Nov '21 Selling.2.YES

November 2021

If we could only learn like Keishia teaches.

Keishia Thorpe, Teacher Extraordinaire

It was announced last week that Keishia Thorpe, a teacher of 12th grade English in Maryland, was awarded the $1 million Global Teacher Prize by UNESCO. Whoa….HER Thanksgiving just got a lot better, eh?

But wait, Keishia refuses to make this about her. After the award was announced, Keishia said she will use the money to “…help more students worldwide access higher education.”
(Again…whoa.) She said it was because “my students are the reason I’m here…who am I without my students?”

(Throat clearing.) One moment, please.....! Thanks.

My first thought was, oh MAN do I wish I had Keishia as a teacher.

Taking a page out of Keishia’s book means you’ll take part of the commission check coming your way in the next month or so and …and invest it in your continued education??? Yes.  That’s exactly what you’ll do. (Or should do.) You can still put a down payment on that new Tesla or a new house…but you need to keep investing in yourself too.

The two barriers keeping you, the B2B revenue warrior, stunted on your continued education path are very obvious:

Confidence: you’ve kinda got it going on, right?! I mean, look at you…you’re doing well, and each year it keeps getting a little bit better. And besides, it appears there’s always gonna be someone coming along willing to pay you more...eh?
Discipline and time: all of your energy goes into your work…where are you gonna find the time to learn?

To a degree, both of these reasons are valid. (...to a degree....)

BUT…

Tis the season for gratitude, so why not give a healthy dose of thanks to YOURSELF for what you’ve achieved so far. But you can go further, right? And that would mean even more to be thankful for!"

…deep down you know you have to feed your brain because this “classroom” of ours is unbelievably demanding, and not getting easier. It’s a rigorous, turbulent arena where B2B “revenue warriors” toil and pound against constant headwinds (and each other).

In a few weeks the "Q4 Manic Dash" will be over and we'll start easing the engines a bit, but that just means it's the best time to plan a continued education strategy for next year. And because we both know it's gonna take some personal discipline to get to activation, we need to start talking about it now. Here are my tips on how you can invest in your personal learning plan:

Read a book. ANY business book. (Do you really need to watch Netflix every night?) Here’s a good list of books that come with my seal of approval. They either have to do with selling, sales management, or entrepreneurism. But of course, pick any business book you feel will expand your brain and tool kit.
Find a podcast that scratches your itch. Okay yeah, the podcast arena often looks like one big junkyard, but if you look hard enough, you’ll find some gems. I have been listening lately to Guy Raz from NPR’s “How I Built This”.
Take a master class. Chris Voss offers a good one on negotiating, even though I'll put MY negotiations workshop up against him any day for the simple reason that I'm talking your language.
Watch a YouTube video. No, not of your favorite band for the umpteenth time...of something educational and skill building!
Subscribe to newsletters. The one you're reading ain't bad, if I do say so. But I'm not the only voice you should be absorbing!
Go to conferences…get out and mingle a bit. It's safe again. (Just don't lick any doorknobs.)
Find a mentor who knows more than you and WORK IT….truly invest in that relationship and come to the table frequently with questions and curiosity.
Start a club of your peers and meet every month to talk about experiences and specific self-assigned topics.

I’m laughing as I type these words because I’m doubtful I’ve impressed you with any of these. Let’s face it, you’ve heard ‘em before. You’re thinking…. “maybe #7 is something I’ll do…sounds simple enough and it will involve either coffee or beers.” (Greeeaat..!) But overall, you’re still on the couch and you haven’t even considered hitting the link on the book list.

For my final act - and I think Keishia Thorpe would be proud - I encourage you to open the “Notes” app on your phone and voice record ONE THING you learned today against three categories: a SKILL, your COMPANY, and your INDUSTRY. G’ahead….go set your calendar reminder for each night during the week. Date your entry and record ONE THING you learned in each of those categories. Push yourself to do it ...who knows, you may start with a few nights per week and it'll grow. And as it does, watch that small little two-minute task ignite your discipline and expand your learning! I know you still got it...after all, it got you here, right!

Tis the season for giving thanks, so why not start giving thanks to YOURSELF for what you’ve achieved so far. But let's go further. You CAN go further, right? That would mean you have more thanks to give! Cool.

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Selling.2.YES is the monthly newsletter published by Core 6 Management Advisors to enlighten, motivate and stimulate all of us sellers and sales managers on topics that need our attention.

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Selling.2.YES

November 2021

If we could only learn like Keishia teaches.

Selling.2.YES newsletter

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