In this episode of ICommunicate, Robert Bush, Senior Director of Sales for Connection, a Fortune 1000 company, joins Mark to discuss how to recognize complacency in salespeople, options to motivate and re-energize them, and how to hold your sales team accountable.

Segment 1:

Too often, salespeople become satisfied when they hit or exceed their quotas, causing a complacent mindset. Why can this mindset be dangerous, and how can we overcome it? Is motivation something that is inherent, or can we teach it?

Segment 2:

As salespeople we don't always have full transparency about how our customers feel about us, our product and our company. What strategies can we use to find out how our customers truly feel about us? What example should we be setting to ensure a culture of honesty in the workplace? What does it mean to “build a bank of equity,” and how will doing so benefit leaders and their teams?

Segment 3:

Sometimes certain members of our team may be hitting quotas, but fail to meet other expectations. Allowing this behavior can lead to a toxic workplace environment, as other employees may develop a resignation mindset. How do we determine creative rewards and consequences to motivate employees to strive for goals beyond the bottom line? What does it mean to “manage fearfully” and is it harmful or helpful to our team?

Segment 4:

Motivating employees who are sales-driven can be difficult, especially when they don’t feel incentivized to improve in other aspects of their job. What can we offer to these employees to encourage them to adopt emotionally intelligent habits and behaviors? How can employees who fall under this category hinder the development of the rest of the team?

Can you distinguish your personal identity from your professional one? In this week’s episode of ICommunicate, Mark discusses the limitations that come as a result of having a resignation mindset as well as how to take control of the work-life balance issues that make your job feel toxic and overwhelming.

Segment 1:

For a lot of us, taking a 30-minute break every day is something that we can’t afford to do. How is it that shifting our mindset as well as reconsidering our priorities can lead to a healthier work-life balance? How can we reassess our schedule and set goals regarding how we manage our time?

Segment 2:

Think about how many times you’ve had a conversation with somebody new, and your career was a focal point of the discussion. At what point should we become concerned about our jobs determining our individuality? How much control do we have over our identity, and does it need to relate to our career?

Segment 3:

When we get out of the office, finish checking our emails, and go home, we can rest easy knowing that our work for the day is done… right? Why is it that our personal lives are so deeply linked to our careers? How can we gain the awareness to recognize when our work is taking over our personal lives to an unreasonable extent, and what can we do about it?

Segment 4:

If there was ever a time to reassess our identity and how it relates to our careers, it’s now. Have you taken the time to reflect on your identity, goals, and relationships, disconnected from work? How can we remind ourselves that our identity is not limited to our job, and discover that we have valuable qualities that would make us effective in other industries or hobbies?

In this week’s episode of ICommunicate, Mark dissects the phrase “Never Give Up.” He discusses why that advice is often flawed, when it can be great advice, and what needs to accompany that advice to help develop the core competencies of resilience and grit.

Segment 1:

What kind of message are we sending to people when we tell them not to give up, and how does it affect their confidence and productivity? What strategies can we turn to when we feel the urge to give up on a goal that we’ve set?

Segment 2:

As leaders, it’s our job to model engagement and tend to the morale of our team. How can we ensure that our team is motivated and self-driven? If our team fails to meet its goals, how can we adjust without hurting the confidence of our team?

Segment 3:

Sometimes we’re faced with situations in which there are plenty of red flags that warn us to give up on something before proceeding with it. What red flags should we be looking for before making a decision and how do we know whether we should back out or follow through? Segment 4:

When we get overwhelmed or stressed with our work, it becomes incredibly tempting to give up and walk away. When the going gets tough, what strategies can we use to pull ourselves back to reality and find the motivation to continue working? At what point, if any, should we give up on our goals and set new ones?

In this episode of ICommunicate, Mark discusses how to determine if meetings are necessary, what makes an impactful meeting, how to make meeting or email communication relevant, and how to capture the attention of your meeting participants.

Segment 1:

When a meeting is called, the question on everyone’s mind quickly becomes: Is this meeting really necessary, or is this something that can be accomplished through email? How can we make meetings more productive and collaborative, ensuring that the meeting was well worth the time? How can we provide engaging and insightful emails that our employees are sure to read?

Segment 2:

Far too often, we hold meetings for things that could have been resolved through an email. How do we determine when it’s worth holding a meeting versus just sending an email? What are some other ways we can share information with our team either leading up to a meeting or in place of one, allowing us to make the most of our time?

Segment 3:

When calling a meeting, does everybody on your team understand their role in the conversation? What should we be including in an email to our team prior to a meeting? How can we set up our team in advance so that they come to the meeting prepared to contribute?

Segment 4:

Believe it or not, optimizing your meeting time frees up you and your team so that you can make the most of each and every day. How is it that creating a game plan for meetings can lead to an abundance of extra time to do other work? With all of this newfound time, what should we be prioritizing?

In this week’s episode of ICommunicate, Mark discusses how to assess a leader’s level of emotional intelligence during an interview. He discusses what questions to ask to ensure that their core values aligned with the company, how they deal with change, how they respond to adversity, and what behavior they model.

Segment 1:

Before we can interview potential leaders about their value and emotional intelligence, we need to know what steps to take to ensure that our interviewee will be comfortable and transparent. How can we ensure that a candidate that we’re interviewing has a psychological safety net? How can workplace culture influence the outcome of an interview?

Segment 2:

Time is valuable -- and with only so much time to interview a candidate for a leadership position, we need to know what questions to ask to reveal the most we can about their level of emotional intelligence. How can we uncover their habits around dealing with setbacks or conflict?

Segment 3:

Leaders, it’s essential that we understand not only our strengths, but our weaknesses as well. How can a story about growth and self-awareness about your weaknesses prove a high capacity of emotional intelligence? What questions can we ask to gauge a leader’s core values around learning, growth, and relationships?

Segment 4:

At the end of the day, what we’re really looking for in a candidate is somebody whose core values line up with the culture of the workplace. Why is it important that our leaders value work-life balance? Why is it essential that we uncover what motivates a candidate and how it fits into their long-term development plan?

In this week’s episode of ICommunicate, Danielle Lariviere joins Mark to discuss how making incremental habit changes and setting boundaries drastically improves your productivity and the ability to effectively support your team

Segment 1:

We often understate the impact that a coach can have on our development as leaders. How can admitting our flaws lead to growth -- not only within ourselves, but with the team we manage as well? How can we make employees feel like their role in the business is meaningful?

Segment 2:

Day in and day out, we’re knee deep in emails, frantically responding and reacting, causing our priorities to constantly shift by the minute. How can we manage our time and attention to allow us to respond to these emails without losing track of our own priorities? How can self-awareness provide us with the ability to structure our day around what really matters?

Segment 3:

You’d be amazed at the difference a daily 30-minute break can make for your team. How can hitting the “reset” button on someone’s brain lead to more relaxed and productive work? How can we change the narrative on daily interruptions so that they’re a scheduled event rather than something we’re reacting to?

Segment 4:

As leaders, our decisions regarding priorities sends a message to our team, letting them know whether or not they fit into our schedule. How can we establish a culture of understanding and accountability to ensure that everybody’s needs are tended to? Why is it important that leaders and their teams have the same standards for time and attention management?

The problem with having a great product or service is that you believe it will do all of the work for you. In this week’s episode of ICommunicate, Mark discusses how knowing your Unique Value Proposition can be THE deciding factor in a client or company choosing your service or product over that of a competitor.

Segment 1:

At the end of the day, when we’re selling to a potential client, the most important factor in closing the deal is the perceived value of our product or service…. right? What are the most important talking points during a conversation with a new client? How can we differentiate ourselves from the competition to prove that there’s value in a relationship with us?

Segment 2:

Aside from listening, what is the most important skill we should utilize when developing a relationship with a client? What are value-based questions that we can ask clients to demonstrate our value to them?

Segment 3:

As salespeople, it’s essential for us to ask questions to our clients that lead us to the root cause of their problem. How can we frame conversations to uncover our client’s problems and priorities?

Segment 4:

Often times potential clients don’t have a full understanding of the sales process. Their fears and uncertainty may hinder your ability to close the deal. How can we enlighten prospects and make the decision making process easier for them? How can we develop a better understanding of what makes us stand out from our competitors?

In this episode of ICommunicate, Mark discusses how self-reflection and introspection can lead to setting and accomplishing meaningful goals as well as improving workplace culture to encourage cross-collaboration.

Segment 1:

It’s one thing to set goals, but another to be aware of the progress we’re making towards those goals. How can setting specific, tangible goals benefit our self-awareness? Why is it so important that we understand our weaknesses as much as our strengths?

Segment 2:

As leaders, it’s essential for us to reflect on our strengths, weaknesses, and how we’re affecting our team. Why is it essential for us to create a culture of vulnerability, where people feel comfortable asking for feedback? Why should we seek discomforting evidence and question our assumptions when it comes to our own self awareness?

Segment 3:

After we self-reflect and understand our strengths and weaknesses, it comes time for us to find ways to apply what we’ve learned. What questions should we be asking about ourselves and our teams to figure out what areas need improvement? How can we use introspection in our day to day lives?

Segment 4:

We can be motivated to make changes, but if we don’t have the awareness to understand what steps need to be taken to improve, we’ll fall short. How much time and effort should we be putting towards introspection? How can introspection lead us to uncover problems that may be holding back our teams?

What really matters to you? In this episode of ICommunicate, Mark discusses how to utilize the different types of self-awareness to unlock a deeper understanding of ourselves and our relationships, ultimately enhancing our ability to lead and motivate.

Segment 1:

Everything starts with self-awareness. Yet, most companies don’t value developing that skill in employees nearly as much as they should. What are the two types of self-awareness, and how do they play into our daily lives?

Segment 2:

The awareness we have about ourselves and how people see us ultimately shapes how effective we are at motivating ourselves and others. What type of self-awareness persona do you embody, and what should you be striving for?

Segment 3:

It’s one thing to be aware of our values, but another thing to consistently model them. How can we optimize our schedules to ensure that we’re comfortable with the processes involved in our work and personal lives? How can developing awareness around our daily schedules lead to more time to explore our passions outside of work?

Segment 4:

When we think back on times where we had a problem with somebody, we can reflect on ways those conversations could have ended better. What’s the importance of recognizing why we’re disagreeing with somebody? How can developing awareness around our relationships prevent problems down the line?

In this episode of ICommunicate, Mark Altman, Director of Learning and Development at MindsetGo, discusses the steps to impactful conversations with individuals or teams that are frustrated. Learn to help people shift their mindset, embrace different perspectives, and see their role in change.

Segment 1:

Navigating through a conversation with somebody who is especially frustrated is a tall task without the right toolkit. What should we keep in mind when we’re in these situations? How can we turn somebody’s frustration into motivation and clarity?

Segment 2:

A team that’s plagued with resignation mindsets leads to a culture where frustration is contagious. What is a resignation mindset, and what steps can we take to avoid it? What strategies can we use to identify the root cause of problems, and why is it essential for leaders to know?

Segment 3:

What we say in a conversation with somebody who is frustrated could be the deciding factor in whether or not they resolve their problem. How can we help our team draw conclusions about where their feelings are coming from? How can we guide our peers towards understanding different perspectives?

Segment 4:

As leaders, we play a pivotal role in the wellbeing of our team, and must be on the lookout for signs of frustration. What results should we strive for when having conversations with our team about what’s holding them back?