bread. Dig into a pie. In a similar fashion, we can breathe in the good qualities of peers and mentors around us who are “ baking fresh bread “, so to speak. By allowing other sales people to inspire us, we can emulate their good qualities and experience success also. Recently , while attending an international sales meeting, I was afforded the opportunity to have a private discussion with one of our top performers. I asked him, “ What makes you successful? What are some of the principles that you use to sell the volume of business that you do ? “ He was more than willing to share his life and experiences with me. Do you know that he also informed me that NO ONE had ever asked him what his secrets to success were ! Amazing !


Do you know a sales veteran that you could interview and ask what their guiding principles are? What’s their secret sauce ? You may be surprised to find out that no one has ever asked them that question ; and you may also discover that you are already doing some of the very same things that they are. Hopefully, you will be inspired to keep putting into practice a proven process! Let's go bake some bread .


Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration. -Thomas A. Edison

Got Milk Run ?

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Got Milk Run ?

“ Some people regard private enterprise as a predatory tiger to be shot. Others look on it as a cow they can milk. Not enough people see it as a healthy horse, pulling a sturdy wagon.” - Winston Churchill

When I was a little boy growing up in Naples Park Florida, I remember when the milkman would deliver milk to our house. One hot humid, sweltering, sweating morning ( did I mention it was sub tropical? ); I met the milk man at the road to collect our normal moo juice, and he actually let me walk into the refrigerated portion of the delivery truck. It was like visiting the North Pole, feeling the refreshing arctic- like air surround me, and the freezing blast swirling about me. It made the morning milk taste that much better. 

The days of the milkman ended with plastic cartons of milk made available at every gas station, grocery store and 7-11. Like gas stations who used to have attendants who ran out to your car and pump gas for you, we became a self-serve culture. The milk man became obsolete, but in some ways he still lives on. Sales people can become like milk men, can't we ? It is so easy to get into a route, like a delivery person, we stay within our comfort zone, calling on the same accounts, the same friendly faces, the same clients who have already said “yes”. Relationship building is vital for long term annuity success, but if we don’t push ourselves out of our comfort zones to knock on new doors, call new prospects , and make some cold calls ; our sales business will eventually dry up and die.

Spencer Johnson wrote a marvelous book about this subject of getting out of our milk run, in his award winning story “ Who Moved My Cheese ?” In Spencer’s true form, he communicates basic principles in a story about two mice that run in a maze. They show up to their typical spot where the cheese has always been, and it is gone! Who moved it ? They don't know. Will the cheese return ? Should we stay or should we go and look for new cheese ? They are faced with a dilemma - they either go out looking for new cheese, or stay where the “market “ has always been, and starve ! ( spoiler alert ) Eventually, one of the mice decides to put on his running shoes and go find the cheese.

At one point in my sales career, I parked where the cheese was and it fed me quite marvelously. Then one day, it moved !  The real estate bubble popped, construction of schools and public buildings came to a screeching halt, and the market that had previously fed me so well dried up and withered. A major client I had serviced for years dropped from a Million in Sales a year to one hundred fifty thousand. My company , at the time, warned me to find new cheese. They put me on a three month probation , and you know what happened ? I was forced out of my comfort zone. I began to knock on new doors and make cold calls. I followed the money trail to clients who were still doing some building. I developed new relationships with people that I had literally ignored previously because I already had all the cheese I needed. I had stopped developing new business. I had fallen into the proverbial milk run ! 

Are you stuck in milk run ? Maybe it’s time to take that milk truck” off road” and explore some new possibilities. What about you ? What is it going to take to move stagnant mediocrity to on fire Business Development? Take a swig of that almond milk, put your running shoes on,  and let's go find the cheese !

“ Move out of your comfort zone. You can only grow if you are willing to feel awkward and uncomfortable when you try something new.”  - Brian Tracy

“ I want to challenge you today to get out of your comfort zone. You have so much incredible potential on the inside. God has put gifts and talents in you that you probably don’t know anything about.”  -  Joel Osteen

Watch Your Business Like a Hawk

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Watch Your Business Like a Hawk

There are times when fear is good. It must keep its watchful place at the heart's controls. - Aeschylus

Wetlands frame the back of our property, hugging a two lane road, as tall live oaks cluster around our Florida home. It is a peaceful neighborhood that we have enjoyed living in for over sixteen years. Because of the verdant tree growth and thick vegetation, our development teams with wildlife. Squirrels chasing each other or scampering for acorns is not an uncommon sight. Vibrant red cardinals navigate the trees, flying in a single file, like jet fighters in formation. Occasionally at dusk or dawn, one might see a lone white-tailed fox stealthily migrating across a local yard.. Then there's the hawks. While strolling around our circle, there's a pretty good chance you could see perched on a house dormer, an oak branch, or even a stop sign; a local raptor just keeping an eye on things.

Recently, in the cool of day, my wife and I were enjoying our morning walk; when suddenly, we heard the strong flapping of wings above. In unison, we looked up to see a hawk soaring over our heads with a stick in its beak. But wait, the stick was moving ? With further inspection, we determined that the two foot “stick” was actually a snake. From fifty feet away, to our right, we could hear a group of fledgling hawks in our neighbor’s tree, screeching with delight , as their version of a “Denny’s Grand Slam” was about to reach the nest.

Hawks are amazing creatures! Based on their innovative feeding habits, Canadian ornithologist Louis Lefebvre announced that hawks are rated as one of the most intelligent birds. ( Wikipedia ) The Hawk’s vision stands out as one of its greatest physical features and tools for survival. Experts say that the hawk has four types of color receptors in the eye, which gives them the ability to take in the visible and ultraviolet part of the spectrum. Hawks possess a large number of photoreceptors in their retina ( up to 1,000,000 per sq mm compared to humans at 200,000 per sq mm), which gives them fantastic long distance vision. ( Quota.com ) Their eyes also allow them to maintain focus on a moving object at high speed, which no doubt aids in tracking down prey on the run. In short, according to Quota.com, the hawk’s visual acuity is 20/2, compared to a human at 20/20, meaning they can see from 20 feet as well as a human can at 2 ‘. 

The hawk’s diet consists of smaller animals ( i.e. snakes, lizards, mice, rabbits, squirrels, birds). They usually kill their prey with their talons. My wife can attest to this fact, as she photographed a hawk just last week, killing a squirrel . The hawk terminated the squirrel within its  talons, and a few minutes later, flew away with dinner. No wonder the squirrel population has been dwindling in my area. During later inspection of the photos that she took , she was unnerved to discover, perched on the top of a lamp post within the same yard as the kill ; sat a second hawk silently watching the hunt.

A few other  noteworthy characteristics of hawks is that the male assists the female in building the nest, and both the “ male and the female will cater and take care of the eggs for about a month until they hatch. “  ( Wikipedia ) Some species of hawks are monogamous and stay with the same mating partner for their whole lives. There’s a picture within nature of teamwork and faithfulness . 

Screeching.  According to Animals.mom.me, the male hawk screeches to announce his territory during the mating season. Hawks  will also screech repeatedly while protecting their territory, generally warding off other hawks or predators. The female guarding the nest, along with the chicks, will also screech, communicating to the male hawk, “ bring home the squirrel bacon” ; as well as protecting their nests from intruders. 

So how does this information apply to sales and marketing ? Glad you asked. One of the greatest characteristics of a hawk is their power of observation. They usually perch on a pole or tree or power line to gain higher perspective ; and look for hunting opportunities. We also, must learn to keep our eyes wide open and our perspective sharp, for new opportunities in business ; as well as occasions to fortify existing relationships. As Proverbs 27:23 ( Msg) encourages us, 

“ Know your sheep by name; carefully attend to your flocks; ( Don’t take them for granted; possessions don’t last forever, you know.)...” We have to be vigilant not to slip into autopilot and cruise control with our businesses. We can never take our clients for granted, because there are other “ hawks “ circling above our business relationships, waiting for an opportunity to attack. No matter how fast we are flying from meeting to meeting, we must keep our eyes on the prize and never forget that  success is discovered  through service. It is hard work building a nest or a sales territory, and it is even harder work maintaining it and feeding it once it is successful. 

There is a time to screech. Every sales rep is called on from time to time, to defend what is rightfully theirs - what they have toiled and worked hard for. There is no shame in this, as long as we walk with integrity. We do not live with a mindset of scarcity, but passivity is not the answer either, failing to protect our nest from predators. There is a time to speak up for ourselves.  Years ago, my wife and I were forced to climb into a construction site dumpster to retrieve a product sample, in order to verify my legal rights to a project. A fellow “ hawk” from my own company, had deceptively claimed an entire school sale as his own. The problem was, the school was within my territory, not his. I had to defend my nest. 

Be faithful to the task, loyal to your business partners, and vigilant in the fight. Watch your business like a hawk, and keep circling your turf.

It was character that got us out of bed, commitment that moved us into action, and discipline that enabled us to follow through. - Zig Ziglar 

What Are You So Excited About ?

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What Are You So Excited About ?


“ Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson


Norman Vincent Peale once wrote , “ There is a real magic in enthusiasm. It spells the difference between mediocrity and accomplishment. “ So what exactly does it mean to express “enthusiasm”? Is it something that we conjure up or emotionally fabricate within our own lives ?  Webster defines enthusiasm as “ to infuse a divine spirit, inspired, divine, God. “ . He also describes enthusiasm as , “ inspiring extravagant hope and confidence of success…” That statement pretty much sums up most successful salespeople.


Bottom line ? If you can't be passionate and enthusiastic about your product or service you are selling, then no one else will be. No, your widget may not save the world, but your belief in it has to be at such a high level that you know deep down in your bones, that the world cannot live without it. We emote what we believe in, and we emote what we don’t believe in also. As I sat at a gate waiting to board my plane at Orlando International Airport one morning, I listened to a kiosk vendor behind me run through a particular routine after every purchase. With a loud voice filled with excitement and passion, he would cry out after every order entered into his cash register, “ There’s your change Ms/ Mr. . Thank you so much for stopping by to see me this morning. Now you have one fantastic and awesome day ! “ To the younger ones he would add, “ Give me a high five, or give me a fist pump. BAM ! Oh yeah ! That’s what I am talking about . “ At first I thought this guy was a little obnoxious, but then I began to observe the faces of the people who’d stopped at his kiosk. They were smiling. They were laughing. They walked away with a spring in their step. Yeah, it was just a bottle of water or a newspaper, but they felt like they had just won the lottery. They felt appreciated. That was the effect of directed enthusiasm.


How many of us have experienced a purchase in a retail situation when the look on the clerk’s face said “ I don’t want to be here. I'm having a bad day. Just take your stuff and leave me alone! “ ? Think about that feeling, as we slinked away with our bottle of water or cup of coffee, acting as if we just walked in on a domestic argument ; or endured a colonoscopy . Compare that to Mr. Enthusiasm at the airport kiosk. Who would you rather do business with ?  Granted, life is lived somewhere in between. Too much passion can be like accidentally tapping into an electric socket. (  I did that once reaching into an older fridge that didn’t have a bulb in the light socket.) It is not our goal to overwhelm our clients by being overzealous and dramatic. Controlled enthusiasm is magnetic. It draws people in. It is genuine.  I watched the other passengers that morning at Orlando International, as we all began to lean in towards what was taking place at that kiosk. Many of us anticipated what was coming next after the cash register rang, and the positive mood was contagious. The enthusiasm of this vendor attracted us.


Do you have extravagant hope and a confidence of success ? What are you truly passionate about ? If you haven't already, find a product or a service that you can be positive about - one that you can truly believe in.  Choose a company you can have confidence in. Be  genuinely enthusiastic and watch opportunities begin to search you out !






“ The secret of genius is to carry the spirit of the child into old age, which means never losing your enthusiasm.” - Aldous Huxley

Starting Over

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Starting Over


There was never a night or a problem that could defeat sunrise or hope. -Bernard Williams


Starting over- it's a scary thing and an exciting thing wrapped up into an experience, like a burrito from Chipotle. I remember being ten years old, riding in the Buick from Naples to Tampa Florida. My mom was driving us to Tampa to start a new life- one without the conflict caused by my alcoholic father. As the mile markers zipped past, I looked to my mom and said, “ Isn't it a good thought, mom, that we will never be beaten again ?” We we're starting over, and there was hope in our hearts that a better life was waiting for us in Tampa. And it was. Not even two years later, my mom met Paul at church, a soft spoken hard working man who built swimming pools. A few years earlier, Paul had lost his wife to cancer . He became her new husband and my new dad. She was treated like a princess, and I learned how a man is supposed to treat people.


I share that personal story because each of us has had to start over in some way , shape or fashion. Maybe our job ended abruptly, or our relationship went south ; we entered into a new season of life, or we found ourselves in a unhealthy situation that simply needed to change. So, we started over. We hit the reset button.


We do that as a sales professional also. No matter what challenges or rejection that we face today, tomorrow is a new day. Whatever project that implodes or customer that gets turned sideways with our company, tomorrow is a new day. Even with the huge projects or contracts that we proverbially pull into the boat, and win the prize; tomorrow is a new day. We have to begin again. That’s one reason why I love to observe and photograph sunrises. Not only do they put my mind into a state of awe and wonder, they are tangible gift to remind me every day is a new day. We get to start over. I snapped the attached pic during a recent business trip to Nashville. I was inspired watching the sun rise in all its grandeur and myriad of colors, over the Tennessee mountains; and soak this beautiful city in rays of light, serving as a reminder that yesterday's problems are behind me, and today is a brand new day !


Get outside. Watch the sunrise. Watch the sunset. How does that make you feel? Does it make you feel big or tiny? Because there's something good about feeling both. - Amy Grant