One Business Coach, Two Teams
David Stern
When two audiences need your attention, it’s time to retool to help both out.
If you know anything about my story, it is rooted in sales. From the time I was a young kid, I loved the challenge of making money on my own by selling. I made a successful 40-year (and counting) career out of it.
Along the way, however, I realized that it wasn’t just about sales skills. It was about how I could present myself as the commodity. To do that with any success, I had to look within myself - not in a book - in order to develop myself personally. When I found new strength in that, it also became my passion — to teach others what I had learned in order to not just sustain my business, but to achieve beyond what I thought possible.
So, as I’ve been speaking to groups I encountered two types of people: those who wanted help with their sales careers (something I know well), and those who aren’t in sales necessarily, but who want to become better at their jobs, whatever that job may be. I literally had two slightly different audiences with which my message was making an impact, and it was time to make distinctions in my business coaching programs as well.
Enter the Sales Gym
I am developing a program for my sales clients called the Sales Gym Workout, which is designed to develop their skills as people who aspire to sell things. I focus here on personal development, time management, goal setting, self awareness and presenting yourself as an authentic person. (It’s really what I mean when I ask, “Are You For Real?”)
With my sales clients, I must stress that my job is not to teach people how to sell things. What I do is help them become better sales people. Communicating with clients in the sales process from prospecting to closing isn’t something that you can learn from a book. In a sales relationship in particular, where someone is a buyer and someone is a seller, communication can make the difference between a great paycheck and none at all.
Further Development in Personal Development
It didn’t take me long to realize that my coaching wasn’t just about sales. Personal development is the key for anyone to be successful in their business and in their life. So, it’s my focus to nurture the “Are You for Real?” brand as a personal development program — for anyone. If you’ve perused my blogs, you see topics that resonate: decision making, diplomacy, honesty and self-awareness — all of these are part of the “Are You For Real?” program and really target anyone looking to improve themselves.
We are extremely busy people. We barely take time to think about what we’re doing past today, and I stress the importance's of taking a breath to take a good long look inward first before you take any steps to improve. If you don’t know what’s really making you tick, you can’t create a strategy to overcome weaknesses or amplify your strengths. I generally start with a personality assessment and schedule time to really discuss what it has to say about you. Of course it’s not a be-all and end-all solution, but it does give us a starting point to talk about what you feel are areas you’d like to improve in, what areas the assessment may have surprised you in, and what strengths you recognize as being yours.
I’m excited at the opportunity to expand my reach beyond sales people with “Are You For Real?” personal development coaching. It addresses a need I’ve seen grow as I speak to various companies and their employees, and as a result I hope to help more people with the wisdom I’ve gained over the decades.
That said, I won’t lose focus on how I can help my sales clients. Sales people are a unique group, and I admire their decision to put in the hard work every day to meet customers and their own sales goals. It’s not an easy profession, and it takes discipline, focus, and maybe just a little courage.
And now my question for you is not necessarily “Are You for Real?” but rather “How can I help you?
When two audiences need your attention, it’s time to retool to help both out.
If you know anything about my story, it is rooted in sales. From the time I was a young kid, I loved the challenge of making money on my own by selling. I made a successful 40-year (and counting) career out of it.
Along the way, however, I realized that it wasn’t just about sales skills. It was about how I could present myself as the commodity. To do that with any success, I had to look within myself - not in a book - in order to develop myself personally. When I found new strength in that, it also became my passion — to teach others what I had learned in order to not just sustain my business, but to achieve beyond what I thought possible.
So, as I’ve been speaking to groups I encountered two types of people: those who wanted help with their sales careers (something I know well), and those who aren’t in sales necessarily, but who want to become better at their jobs, whatever that job may be. I literally had two slightly different audiences with which my message was making an impact, and it was time to make distinctions in my business coaching programs as well.
Enter the Sales Gym
I am developing a program for my sales clients called the Sales Gym Workout, which is designed to develop their skills as people who aspire to sell things. I focus here on personal development, time management, goal setting, self awareness and presenting yourself as an authentic person. (It’s really what I mean when I ask, “Are You For Real?”)
With my sales clients, I must stress that my job is not to teach people how to sell things. What I do is help them become better sales people. Communicating with clients in the sales process from prospecting to closing isn’t something that you can learn from a book. In a sales relationship in particular, where someone is a buyer and someone is a seller, communication can make the difference between a great paycheck and none at all.
Further Development in Personal Development
It didn’t take me long to realize that my coaching wasn’t just about sales. Personal development is the key for anyone to be successful in their business and in their life. So, it’s my focus to nurture the “Are You for Real?” brand as a personal development program — for anyone. If you’ve perused my blogs, you see topics that resonate: decision making, diplomacy, honesty and self-awareness — all of these are part of the “Are You For Real?” program and really target anyone looking to improve themselves.
We are extremely busy people. We barely take time to think about what we’re doing past today, and I stress the importance's of taking a breath to take a good long look inward first before you take any steps to improve. If you don’t know what’s really making you tick, you can’t create a strategy to overcome weaknesses or amplify your strengths. I generally start with a personality assessment and schedule time to really discuss what it has to say about you. Of course it’s not a be-all and end-all solution, but it does give us a starting point to talk about what you feel are areas you’d like to improve in, what areas the assessment may have surprised you in, and what strengths you recognize as being yours.
I’m excited at the opportunity to expand my reach beyond sales people with “Are You For Real?” personal development coaching. It addresses a need I’ve seen grow as I speak to various companies and their employees, and as a result I hope to help more people with the wisdom I’ve gained over the decades.
That said, I won’t lose focus on how I can help my sales clients. Sales people are a unique group, and I admire their decision to put in the hard work every day to meet customers and their own sales goals. It’s not an easy profession, and it takes discipline, focus, and maybe just a little courage.
And now my question for you is not necessarily “Are You for Real?” but rather “How can I help you?