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GRATITUDE and CHALLENGES
It doesn’t take much effort to be grateful for the easy stuff…and we can forget even then.
It’s harder to be grateful for things that didn’t go the way we wanted them to go.
It’s harder to be grateful for the adversity itself and what the opportunity can teach us; a subtler more – dare I say evolved – experience of gratitude that for me that requires practice and effort. It takes work.
I have a solid practice of saying “thank you!” when I am happy with the results (I always say thank you when…
Commitment and Communication
The home furnishings and home improvement industries have been drinking from a fire hose for the last year. Lots of showroom traffic consisting of people who have been staying home…and using their tired, broken, uncomfortable furniture much more than they used to. And they have been buying like crazy!
August traffic lessened a bit. Maybe vacations, maybe their houses are getting full, maybe they have COVID. Whatever the reason, less traffic didn’t necessarily equal less written business, as those…
Slipcover Lessons
I started this project about a month ago, although how much time it was going to take to complete the project remained an unspecified mystery. Since this was the first slipcover I ever made, I spent time researching HOW to do this so that the result would be respectable. The ticking stripe fabric was a couple of years old, because I originally thought I would have someone do the work for me. But the pandemic arrived and my travel schedule slowed…
"Use it up…..
better half-finished the last of it yesterday, you do without or choose another way to satisfy your fancy. When you fall in love with those new AG jeans on Nordstrom R…Part 11 of 20: HubSpot Sales Statistics…With Secret Sauce Added
Investing in CRM software and other marketing automation technology helps organize and expedite the sales process and increases sales productivity. High-performing sales teams use almost three times as much technology as underperforming teams.
Salespeople 
I still hear pushback from older salespeople on upgrading technology to be current in today’s marketplace…a reaction that is sure to diminish their sales re…
Part 8 of 20: HubSpot Sales Statistics…With Secret Sauce Added
Communication between sales and marketing is so important—it’s a main component of sales enablement. Marketing templates and documents need to be easily accessible and customizable.
Salespeople 
I listen to salespeople who regularly show their resistance to ongoing communication with prospects and clients as “What am I going to say or send them? The marketing department manages email blasts….” In a time when retail showrooms need to…
Leadership: Your Team Is a Reflection Of You
For all leaders, everywhere
I recently had an impromptu conversation with one of my favorite leaders. She was talking, with frustration, about a couple of people on her leadership team who had not produced their most important deliverables for this time, this year.
As I listened intently, I asked myself – what is in the way of this happening? Where are the obstacles – tangible or intangible? I asked her if I could ask a couple of questions, which she agreed to – after a deep sigh. I asked if th…
Resistance
For everyone, everywhere
You are not alone in your resistance to improvement…or rather to the actions that deliver improvement. In fact, you are human in your resistance to taking new actions 
that will produce new and desired outcomes. As am I.
I hired a coach in January, had an initial meeting and brainstorming session, was given homework to produce before the next meeting (which was yet unscheduled) and have only produced 25% of that work and have not yet scheduled a follow-up call. To be fair…
High Impact Actions
For sales leaders, everywhere
Many retailers use statistics to measure performance and results, and there are some constants that all retailers measure: Traffic, close ratio, average sale. All are measurable, all matter, and all have specific actions to increase them.
There are retailers who add another statistic – sales per guest/dollars per opportunity/performance index. Whatever you call it, they all measure the same thing: Total revenue divided by total traffic. It is a combination of close…
A Measure of Relationship Value
I once had a customer who was a bit of a maverick in his marketplace and in the industry. He has since passed away, but Chuck Forcey was a character. When he was in the military, he flew planes and was on an elite fighter team…and he brought his irreverent ways with him.
Fortunately, he had a commander who was tougher and more focused than Chuck was and while he respected and appreciated what Chuck brought to the team, he refused to let the team be defined by one of its me…
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