Posts by Will Turner

I’ve been lucky. With the work that I’ve done, I’ve traveled around the world working with sales teams and leaders so they can perform better, build stronger relationships and grow their sales. I’ve seen the good, the bad and the ugly. Mostly, I’ve seen people in organizations who wanted to improve but were unsure what exact steps were needed and how to create a lasting change in their organizations. And I’ve seen sales approaches that simply haven’t changed with the times. Unfortunately, to many folks even the word “sales” is still a dirty word. It’s not their faults though. What do you think of when someone says the words “sales” or salesperson? If “used car salesperson” came to mind, you are not alone. In the opening of my book, Six...

It’s a common rule of thumb in business. Are you using it to boost your success? The Pareto Principle, also known as the 80/20 rule, can help you prioritize your most important tasks. Named after Italian economist, Vilfredo Pareto, the principle recognizes that 20% of your activities give you 80% of the value. The challenge, then, is to focus on those high impact tasks. Simply ask yourself, “Am I doing the activities that give me the biggest return for my time and effort?”

Ever heard the saying, “A dog in the hunt don’t know he’s got fleas!” Let’s dissect what it means? To me, the obvious message is that if you’re so busy moving forward, if you’re so busy doing what you’re trained and ready to do; then the little things just don’t matter. Particularly the little annoying things. And it’s these annoying things that can be really distracting if you let them. So do you have fleas? Do you have some petty things that are bothering you that are taking your focus away from what needs to be done? Are these things taking you away from your purpose? Let’s dig down even deeper. A dog that’s not whole-heartedly in the hunt may get distracted by the fleas. He may stop on the sidelines and start scratching. But have...

Are you being productive or just busy at work?  Most of us want to have a great day, but how many times do you get to the end of the day and survival was your biggest accomplishment? Just to do it all again the next day. Here are three tips to have a productive day, at work and at home: Tip 1 – At the start of your day, ask yourself: What is the purpose of the day? In other words, what is the most important thing(s) that you need to accomplish to move the needle forward with something that will positively impact your future. Give that your undivided focus until you make the progress that you need. Sometimes that’s not “doing something,” sometimes that’s giving “critical thought to something.” Tip 2 – Get the most...

Matt, a loan originator from Farm Credit of the Virginias, recently shared the following with me: 2008  126.11% Finished higher than goal set by FCV 2009  215.78% Finished higher than goal set by FCV 2010  190.38% Finished higher than goal set by FCV 2011    95.64% Finished higher than goal set by FCV Since completing the Mastering Sales Magnetism Program and going through quarterly sales training for the past four years, Matt has exceeded his annual sales goal by 157% on average. It’s an even more impressive feat given the fact that each year his manager has increased Matt’s sales goals. So what makes Matt a loan superstar? According to Matt, “Since joining your Sales Magnetism class my production numbers have been off the charts!...