How are you responding to 2020’s twists and turns?

A key message currently coming through from my coaching clients is that a significant amount of fear is influencing people’s current behaviour as a reaction to current challenging world events.

But what is fear and how can we stop it from controlling us?

Start by reframing your perspective on fear

Fear is what we make of it and it doesn’t have to stop us in our tracks if we don’t let it. Former Wales football Manager, Chris Coleman, summed up how to deal with fear nicely:

“What is fear? Fear to me is put into people from outside influences and you spend so much time concentrating on what you don’t want to happen, rather than on exactly what you want to - believe in it and go and do it. If mistakes come they come. The message to our players has been no fear, express yourselves, enjoy it…”

That got me thinking about a well-known truism: ‘people who react to the world are rarely in control of their careers, yet those who respond and adapt - create opportunities.’

So are you reacting or responding to 2020?

Reacting? Here’s how to overcome fear and thrive:

• Expand your existing comfort zone step by step - that’s where progress happens. The process of developing greater self-confidence is achieved only when you actually do rather than think about doing. When you experience something new, irrespective of whether you succeed or fail, you will grow from the experience.

The opportunity to learn from the experience will allow you to realise that you have achieved more than you previously thought. As children this is how we learnt to walk – lots of unsuccessful attempts first. It’s also how we continue to learn throughout life.

• Remind yourself of your career successes to date. Review your successful business contributions and write them down in a journal. This is effective for a number of reasons; firstly, it charts your progress and makes you feel good and secondly you are reminding yourself of how successful you have been.

It provides a permanent anchor and reference point to refer back to when new challenges occur.

• Identify feelings of confidence you have previously experienced and bring those feelings back to assist you in a challenging situation. Ask yourself what you saw when you felt confident, what did you hear, and what did you say to yourself?

So that when you are lacking confidence, you can remind yourself of (and visualise) the experiences you felt at a time when you were confident.

When you begin to feel your confidence returning - and it will - keep using these tools and you’ll begin to find yourself thriving again - no matter what your post pandemic world looks like.

Do you need help to define your post pandemic strategy and to grow into an even more successful career? Email me at [email protected] to discuss how I can help get you there.

Without succumbing to the ugly side of office politics you can effectively enhance your own personal brand. Failure to improve our political skills risks damaging your career. So, it’s time to tweak your mindset.

Here’s how:

1. Realise that managing upwards is very, very important. So, ask yourself what you can do to make your line manager’s career easier and to help bolster their image.

2. Understand your line manager’s priorities, expectations, beliefs, and attitudes - agreeing those is vital.

3. Try to identify the most pressing problems that your line manager has for the future so that you can look to solve those problems using your knowledge, expertise, and network of resources.

4. Why not make your line manager look like a star? Whilst praise is great, you do not actually need to take the credit on everything.

5. Your line manager’s success can be used as a multiplier, it’s good for you, your line manager and your line manager’s line manager.

To avoid being outflanked or with your visibility reduced now is a good time to stop, reset and ask yourself, in terms of managing upwards:

• What should my next 90 days plan look like?

• What should my next 180 days plan look like?

Manage the Politics first

Next, create a 90-day plan that identifies which actions are, and aren’t, important. Using the following steps:

1. Manage the politics

2. Manage the cultural fit

3. Manage the role

I suggest this order because I see many people in enterprise sales who are looking to excel in their role and fit into the culture but who really don’t like the politics. They will spend 80% of their time doing their role, 20% focusing on the culture and very little on the politics. These people will often then feel dissatisfied in their role even though, on the face of it, everything is going well.

By being politically savvy first, you strengthen your own position and tend to improve your own job satisfaction too.

Ask yourself the following 5 simple questions about your state of mind (rather than your inherent skills - in Enterprise Sales Club, we believe that all complex cognitive skills are learnable):

1. Where am I right now?

2. Where do I need to be?

3. Where is my line manager right now?

4. Where does my line manager need to be?

5. What is the best way to close the gap?

Once you’ve got your answers, it’s time to start communicating effectively and as politically as necessary.

Clear communication is key

As we continue to emerge from lockdown, it is important to take care to be more diligent in our communications, in particular, with line managers.

There are three ways that we communicate:

1. Passively - where your interests are not considered;

2. Aggressively - where only your interests are considered; or

3. Assertively - where both parties matter

When it comes to your line manager, you need to be communicating assertively. Rehearse some of the conversations that you might need to have with them and your line manager’s line manager.

Managing the politics whilst working from home is something that we can really easily forget about, but it is still important to do so in order to avoid The Bad & The Ugly. These are learnable skills.

That’s where Enterprise Sales Club will help you. It launches very soon with the goals of:

1. Providing a hub of career development know how for the enterprise sales industry

2. Empower you to manage your enterprise sales career most effectively over the next 10 years.

If you would like to know more about Enterprise Sales Club or to discuss how I can help you to effectively manage the office politics, contact me at [email protected]

We’ve all got used to working from home and it can be tempting to forget that office politics have ceased to exist, and breathe a sigh of relief. In fact, they’re still rampant and, in many ways, we need to be even more aware of the politics AND more visible.

Here’s why

Office Politics are, without doubt, a challenge for most Enterprise Sales professionals. The industry’s high achievers want to be focusing their time on customer engagement and closing deals and not on managing internal politics. And, who can blame them you might say.

The truth is that they are a fact of corporate life (wfh or otherwise) and, if you take your eye off the political ball, you can easily get outflanked by those who are more eager to engage in politicising. This is the case now more than ever.

I have worked with a lot of elite enterprise sales overachievers and never met one who told me that they love the company politics. There’s a reason for that - the dirty side of office politics is not part of our makeup.

The dirty side of office politics

We all know that phrase, ‘It’s not what you know, it’s who you know’ and in the current work from home climate, I’m seeing many examples of enterprise sales professionals who have lost out to this side of office politics. I have seen certain high profile accounts being allocated to the person who holds political sway with particular line managers and not, necessarily, to the person who has the ability to deliver.

Remember the film The Good, The Bad & The Ugly?

It applies to office politics like this:

The Good - when visibility enhances your personal brand.

The Bad - you’re outflanked to a promotion, a major account or don’t get the credit for landing a major account.

The Ugly - a nasty exit that both potentially damages your career and is mentally destabilising.

My office politics light bulb moment

Like most of us, I used to find office politics a complete drain. That was until a conversation with a much respected senior leader changed my perspective.

He commented that politics was inevitable within the organisation and noted how well I managed the politics with my customers. I knew how to navigate large, multinational organisations and FTSE 100 business and did so very well for my customers. With that being the case, why wasn’t I managing office politics more effectively within the organisation that I was actually working in?

It was my communication skills that enabled me to navigate so well for my customers, yet I found that type of communication challenging when I had to do it for myself. Communication in the workplace can be extremely challenging and, as George Bernard Shaw said

“The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place.”

Rethinking your approach to politicisation within your organisation is vital in the current climate if you want to avoid being outflanked.

If you would like to know more about Enterprise Sales Club or to discuss how I can help you to effectively manage the office politics, contact me at [email protected]

How would it affect you if you were dismissed?

Think about it!

Whilst some Enterprise Sales Employers have learned to deliver this news sensitively, many haven’t. In fact, sometimes the way that employers communicate to employees that they are no longer required is, quite frankly, brutal - I’ve seen it happen.

The favoured technique of one CEO was to take an employee (longstanding or otherwise), without warning, into a room and fire them. Naturally, playing on the element of surprise and the bully tactic - fear - he would offer a package to the employee to leave immediately. If they walked out of the room without signing away their employment rights the amount would be halved.

Why?

Because that is just business...isn’t it?!

We all know that the world is rapidly changing with increasing business pressures leading to inevitable reorganisation, but dismissal doesn’t have to go that way. A bit of human respect can go a long way.

Imagine the impact of dismissal happening to you…

I once took a call from a sales director who had overachieved on challenging sales figures for the year but was nevertheless let go - because the board had lost confidence in him.

I took his phone call the morning after he had found out he was fired. He was devastated. So upset he could not speak and had to end the call after 3 attempts. He thought he would never get another job in the enterprise sales industry and that he was worthless.

You can take control of your own exit pathway

I share these examples not to be alarmist but to suggest that there is an alternative route. It is possible to be in control of when you choose to leave an organisation and for you to decide the impact it will have on your life.

Recognising the warning signs of being managed out:

During a coaching session with a high performing individual alarm bells began to ring. As my client fedback I recognized a number of early warning signs of likely dismissal. He was completely unaware of them.

In particular, it was clear to me that his line manager had been putting him under unnecessary pressure. Why? Well, the unspoken truth was his line manager wanted the head count back and to allocate resource in a different direction.

I could see that within 6 weeks he would be fired – not a great situation when you are on a month’s notice.

So, I suggested to him that we craft an exit from his current employment on his terms.

I recommended:

1. We approach the organisation and request a 6 month settlement payment in exchange for leaving the company.

2. The value of this strategy was that his line manager would also benefit from not having to take up valuable time going through the anxious performance process.

We crafted a WIN/WIN exit for my client

• The company agreed to 4 months’ pay out and an effective handover was initiated.

• My client left the business on his terms with security,

• The employer got their head count back.

• Both parties avoided the dreaded performance improvement process and any unnecessary legal costs.

That’s great Adrian, but how does this apply to me?

In uncertain economic times, taking control of your Enterprise Sales Career puts you in the driving seat of your career destiny - no employer predicting crystal ball required. No sleepless nights worrying about where the axe of dismissal will fall next.

Try this short exercise for regaining control and establishing if it’s time to move on on your terms:

1. Identify what is most important to you in a role...

Ready to take the next step in fulfilling your potential, on your terms? Email me at [email protected] to discuss how I can help get you there.

The daily news is dominated by stories of global economic uncertainty amidst the Covid-19 fall out, political instability in the US, and high-profile company insolvencies. Hot on the heels of those stories, are the implications that salary and career opportunities are going to be limited. If that really is the case for the enterprise sales sector, how depressing a prospect.

...or is it?

Ask yourself:

● Can you directly influence political change?

● Can you directly influence economic factors?

● Are you exasperated by the ‘internal’ politics?

● Are you frustrated by not earning appropriate reward for the value you add?

I think most of us know the answer to these questions.

That is not to say that challenges don’t exist, for many of us, they do. But, thriving in the current economic climate turns on the perspective that we choose to take. We can only control the controllable in our careers and we all own the choice of whom we work for.

What if you believe that your employer owns your career destiny?

Challenge yourself to re-think that perspective.

Professor Terry Orlick, a leader in the study of human potential – states:

“...belief is the mother of reality. If you really believe that you have the capacity to do something at a very high level, and you are willing to pour your heart and soul…there is a very good chance you will get there.”

It does not serve any of us to only take one view. In that fixed mindset, we become limited. Many enterprise sales industry experts believe that others dictate our own brand and we must accept this as somehow inevitable, but that’s not the full picture.

I see things differently…

I believe that, over the next decade my clients’ enterprise sales career choices and personal brands will grow significantly, and I help them achieve those results every day. Here’s how during the last month:

● I have worked with a high performing Enterprise individual contributor to be promoted to Sales Director.

● Coached a client on prospecting and Enterprise deal review and they have achieved 120% of half year target.

● Ensured a senior professional left company on their terms, made a career pivot and now earning 40% more than previously at a more enjoyable culture.

Ready to take control of your career in 2020?

Challenge yourself to answer the following five questions:

1. What would represent a successful year for you? (A promotion, enjoyable career, more reward…)

2. Who is the person most able to accelerate your career this year? (Current line manager, previous colleague, a customer… )

3. What one skill when focussed on will have most impact this year? (Building your resilience, adaption, negotiation…)

4. How can you prepare most effectively for the challenges of this year? Growing your self-belief, commitment to improve your influence, change your mindset…

5. How will you make yourself more valuable this year? Understanding your customers deeper needs, identify more profitable customers, be more resourceful… Taking control of your career is about more than just salary and earning, it’s about fine tuning your mindset and being in control of your brand, for your family and your future.

Ready to take the next step in adapting to make the most of your 2020? Email me at [email protected] to discuss how I can help get you there.

Is there a way to reduce the risk of a career move in today’s uncertain world?

It is natural human response to be apprehensive of the unknown – we all prefer stability and certainty. The key is not to mistake these fears as our only guide. If we do we can become boxed in and see no other options beyond our current environment.

This was a recent reflection by a client on how we had achieved a successful career move for him. He described the response of colleagues to his resignation and new career position.

“Since I resigned the most common thing that people tell me is that I was very brave. I had taken that ‘step in the dark’. I feel that people tend to stay in their current position, even if they hate their job because they are somehow scared and don’t have a strategy to change.”

He is now in a thriving company, with the autonomy to succeed, whilst enjoying greater earnings.

Reasons not to be afraid about looking for your next move:

Each and every month many professionals successfully make career transitions.

Post Covid-19 job hunting skills are learnable – like the skills you have acquired to date.

Using a step-by-step approach reduces a large task into manageable chunks.

Following a proven methodology de-risks the process.

In a rapidly changing economy, the biggest risk you can take is standing still...

To hear recent interview with Anant Patel click:

https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/241-interview-with-anant-patel/id1437393283?i=1000477406090

Love to know any of questions or thoughts [email protected]

Subscribe to the Enterprise Sales club channel - there are over 240 podcasts on how to manage every aspect of your career...how to build key skills such as Enterprise selling, gaining executive sponsorship and negotiation.

You are always looking to connect people, I am really interested such this giving approach come from your Dad, who I once heard you describe as having a heart size of the moon?

This is Anant's favourite question in the world because talking about family and Dad.

Most inspiration man ever in Anant life.

Extrovert – loved entertaining.

“If you do the right thing with people, you can sleep well at night.”

Despite a stressful job – he came home every night.

Gave Anant his valueset.

Nothing will ever repay how much trusted he has invested in Anant.

Mum was the rock.

For what purpose?

Like me - my Mum gave me belief my Dad gave me my valueset.

What do you wish you knew early on in your career, that you know today?

Being yourself is the most important thing you can be.

Got to choose a leader not a company.

Some did not go so well, start up, Anant more suited to a stable company with history behind it.

Everything is a learning experience no failure.

Humility on a journey, stay curious keep learning – ask dumb questions.

Passionate about people, values, and culture.

How can you:

Be comfortable expressing your values?

Be yourself at work?

Keep learning and evolving?

To hear full interview click:

https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/241-interview-with-anant-patel/id1437393283?i=1000477406090

Love to know any of questions or thoughts [email protected]

Subscribe to the Enterprise Sales club channel - there are over 240 podcasts on how to manage every aspect of your career...how to build key skills such as Enterprise selling, gaining executive sponsorship and negotiation.

As a commercial VP and MD, ‘you always seem to know the right people’? how do you navigate a complex organisation,

Anant very curious.

Anant love giving, gets more value from that, huge prize.

Help anyone - Van to move a box, gardening.

2nd week working for Jay Dearborn, 40+ people.

Care and listen – gets to know people their families, if have dogs.

All around relationships. Show up authentically.

You once told her story of introducing Brian Cole (Barclaycard) and Carlos Menendez (Mastercard) two seeming rivals, obviously lunch was involved you made intros and left – what gave the confidence this would work?

Brian Cole was customer at Capital one, CFO to then CEO Europe, Anant helped him grow. He was not afraid to take a chance in external party. Know his family wife Dana.

Carlos Menendez peer of Carol Cosby. Jokey humour like mine.

Their personal value set – help as any people as possible, no arrogance in either.

Anant exit stage left after food.

Brian and Carolos did great business together.

Imagination built on depth of relationship with Brian and Carlos.

Trusted space.

How are you:

Give more - even if it only more strategically?

Give people a good listening to?

Connect two seemingly different people and allow a partnership to flourish?

To hear full interview click:

https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/241-interview-with-anant-patel/id1437393283?i=1000477406090

Love to know any of questions or thoughts [email protected]

Subscribe to the Enterprise Sales club channel - there are over 240 podcasts on how to manage every aspect of your career...how to build key skills such as Enterprise selling, gaining executive sponsorship and negotiation.

One of the most accomplished people I have seen, first-hand, at senior level engagement is Anant Patel.

Family first, lovely wife and two beautiful kids.

1. Can you tell us a bit about your career and some of the choices you have made?

Capital One – feedback focussed culture, learning and development culture, one team.

Mastercard – face to face culture, relationship led.

‘Leaving for a leader’.

Based on network and friendship.

Mastercard truly global organization. Diverse background of people.

People focussed.

Anant very curious.

Carol Cosby – do anything for anyone – earned followship.

Family not just blood.

All possible over food and drink.

2. I know you are very committed approach to leadership which is best summed up as ‘One team’ and your mantra ‘behaviours drive culture culture drives results’ - can you tell us more?

Anant very curious.

Dad bank manager for Bank of India.

Host orientated – we are feeders.

Brother and I sat together – what an education.

One team – behaviour drives culture culture drive results.

If we all together achieve more will be happier.

Psychologically safe workplace, natural in their own skin. Anant will thank team for the risk.

How can you:

Actively seek feedback?

Build stronger partnerships?

Make your interactions psychologically safe?

To hear full interview click:

https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/241-interview-with-anant-patel/id1437393283?i=1000477406090

Love to know any thoughts or questions [email protected]

Subscribe to the Enterprise Sales club channel - there are over 240 podcasts on how to manage every aspect of your career...how to build key skills such as Enterprise selling, gaining executive sponsorship and negotiation.

Very excited to be interviewing Anant Patel, one of my longest standing coaching clients and one of my favourite people.

Greatest challenges I have observed from sales achievers is – How to have relevant dialogue with key decision makers, gain their trust and ultimately win.

We know the pain caused by not having senior level buy-in.

One of the most accomplished people I have seen, first-hand, is Anant Patel.

Anant is an over-achieving commercial VP and MD, with 20 years FINTECH industry experience. He is typically brought into an organisation to accelerate a hockey stick of revenue growth - this is always achieved by creating high performance and fun people culture.

He is not only one the most commercially minded professional I know he also has the 'uncanny knack' of connecting seemingly competitive people and enabling them to align. He is a stellar relationship builder and thoroughly decent human being.

A declaration from me Anant - is a long-standing client and close friend of mine.

Thank you, Anant, for taking time out, can we start with:

1. Can you tell us a bit about your career and some of the choices you have made?

2. I know you are very committed approach to leadership which is best summed up as ‘One team’ and your mantra ‘behaviours drive culture culture drives results’ - can you tell us more?

3. As a commercial VP and MD, ‘you always seem to know the right people’? how do you navigate a complex organisation,

4. You once told her story of introducing Brian Coles (Barclaycard) and Carlos Menendez (Mastercard) two seeming rivals, obviously lunch was involved you made intros and left – what gave the confidence this would work?

5. You are always looking to connect people, I am really interested such this giving approach come from your dad, who I once heard you describe as having a heart size of the moon?

6. What do you wish you knew early on in your career, that you know today?

Love to know any questions, insights or useful takeaways you have from this interview [email protected]