He’s a successful account executive at Asana today, but Brandon Clauser got his start in life working in a dish pit in a restaurant. While he started with no money and no college degree, Brandon eventually worked his way up and landed an executive-level sales job at Salesforce and later Asana. Today, he helps other people develop the skills and mindset they need to break into the tech sales field, even without a college degree. In today’s episode, Brandon talks about how growing up in a family focused on work ethic, business acumen, and financial literacy gave him all the tools he needed for a successful career. He also shares his thoughts about the value of a college degree in tech sales and beyond.Follow Brandon on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandonclauser/Follow Sell Better to get the latest actionable tactics from sales pros at the top of their game:https://hubs.ly/Q01tLYNJ0Become a member and never miss quota again:https://hubs.ly/Q01tLYRV0

How do you gain a new perspective on life? For sales coach Ian Koniak it took a brush with death, making peace with his family, and getting sober. He discovered “a calling of helping” and today he encourages a life of integrity, where “your actions and your behaviors match your thoughts.” In pursuing sales or other goals he urges patience and faith, which he equates with “the ability to see success, even if you don't experience it” immediately. He also advises people to listen for “shoulds” in their self-talk because they indicate “you're not living a life that you truly want to live.” … John and Ian warn that our 24/7 world leaves too many of us “short-term focused,” allowing immediate gratification to get in the way of what's important.Connect with Ian on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iankoniak/Coach with Ian: https://untapyoursalespotential.comYouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/iankoniakNewsletter: https://untapyoursalespotential.com/newsletterFollow Sell Better to get the latest actionable tactics from sales pros at the top of their game:https://hubs.ly/Q01tLYNJ0Become a member and never miss quota again:https://hubs.ly/Q01tLYRV0

Paul Magnone, an engineer who heads global strategic alliances for Google, just co-wrote a book about hunches. In “Decisions Over Decimals” he advises readers to use both gut and numbers because, he argues, good decisions require “understanding the data, but also listening to your intuition.” He says engineers typically “go to the numbers,” and “high flyers … will go to gut instinct.” To improve the process, Paul encourages following your instincts but only after creating a decision framework that pulls information from across an organization, including from “everybody who touches customers,” to define the problem you’re trying to solve. … Hear John and Paul discuss that people who “understand the DNA of their business” are better prepared to profit in the face of unexpected events like the pandemic.Connect with Paul on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/paulmagnone/Visit Paul's website https://www.dodthebook.com/Find his new book on Amazon:https://www.amazon.com/Decisions-Over-Decimals-Intuition-Information/dp/111989848XFollow Sell Better to get the latest actionable tactics from sales pros at the top of their game:https://hubs.ly/Q01tLYNJ0Become a member and never miss quota again:https://hubs.ly/Q01tLYRV0

From an idyllic early childhood to enduring “unbelievable racism” as a teenager, sales and LinkedIn coach Niraj Kapur learned to adapt. After facing mental health challenges and “a horrendous divorce,” Niraj was ready to rebound — then the pandemic hit and his income went to zero. He threw himself into his consulting business, Everybody Works In Sales, and devised ways to make sales connections on LinkedIn. Today he is sought after as a speaker and sales coach who offers as his No. 1 piece of advice: Better understand the sales process and “engage with customers who are not doing business with you.” … After John laments that too many entrepreneurs and sales executives “take money from anybody to keep the lights on,” Niraj replies that he says “no to anybody” who isn’t a good fit.Connect with Niraj on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/nkapur/Twitter @nirajwriterInstagram nirajkapurFollow Sell Better to get the latest actionable tactics from sales pros at the top of their game:https://hubs.ly/Q01tLYNJ0Become a member and never miss quota again:https://hubs.ly/Q01tLYRV0

Daphne E. Jones is no stranger to adversity. As a young black woman interested in a STEM career, a career counselor once told her that she should be a secretary. Instead of blindly following this so-called “professional” advice, Daphne developed a plan to change the impossible to the inevitable. Since then, she’s held numerous executive and leadership positions with companies like IBM, Johnson & Johnson, and General Electric. Her tactical and structured approach to career ownership includes a realistic framework for envisioning, designing, iterating, and transforming your life. In this episode, Daphne opens up about her new book, Win When They Say You Won’t: Break Through Barriers and Keep Leveling Up Your Success, and offers valuable advice for overcoming the adversity in your life. Connect with Daphne E. Jones on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/daphne-e-jones/Get her new book hereOr Visit www.daphneejones.com/book Follow Sell Better to get the latest actionable tactics from sales pros at the top of their game:https://hubs.ly/Q01tLYNJ0Become a member and never miss quota again:https://hubs.ly/Q01tLYRV0

Growing up in Israel, Udi Ledergor studied magic, music, and puppeteering. He uses showbiz skills today, not on a stage but in business conference rooms as chief marketing officer for Gong, one of the hottest and fastest growing tech companies in the world right now. “I see B2B marketing as a way of performing to an audience and creating a show, creating truth and experience,” he says. As the 13th employee hired at Gong — which today has a headcount above 1,500 — Udi says scaling the company while fostering its inclusive “Gongster” culture requires tact and candor: Be “respectful to everyone in the room, but calling things out as they are, so we can fix them and move forward.” … Also hear John and Udi discuss the challenges of providing direct feedback to associates of different ages and backgrounds.Connect with Udi on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/udiledergor/Or visit https://www.gong.io/Follow Sell Better to get the latest actionable tactics from sales pros at the top of their game:https://hubs.ly/Q01tLYNJ0Become a member and never miss quota again:https://hubs.ly/Q01tLYRV0

From working his way up the ladder at Oracle to becoming a top executive at customer experience management platform Sprinklr, Mark Siciliano has invested in people. He reveals what he’s learned in the last quarter-century about sales, sales enablement, and what it takes to make an impact on people’s lives — both customers and colleagues. Treating others as they want to be treated “seems old school,” Mark says, “but technology has shot so quickly ahead of us that we forget that those core things still count.” Hear John and Mark riff on a musical analogy about the future of sales, when everyone will know how to play more than one instrument.Connect with Mark on LinkedIn at:https://www.linkedin.com/in/marksiciliano1/

The booming psychedelic industry offers hope to those with psychological challenges as well as opportunities for workers and investors, according to two pioneers in the business. Jay Godfrey and Richard Meloff left investment banking to create Nushama, a network of psychedelic wellness centers. Jay says his first experience with supervised use of psychedelics “uncovered things that I couldn't uncover in three years of therapy.” Seeing people living in fear during the pandemic inspired creation of the company, which is part of a fast-growing segment of healthcare that treats PTSD, addiction, and mood disorders. … John encourages people suffering to consider psychedelics and offers a reminder to those facing stress in sales: "You're never as good as your best deal; you're never as worse as your worst deal."Connect with Jay on LinkedIn here:https://www.linkedin.com/in/jay-godfrey-090b602/And with Richard here:https://www.linkedin.com/in/rmeloff/Find out more about their Nushama psychedelic wellness centers here:https://nushama.com/

Sales, social media marketing, and entrepreneurship coach Stacey Hall says many of us are in need of an alignment. Her new book “Selling from Your Comfort Zone: The Power of Alignment Marketing” argues that knowing yourself is essential for success in business. “You get into alignment with yourself, you get into alignment with the company that is selling something you can get behind,” she tells John, “and you get into alignment with the audience. Because if you can get behind that product, so can your audience. If it's a match for their needs, they'll get behind it.” … Hear John and Stacey discuss how understanding your core values can lead to success at work and in life.Learn more about Stacey at her website:https://www.staceyannhall.com/home/And connect with her on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/staceyhall1/

Sales is one of the only professions in the world where we’re expected to take a training or read a book and immediately apply what we learned to a real-world scenario without much practice. Most athletes spend over 80% of their time practicing and less than 20% of the time playing the game.Jonathan Mahan and Jordana Zeldin of The Practice Lab discuss with John the difference between practice, role play and memorization and how to structure practice so it makes a real impact on sales rep’s development and results. They also dive into the mentality you need to have for practice to be meaningful and how to teach genuine curiosity which is the super power of great sales reps. an online sales training platform. Jordana says that instead of rote playing and itches, sales professionals should provide "impactful questioning" of prospects, demonstrating "they're authentically curious in the context of a real conversation." Or as Jonathan puts it: “You can't truly sell in an enlightened, effective, top-of-the-line way, if you don't give a shit about what you're selling.” … Hear John Barrows describe being in the audience for a keynote that derailed into “one of the most awkward things I think I've ever experienced” — and get tips on how to avoid a repeat.Connect with Jonathan on LinkedIn here:https://www.linkedin.com/in/jtmahan/And Jordana here:https://www.linkedin.com/in/jordanazeldin/The Practice Lab here:https://www.thepracticelab.co/ - applications for the q1 2023 cohort are now open.Wanna try this practice thing on for size? Join Jordana and Jonathan on the third Wednesday of every month for WHEEL OF OBJECTIONS, a fun and free practice-based training on a fresh approach to tackling your most common objections:http://lu.ma/tpl-wheel-of-objections