Listening, Engaging and Winning with John True

Aug 17, 2025

Join John True, General Partner at Cultivation Capital, as he dives into the transformative power of emotional intelligence (EQ) in sales leadership. He stresses that understanding personal and professional wins is fundamental to influence. Active listening, note-taking, and reading the room are highlighted as essential skills that set elite salespeople apart. John also discusses how group interviews can unveil a candidate's EQ and the importance of being fully present to enhance communication and leadership effectiveness.

Ask episode

AI Snips

Chapters

Transcript

Episode notes

INSIGHT

EQ Is Core To Sales Leadership

Emotional intelligence (EQ) is a core characteristic for great sales leaders and enterprise sellers.
Understanding others' personal and professional wins matters as much as the deal itself.

ANECDOTE

Annoyance At Laptop-Only Note Takers

John True describes being annoyed when people rely solely on laptops and fail to take visible notes in meetings.
He contrasts that with his habit of handwriting notes and bringing them back into conversations.

ADVICE

Take Notes To Show Active Listening

Practice active listening by taking notes and reusing insights later in the conversation.
Show engagement through written notes to demonstrate presence and follow-up capability.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Get the app

In this short segment of the Revenue Builders Podcast, we revisit the discussion with John True, General Partner at Cultivation Capital, to explore the critical role of emotional intelligence (EQ) in sales leadership. From reading the room to eliminating partial listening, John shares insights on why understanding personal and professional wins is as important as the deal itself. He reveals why active listening is a lost art, how group interviews can reveal a candidate’s EQ, and why being fully present is the foundation for leadership and influence.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

[00:00:47] EQ is not optional—it's a core characteristic of great sales leaders.
[00:01:16] Understanding personal and professional wins is essential to influence without dictating
[00:03:11] Active listening, note-taking, and reading the room set elite salespeople apart
[00:04:00] Asking "How do you know?" reveals deeper self-awareness in interviews
[00:05:12] Group interviews can uncover a seller’s ability to assess multiple stakeholders
[00:06:21] Reading the political landscape in the room helps tailor your message effectively
[00:07:24] Distractions kill EQ—presence is the foundation of emotional intelligence.

QUOTES

[00:01:00] "A big part of every interaction as a leader is understanding personal and professional wins as much as what you’re up to."
[00:03:11] "Active listening is about showing you’re engaged—taking notes, bringing insights back into the conversation.
[00:04:00] "How are you doing? How do you think you’re doing? And most importantly—how do you know?"
[00:07:24] "To have EQ, you first have to be here—in the moment, with no distractions."

Listen to the full conversation through the link below.
https://revenue-builders.simplecast.com/episodes/the-role-of-emotional-intelligence-and-authentic-leadership-in-b2b-sales-with-john-true

Enjoying the podcast? Sign up to receive new episodes straight to your inbox:
https://hubs.li/Q02R10xN0

Check out John McMahon’s book here:
Amazon Link: https://a.co/d/1K7DDC4

Check out Force Management’s Ascender platform here:
https://my.ascender.co/Ascender/

Hosted by five-time CRO John McMahon and Force Management Co-Founder John Kaplan, the Revenue Builders podcast goes behind the scenes with the sales leaders who have been there, done that, and seen the results.

This show is brought to you by Force Management. We help companies improve sales performance, executing their growth strategy at the point of sale.

Connect with Us: